PARANOID

BBC TV ran an hour long program about the recording and the featured songs on this album, Black Sabbath's second album. All band members were interviewed and Tony Iommi also showed us the riffs on the main songs here. An excellent TV program well worth the TV license fee. So I dusted of this album again.

BBC called it a masterpiece and they are close to being right. Just the opening riffs on War Pigs is so powerful and excellent. So is the vocals too. Remember; this was during the Vietnam War and the lyrics + the music is just so immense powerful. This anti-war song is on the same level as the best of Bob Dylan, but I guess Black Sabbath is too political and musically unfashionable to be credited as an anti-war band. But they really were that. War Pigs is one of the best anthems of heavy rock.

Paranoid, the song, was made because they needed some more minutes to fill an album. An album originally called War Pigs, but later renamed after this track which was the end result of a visit to the local pub during a break in the recording. The big bosses in the big US record label corporation did not like the title War Pigs on an album during the Vietnam War. Paranoid is an excellent pop song like heavy metal anthem too.

Planet Caravan is a loony track which kinds of work, but is not on the same level. Iron Man on the other hand is one of the classic Black Sabbath anthems. It even have some jazz riffs, Tony Iommi told BBC with glee and a huge smile. He is a Django Reinhardt fan and Iron Man contains some classic Django licks. Electric Funeral is a semi classic Black Sabbath song again. Ditto for Hands Of Doom and Rat Salad. The final track is a mix of references to skinheads and drug taking. It is Ozzy's lyrics, btw. That explains everything. In short, this is a bit of a flawed masterpiece and hence my four stars. But War Pigs alone is worthy the whole album. The album is rightly regarded as a classic within the hard rock and rock genre and that is how it should be. Generations upon generations will discover this album and be filled with joy and amazement. In short; every home should own a copy of it.

4 stars