Black Sabbath (1983: Doomsday)

Black Sabbath are an English hard rock band, formed in Birmingham, UK in 1968. Along with Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath defined hard rock, which eventually evolved into heavy metal, and are considered heavy metal pioneers. The band became popular after the release of their second album Paranoid, with the titular song written at the last minute. While the album was almost universally panned by critics, it went on to become one of the greatest hard rock albums of all time, similar to Queen's album, A Night at the Opera.

Early History
After Tony Iommi and Bill Ward's old blues-based rock band, Mythology, broke up, they formed the Polka Tulk Blues Band with Ozzy Osbourne and Geezer Butler, who were previously in a  band called Rare Breed, in 1968. The band was renamed Earth in 1969, but was mistaken for another regional band of the same name, and so decided to pick the name Black Sabbath, which stuck. The band recorded their first studio album, Black Sabbath (1970), which peaked at 8 in the UK and 23 in the US.

Paranoid
The real breaktrhough into the mainstream of rock and roll came with Paranoid, Black Sabbath's sophomore album. With singles Paranoid/The Wizard and Iron Man/Electric Funeral, Paranoid reached number 1 in the UK and 12 in the US. Black Sabbath toured the US following the release of Paranoid.

Continued Successes
The third album by Black Sabbath, Master of Reality, was not as popular, charting at 8 in the US and 5 in the UK. It still contained classic hard rock music, however, with hits like Children of the Grave and Sweet Leaf. The fourth album, named Vol. 4, was even less popular in the mainstream charts (peaking at 8 in the UK and 13 in the US). The only single released off of Vol. 4, Tomorrow's Dreams, was a flop, failing to even chart.

Fearing obsolescence, Black Sabbath returned with Sabbath Bloody Sabbath in 1973. This album peaked at 4 in the UK, but only reached 11 in the US. This was the first time that the band gained media affection, with Rolling Stones saying that the album was "an extraordinarily gripping affair", and "nothing less than a complete success."

Decline
During this time, a "New Wave" of British heavy metal began to emerge, though it was obscure at this time.Bands such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden eventually coming to dominate in this genre by the early 1980s challenging the "Old Wave" of bands such as Black Sabbath and Deep Purple with faster and harder approaches to their music, and stripped-down playing styles without blues or folk influences. Following Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, the band, led by Tony Iommi, decided to move away from mainstream rock and focus on the harder aspects of the genre. Their next album, Sabotage, received mixed reviews. Drugs and alcohol greatly reduced the chemistry of the band. Technical Ecstasy, Black Sabbath's seventh studio album continued to go downhill, failing to even break into the Top 50 in the US.

Never Say Die!, the last studio album to feature popular singer Ozzy Osbourne was recorded during seriously deteriorating relations between Iommi and Butler against Osbourne, who was highly addicted to both drugs and alcohol. This album marked the lowest point for Black Sabbath, which failed to reform to the emerging "New Wave of Heavy Metal."

Ronnie James Dio Years
When Ozzy Osbourne was kicked out of Black Sabbath, Black Sabbath manager Don Arden suggested Rainbow's vocalist Ronnie James Dio to replace Ozzy. Dio joined in June of 1979, changing the sound of Black Sabbath to align more with the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

The first album to feature Ronnie James Dio, Heaven and Hell, was a smashing success, with singles "Die Young" and "Neon Knights" leading the band onto a tour of the US. 1981's Mob Rules was also popular, gaining international recognition.

Discography

 * Black Sabbath - 1970
 * Paranoid - 1970
 * Master of Reality - 1971
 * Vol. 4 - 1972
 * Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - 1973
 * Sabotage - 1975
 * Technical Ecstasy - 1976
 * Never Say Die! - 1978
 * Heaven and Hell - 1980
 * Mob Rules - 1981
 * Born Again - 1983