Black Sabbath

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“I’m honored”: Tony Iommi walks onstage to play Paranoid at the Black Sabbath ballet – and the entire ensemble bows at his feet

By Matt Parker published 25 September 23

The father of metal guitar was given a humbling tribute during a surprise appearance at the Birmingham Royal Ballet’s new Sabbath-themed show

Robert Trujillo of Metallica performs on stage at Ippodromo San Siro on May 8, 2019 in Milan, Italy.

“Ozzy Osbourne gets in my face and we're doing this dance. Sometimes Kirk and I do it during For Whom the Bell Tolls”: Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo explains the origin of his iconic crab walk

By Nick Wells published 11 August 23

Robert Trujillo thanks Ozzy Osbourne for helping turn on his stage performance with Metallica

Black Sabbath perform in concert, New York, New York, October 29, 1983.

“I don't know whether we played it properly, but the audience loved it”: When Black Sabbath regularly covered Smoke on the Water – and unwittingly inspired Spinal Tap's Stonehenge

By Jackson Maxwell published 7 August 23

Sabbath's ill-fated Born Again tour featured comically oversized props “as big as the real Stonehenge”, onstage spills, and a crowd-pleasing hard-rock crossover

Tony Iommi, Johnny Depp and Joe Perry perform Paranoid with The Hollywood Vampires

“An official Vampire now”: Tony Iommi played Paranoid with Joe Perry, Johnny Depp and Alice Cooper at The Hollywood Vampires’ recent UK show

By Matt Parker published 13 July 23

The Black Sabbath legend dropped in on the band’s Birmingham, UK show and proved he has lost none of his chops since retiring from touring

Ozzy Osbourne and Randy Rhoads playing live, and an Ozzy Osbourne tribute that depicts him playing guitar

Worst Ozzy Osbourne tribute ever? British pub’s inexplicable Photoshop gaffe removes Randy Rhoads and hands his polka dot V to Ozzy instead

By Matt Owen published 19 June 23

This Birmingham pub’s tribute to Osbourne and the birth of Black Sabbath went very wrong indeed

Geezer Butler: “Originally it was titled ‘Nib’, which was Bill’s beard and looked like a pen nib because it was pointy”

By Nick Wells published 31 March 23

Geezer Butler explains the obscure title behind one of Black Sabbath’s most recognisable riffs

Paul Gilbert tackles both Tony Iommi and Ronnie James Dio’s parts in new cover of Black Sabbath’s Heaven and Hell

By Matt Owen published 23 February 23

It follows the Mr. Big virtuoso's cover of Dio's Holy Diver, with his fully fledged Dio tribute record set to arrive April 7

Some of Black Sabbath’s heaviest tracks are being turned into a ballet

By Matt Owen published 8 February 23

War Pigs, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Iron Man and five other Sabbath songs will soundtrack the new three-act dance show – which might feature a Tony Iommi cameo

Tony Iommi reveals he is about to start recording a new album

By Matt Owen published 4 January 23

The Black Sabbath legend didn't give too much away, but it sounds as though a follow-up to 2005's Fused is right around the corner

Bassist Frank Bello of Anthrax performs at Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas at The LINQ Promenade on February 11, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Frank Bello: 5 bass players who influenced me

By Joel McIver published 14 November 22

Anthrax bassist Frank Bello on Geezer Butler, Steve Harris, Paul McCartney and more

The rock group MC5 (L-R Dennis "Machine Gun" Thompson, Wayne Kramer, Fred "Sonic" Smith and Rob Tyner) perform live in 1969 in Mount Clemens, Michigan

The 20 heaviest songs before Black Sabbath

By Richard Bienstock last updated 11 November 22

Behold, gentle reader, a sizzlin’ slew of down and dirty tracks that helped forge heavy metal

Ozzy Osbourne hints at future tour: “If I have to go up there and die on the first song, I’ll still be back the next day”

By Sam Roche published 30 August 22

The Prince of Darkness also mentions a possible solo album with his former Black Sabbath bandmate Tony Iommi

The 30 greatest rock guitar albums of 1972

By Greg Prato published 24 August 22

In '72, Alice Cooper and Bowie grew ever more theatrical while the riffs of Iommi, Blackmore and co got bigger. 50 years on, we celebrate the best from a banner year for rock

Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page and Pete Townshend took rock further, with big volume, big ideas, and ever more ambitious songwriting

The greatest guitar albums of the ‘70s: Getting the Led out with Sabbath, the Who, Pink Floyd and more

By Jenna Scaramanga published 19 August 22

Punk was a revolution, disco a global phenomenon, but the guitar music of the '70s was dominated by the giants of rock. Here are the decade's top 10 guitar albums, as chosen by you...

Tony Iommi explains why Geezer Butler didn’t join him and Ozzy at Commonwealth Games closing ceremony

By Jonathan Horsley published 15 August 22

The Black Sabbath guitarist also reveals his reunion with Ozzy Osbourne was a last-minute deal that they had to keep secret

Tony Iommi to perform at the 2022 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony

By Matt Owen published 21 July 22

The Black Sabbath legend will share the roster with new wave icons Duran Duran for the show, which takes place in their home city of Birmingham, England – the birthplace of heavy metal

Eddie Van Halen and Tony Iommi with an Ernie Ball Music Man electric guitar

Ernie Ball Music Man model played by Eddie Van Halen during a spontaneous Black Sabbath studio session hits the auction block

By Matt Owen published 3 May 22

The axe had been borrowed from a music shop in England after Van Halen bumped into Sabbath’s Tony Iommi

Tony Iommi’s long-serving guitar tech, Mike Clement, is in an induced coma

By Jonathan Horsley published 20 April 22

Clement, who has been the Black Sabbath guitarist’s right-hand man for over three decades, took a “serious tumble” at work

Watch Robb Flynn cover Black Sabbath onstage with a tribute band

By Matt Parker published 28 March 22

The Machine Head man joined Back Stabbath at their show at Elbo Room Jack London in Oakland, CA

Slash thinks this is the heaviest riff of all time: "Not one band that I can think of has a riff that is as heavy"

By Matt Owen published 28 February 22

"There's just nothing that's ever come out that's heavier" than this metal classic, says the Guns N' Roses guitar slinger

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