My Top 10 Favorite Black Sabbath Songs

There’s nothing I can add that hasn’t been said about this monumentally influential band. If heavy metal was personified as the United States, statues of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward would greet newcomers to this dark land. If heavy metal were incarnated as a landscape in Middle Earth, the Gates of Mordor would be engraved with towering sculptures of Black Sabbath. In other words: they’re a Big Fucking Deal. Just how important are they? James Hetfield got choked up when he spoke at Black Sabbath’s induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame:

  

Sans the difficult upbringing, I can relate with Hetfield. If heavy metal and all its spawnings didn’t exist, I’m not sure I’d want to stick around. Maybe an old geezer version of me won’t agree, but that’s how my thirty-six-year-old self feels.

In honor of this band—and because I’m bored at work (No work and little play makes Juan bored, bored, bored)—here’s a list of my favorite ten Black Sabbath songs:

Into the Void Master of Reality

You will probably read this several times in this post, but this song has a fucking sick riff. If I sat down and gave it some serious thought, “Into the Void” probably has one of my favorite riffs of all-time. The song’s slow, heavy groove is so tasty. It’s like the sonic equivalent of a rich, thick and beautifully brewed porter. (I’m thinking of you, Black Robusto!)[1]

To boot, this song might be one of the seeds for stoner rock. (“Into the Void” happens to be one of my favorite songs to listen to when I’m riding a dragonfly, so to say.) Black Sabbath was so goddamn influential.

Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener Vol. 4

Dear god, it’s taken me nearly thirty-seven years to gorge on this album, but better late than Never. Gun to my head, right now, I think I would pick Vol. 4 as my favorite Black Sabbath album, and this is the song I’ve been most obsessed with lately. “Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener” is a song with two distinct parts and a ton of movements: the bluesy riff to launch the song—a riff that is never repeated—and then the simple, overdriven main verse which weaves into the slightly manic-squishy middle of the song. Like many Sabbath songs, Geezer Butler’s lyrics are exceptional. I love the crunchy sound of Iommi’s guitar starting from 3:31-3:39. It’s only eight seconds, but sweet baby Damien that part always lights a fleeting bonfire inside me; it sounds like a coked-out Iommi is grinding his teeth and striking the guitar strings as hard as he fucking can. (At least that’s what I’m going for when I inevitably air-guitar to that passage!)

And then the outro starting after the five-minute mark: ahhhhhh—pure heavy metal gorgeosity. There’s something about that riff that is sing-song-like. I can’t put my finger on it but I love it, and then Iommi basically shreds over it for the last minute of the song. Maybe it is its relative novelty for me right now, but there’s something especially epic about this epic Black Sabbath song.

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath

As far as I’m concerned, a top-10 list of best Black Sabbath songs is flawed or incomplete if it doesn’t include this song. Judas Priest’s Rob Halford—another fucking heavy metal giant—said: “To me Black Sabbath’s ‘Black Sabbath’ is the most evil track ever that’s been written in metal.”

I would go so far as to argue that “Black Sabbath” is the most startling introductory song for a band or musician in rock history. I could never listen to every first album ever recorded, but I don’t think this song could be topped in that respect. The opening church bell. The rainfall. The ominous thunder. The sheer evil sound of Iommi’s guitar. Ozzy’s frightening lyrics (What is this that stands before me / Figure in black that points at me) and his chilling screams just before Iommi, Butler and Ward explode again into the demonic-sounding, tritone-driven chorus.

If you were a kid—along with Britney Spears cover of the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction—this is not a song you would want to play at night if you were home alone.

Electric Funeral Paranoid

Paranoid was the first Black Sabbath album I owned. For too many years, it was the only Black Sabbath album I was familiar with. Even after all these years, and all these changes (sorry, I couldn’t resist that Black Sabbath reference), “Electric Funeral” remains one of my three favorite tunes from Paranoid.

All that said, it wasn’t until a few months back that I realized that the song’s verse sounds like a lullaby. Don’t believe me?: try humming the riff. All these years, I now suspect I’ve been fond of this song because Iommi’s wah-pedal riff feels like an innocent lullaby but then Butler’s lyrics are nice and ominous in the imminent doom-like way.

Ever since I realized that, sometimes I listen to “Electric Funeral” on my iPod before I go to sleep. And what do you know, the song comforts me.

Children of the Grave Master of Reality

Like a film was meant to be projected on a big screen, “Children of the Grave” was born to be played fucking loud! It probably has the sickest intro to any Sabbath song. Geezer’s bass line and Ward’s drum crescendo is straight primal; it never fails to put hair on my balls (so to say). Honestly, I could be on my death bed and if this song came on I’m pretty sure it would make me feel like getting up to knock some heads.

On a related note, this is one of my absolute favorite songs to cycle or work out to. It’s like my sonic equivalent of Popeye’s spinach. It’s also pretty fun to listen to when I’m driving but the only problem is that it inevitably makes the car’s speedometer spike to +75 mph. “Children of the Grave” is like a magical incantation in that way.

Supernaut Vol. 4

Speaking of songs that put hair on your balls, few songs—in my humble opinion—can hold a concert hall lighter to Sabbath’s “Supernaut.” I’ve already written about it before in a write-up about my favorite songs about drugs.

But to recap, in case you didn’t know, Vol. 4 was like Black Sabbath’s ode to cocaine. They were getting that shit shipped to them in large speaker boxes! In his autobiography, Ozzy said, “When I listen to songs like ‘Supernaut’, I can just about taste the stuff.”

“Supernaut” is a couple of ridunkulous lines of cocaine incarnate. Iommi’s riff during the verse feels like the driving, frenetic, teeth-grinding, I’m-fucking-invincible! sensation one gets from snorting a few choice lines.

Let’s put it another way: if “Supernaut” was inserted as the soundtrack during Tony Montana’s shootout at the end of de Palma’s classic, Scarface, the movie would end with Pacino’s character standing at the end, yelling the lyrics of the first verse to all the bullet-ridden corpses lining his mansion.

Megalomania Sabotage

Over the years, Sabotage has become one of my favorite Sabbath albums.[2] Without a doubt, it’s the last solid to excellent (depending on your vantage, of course) Ozzy-era Sabbath album. I could be speaking for myself, but “Megalomania” is exceptional in that it doesn’t feel like its 9 minutes and 43 seconds long. The opening section is distinct and then the song really takes off at the 3:24 mark. A cowbell + Iommi’s wicked dirty-sounding riff = metal bliss.

For all we know, the classic “More Cowbell” SNL bit with Christopher Walken might have been inspired by Bill Ward’s cowbell playing in this song?

Heaven and Hell Heaven and Hell

“Heaven and Hell” is my only Dio era song on this list. Although I think Dehumanizer is a far superior album than Heaven and Hell (and Sabbath’s most resoundingly underrated album), this song is peak RJD and Black Sabbath. The production is exceptional—it is truly a modernized Black Sabbath for the mid-1980s. Butler’s simple but relentless bass line is perfect for this song, and Iommi is back to being his bad-motherfucker self with his riffs. His solos in the middle of the song are excellent—and a new wrinkle in his game compared to their work in the classic Ozzy-Sabbath era.

Starting around the 4:30 mark, it’s strap-your-seatbelt time with Ward’s drums and cymbal crashes driving Iommi, Butler and Dio to some mighty heights. And then, after that searing high, the song ends with the classical-influenced Iommi playing some simple yet elegant acoustic work. Black Sabbath wrote a lot of epic songs that defined the genre, but I think “Heaven and Hell” might be the one Everest of a song that stands tallest amongst them all. I think you could argue that this 6:59 song contains just about everything that made Sabbath a legendary band.

Symptom of the Universe Sabotage

What a fucking song. Every once in a while a song comes along that so evidently spawned others; “Symptom of the Universe” is one of those compositions. The fast tempo and Iommi’s opening riff can easily be heard in Diamond Head’s classic “Am I Evil” or another metal classic, Metallica’s “Master of Puppets.” Some people have gone as far as to say that “Symptom of the Universe” gave birth to thrash metal. I’m no metal scholar, but that definitely seems like it could be the case.

Just one song write-up before I had argued that “Heaven and Hell” possibly contained everything that made Sabbath an epic band. I think the same could be said for this song. Just give it a listen: from a musical standpoint, everyone is at their peak. Ward bangs some crazed drums in the song’s first half. Iommi’s crunching riff sounds like it could jackhammer through a fucking mountain but listen to Geezer’s punctuating bass notes throughout, especially during the interludes between verses. Second for second, minute by minute he always hits the right note. And Ozzy’s vocals are especially potent; his wailing in the opening infuses the song with a delicious maniacal spirit. (I can’t think of a better vocalist for this song.) Sometimes I don’t care for his vocals in the song’s chillaxing outro, but few Sabbath songs better display his range. All these musical elements intertwine for a truly exceptional piece.

War Pigs Paranoid

From the top-10 lists I’ve read online, “War Pigs”—Black Sabbath’s most political song—pretty much makes everyone’s cut. I can sum it up in a few lines: “War Pigs” is like the musical equivalent of George Orwell’s Animal Farm (which is probably my favorite novel); as long as humans roam this earth we are rapidly destroying, this song will always be timeless. This will always be us. As a species, we will never know true peace because it’s just not in our nature. There will always be enough war pigs amongst us, and they will always creep and plot and plunder and do whatever is necessary to assume a critical position of power because enough of us will always be sheep and allow it—until we’re all wiped off this planet. You deluded optimists can call me a cynic but I’ve read enough history books to know that this is simply a realistic conclusion.

Musically, this song is epic. “War Pigs” is the template for long epic heavy metal songs.

Honorable Mentions:

Sabbra Cadabra Sabbath Bloody Sabbath

Classic Sabbath. Iommi’s riff is sick. Even though the song is an outlier because it’s about love, it contains quintessential Ozzy vocals. And the musical production is perfect. With the trippy keyboards and amped-up vocals, it is a distinct offering—and no one can touch this song. Just listen to the Metallica cover; it’s awful compared to the original, which—in my humble opinion—is a rare feat for Metallica since most of their covers are so good (and oftentimes superior to the original, in my humble opinion).

Snowblind Vol. 4

Classic Sabbath. Iommi’s riff is sick. (I could say that about many Sabbath songs, right?) These British boys sure loved their cocaine!

Hole in the Sky Sabotage

Like “Children of the Grave,” this song has a seemingly magical effect on me whenever I’m driving a car because it always makes me drive faster for some reason. (And, may I add, it’s an excellent song to blast from your stereo while speeding down Highway 24!)

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[1] I swear, Drake’s did not pay me for that plug. No one pays me to write except my employer when they give me nothing to do.

[2] Right now, if I had to rank my top-five Black Sabbath albums, it would be: 1) Vol. 4, 2) Sabotage, 3) Master of Reality, 4) Paranoid and 5) Dehumanizer.

Drugs, Drugs, Drugs: My 13 Favorite Songs About Drugs

In his classic Relentless show, late comedian Bill Hicks said, “Drugs have done good things for us.... If you don't believe drugs have done good things for us, do me a favor then. Go home tonight. Take all your albums, your tapes and your CDs—and burn 'em. Because you know what, the musicians who made all that great music that's enhanced your lives throughout the years? Reeeeeeeeeeal fucking high on drugs.”

Of course, not every great musician we’ve been blessed with did drugs, but Hicks—in my humble opinion—has a point. Many of our greatest musicians did consume drugs at one point or another—to expand their earthly perceptions, to escape from the suffering they bottled inside, or to simply fit in with their scene. Did consuming drugs have a positive effect? From an artistic standpoint, I think it can be generally argued that they must have had some positive contribution. From a personal standpoint, probably not so much. I’ll list a few names for you: Layne Staley. Amy Winehouse. Jim Morrison. Whitney Houston. You get the point.

What is inarguable is that musicians have created some astounding music related to drugs. I’m not necessarily condoning drugs although I do agree with George Carlin that marijuana and hallucinogens are “value changers,” which—in my book—is a positive attribute. (Carlin’s discussion with Jon Stewart about drugs and marijuana and a clip from his Archive of American Television interview is worth seeing.) Drugs are like anything in life—like going to college, or being in a relationship, or having kids—they're not for everyone.

When I suggested this musical post with my homeboy, Justin, he said we were gonna basically write about our favorite songs. Ultimately, he was completely right.

Check out Justin’s list here. And without further ado, here are some of my favorite songs about drugs:

I’m Waiting for the Man – Velvet Underground
“Heroin” is an epic song but I’ve always loved this one more because of the story it paints. This is textbook telling-a-story-through-a-song. (Lou Reed was an English major, after all.) Fuck Paul McCartney and his emotionally vacant let-me-tell-you-a-story songs like “Rocky Raccoon” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” (though I do like that number)! Give me a song about a low-life junky going to Harlem to score drugs from his dealer with a nice ‘n dirty distorted guitar for accompaniment! Yes! Yes!

Cold Turkey – John Lennon
I’m not done talking shit about Paul McCartney because now let me tell you why I love this song. “Cold Turkey” is an excellent example of the primary difference between Lennon and McCartney as songwriters. McCartney would have to live fifty lifetimes to ever write an unflinchingly honest song like this one. But not Lennon. No, he would give himself the task of being hyper-personal and vulnerably honest by attempting to convey what it feels like to give up heroin cold turkey. Sure, it’s a musical experiment, but those guitars are pretty nice ‘n nasty, too. Although I hardly ever listen to it, this will always be one of my favorite solo-Lennon songs.  

Angry Chair – Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains’s Dirt is to heroin what Black Sabbath’s Vol. 4 is to cocaine (although AIC’s album does not glorify drug usage like Ozzy did). “Godsmack” is another vicious track about Layne Staley’s troubles with heroin but “Angry Chair” is my favorite. It’s such a dark, violent, and ominous song. Years after he wrote this song, Staley died from an overdose of heroin and cocaine. (His body decomposed for two weeks before the police broke down his door.) Crank the speakers and listen to this song. It’s kind of all unflinching there, which is why Alice in Chains with Staley as their front man was an astounding band.

Master of Puppets – Metallica
The title track from their greatest album and probably one of their ten best songs, "Master of Puppets" is the quintessential thrash metal epic. With Cliff Burton in the fold, this track captures Metallica at their peak. Thanks to the album cover, this song may appear to be about the Devil but it's actually about addiction to speed.

Supernaut – Black Sabbath
With songs like “Snowblind” and “Supernaut” Vol. 4 was Sabbath’s ode to coke. In his autobiography Ozzy Osbourne wrote, “that album owed a lot to cocaine.” “Snowblind” may be more overtly about cocaine but “Supernaut” is cocaine personified. Iommi’s riff during the verse feels like the driving, frenetic, teeth-grinding, I’m-fucking-invincible sensation one gets from taking a couple of hearty bumps. (“I want to reach out and touch the sky / I want to touch the sun”) Ozzy himself said, “When I listen to songs like ‘Supernaut’, I can just about taste the stuff.”

Ummmmmm, yeah. Spot on.

Six Pack – Black Flag 
I’ve got a six pack, and nothing to do 
I’ve got a six pack, and I don’t need you!

I like how crappy and lo-fi the production is; it’s classic Reagan-era punk, and Henry Rollins’ lyrics manage a balance between humor and sarcasm. Plus, if this kind of music is up your alley, it’s fun to shout along with the “Six pack” backing vocals.

And in case you’re asking why I have a song about beer on here, don’t ever forget that alcohol is a class 4 narcotic.

Nightrain – Guns N’ Roses
During the production of their classic Appetite for Destruction, the boys from Guns N’ Roses infamously destroyed a rented house on the former estate of filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille. (The band’s A&R rep recalled, “"People were defecating in the sinks. The holes in the floor where the toilets got ripped off were filled with urine. There were half-eaten Whoppers with mold on the wrappers. They would just get in these drug rages and just go berserk.") Of all the songs on that album, I think this one came closest to capturing all that decadent destruction.

God knows when I was in my mid to late twenties this song was playing in my head—or through my iPod headphones—when I was hellbent on pulling a rager. Not proud of that, but it’s the fucking truth.

Mary Jane – Rick James
It’s a delightful song. And the lyrics are minorly brilliant. No musician could top Rick James if they ever tried to write a song about marijuana but make it seem as though it were really about a woman. (Kurt Cobain gave it a whirl with “Moist Vagina,”, which happens to be one of my favorite Nirvana B-sides.)  

Purple Haze – The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Sure, who knows what this song is really about, but I’m betting the family farm that it alludes to the psychedelic experience. I mean, listen to the song and tell me it wasn’t meant to be conducive to the drug experience. That Jimi Hendrix was a genius!  

White Rabbit – Jefferson Airplane

Man, were the 60s good for drug songs or what?

The intro is one of my absolute favorites: the mildly ominous bass, snare drums that sound like the beginning of a journey and then the trippy where-the-fuck-am-I? guitar notes. Sure, the lyrics are about Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland but sweet baby Jesus this song is really about tripping balls. Observe:

And you've just had some kind of mushroom 
And your mind is moving low. 
Go ask Alice 
I think she'll know. 
When logic and proportion 
Have fallen sloppy dead, 
And the White Knight is talking backwards 
And the Red Queen's "off with her head!" 
Remember what the dormouse said: 
"Feed your head. Feed your head. Feed your head"

Dude… reeeeeeeeeeal fucking high on drugs!

“White Rabbit” is the musical call to arms to Timothy Leary’s “Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out.”

Garbageman – The Cramps
A list of my favorite songs about drugs would be incomplete without one from The Cramps. Their frontman, Lux Interior, was all about drugs. And this “one half hillybilly and one half punk” song is The Cramps at their finest: Lux doing his psycho-Elvis best, Poison Ivy laying down some nasty-sounding guitar chords, and a simple beat to allow them to soar.

You slick hipsters can take Johnny Cash and Folsom Prison Blues. (I do own that album—on vinyl—which is probably hipster-y of me.) I’ll take The Cramps playing at the Napa State Mental Hospital any fucking day.

Drug Ballad – Eminem
Now we have digressed to the part of my list where I am totally supportive of getting jacked up. Enter Eminem’s “Drug Ballad,” one of my favorite jams on his epic The Marshall Mathers LP. No need to describe it. Just give it a good listen.

Let’s Get Fucked Up – The Cramps

Wait, The Cramps make my cut twice? And no songs from the post-Rubber Soul Beatles or Stones? (For the record, two of my favorite songs to listen to when I’m high (historically speaking) are “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite” and “Brown Sugar.”) Before you ask what is wrong with me, tell me, how could I say no to this song (and this studio version doesn't come close to conveying how wild it felt to listen to The Cramps play it live):