Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sabbath find their niche, 2 Dec 2006
Black Sabbath's second album develops the self-penned heavy rock contained on their debut and does away with the obvious blues influences. Tony Iommi's murderous, downtuned guitar prowls through what is a mostly slowish collection of tracks. The hit title track is the only high-tempo song. Ozzy Osbourne delivers lyrics that combine fragmentary remarks on war, drugs and nuclear threat with references to the occult and the grisly, largely in a voice that evokes dread. There's the odd digression, such as 'Fairies Wear Boots', which appears to reveal a sense of humour. Otherwise, this is music to spook you.
Heavy metal is an over-used term. Hard rock is probably a better description for much of the early 1970s, but Black Sabbath are a rare
exception. Their music is closest of its era in type to what emerged from the so-called 'New Wave Of Heavy Metal' onwards. They're not subtle, apart from on the mystical 'Planet Caravan', and their lyrics are not intellectual or possessed of different nuances, but the mood they achieve is intense and powerful. 'Paranoid' is their first classic album.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Classic Sabbath Album, 28 May 2000
By A Customer
Black Sabbath were the fathers of modern Heavy Rock (Zeppelin never claimed to be 'heavy'...just 'Rock' incidentally)and this album contains some of their greatest tracks...Paranoid, Warpigs, Fairies.. Having ownes all the Sabbath on vinyl for the past 20 years, I'd say that if you only have enough for one Sabbath album, get this one..chapter and verse of 1970s British Heavy Rock.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dominant Classic Metal, 5 Nov 2007
1970's self-titled debut gave Black Sabbath acclaim, albeit relatively low-key. It showcased a unique and wonderful sound - something far heavier and darker than any other metal band around. Later in that year the band released "Paranoid" to surprising colossal acclaim, propelling the band into both European and US stardom. This rise bewildered leagues of music fans against the band's supposed satanic proclamation, stupidly labelling them Satan worshippers and disregarding the music on offer. "Paranoid" trampled over the naysayers, planting the band into legendary status.
Most of the songs on "Paranoid" have become timeless classics. The title track is the song that everyone who doesn't know Sabbath, or doesn't really know classic metal and rock, knows. Supposedly written as a last ditch thing in the recording studio, the song's overt simplicity and various catchy hooks has become the public face for Sabbath. Ask a group of 40 year old mothers and I bet some, if not most, will know the song, or at least the lead riff. While I don't rank the song as particularly great Black Sabbath, I believe it to be a testament to their ability - their sound is so unique and wonderful, the simplest of Iommi riffs and most slapdash lyrics from Ozzy are elevated, boosted by a sense of raw energy and passion throughout. Obviously Ozzy leads this from the front, booming his voice from the get-go with the fabulous opener "War Pigs/Luke's Wall", one of my favourite Sabbath songs, galloping through sections, swaggering through riffs, solos and police sirens. The song is Black Sabbath at their best.
"Paranoid" is a wonderfully consistent album, flowing from song to song, and boasting no filler. While many of the songs have become anthems, such as the title track, "War Pigs" and the monolithic "Iron Man", the album has plenty to offer as a whole. "Hand of Doom" is up there with the best moments in the album, containing a great galloping sense and trademark Iommi riffing. "Fairies Wear Boots" is another underrated Sabbath song, and another that could have easily hit the mainstream popularity as others.
Many people have loosely thrown the abuse of Satan worshippers at Sabbath, and most particularly Ozzy Osbourne. Yes, he did bite a live bat on stage, but as he has said in countless interviews and retrospect programs - it was a stage mix up, and he was under the impression of it being rubber, as planned. Yes, the album imagery is dark and intense, but this was their image, it was their aesthetic style of branching out and creating an identity, a menacing identity. Lyrically, confusion seems to be in the band's interest in the occult, with the band members, and especially Geezer Butler having experienced bizarre experiences in their earlier lives. The obscure lyrics were easily misinterpreted, and even the less obscure ones, such as the poignant Vietnam War attack in "War Pigs", in which Ozzy paints a gloomy portrayal of humanity, with Satan "laughing" as he watches. Hardly proclaiming Satanism. While thousands of fans have argued as I am, the "evil" stigma became something of a tag, wrongly giving the band a controversial and mysterious label. It is for this that I can concede the criticism proved a double edged sword, as it certainly boosted the bands legendary persona.
"Paranoid" broke into mainstream success, giving the band ultimate stardom, and creating endless influence for the metal genre and many of its offshoots. Fans of classic rock should pick up this album, and discover the wonderful journey of Sabbath's lengthy and stellar discography.
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