Ozzy Osbourne fans are gearing up for Black Sabbath’s final show scheduled for July and some have just realised the meaning behind the heavy metal band’s iconic name
Black Sabbath fans are shocked to discover the reason behind the band’s name.
The iconic rock group, fronted by Ozzy Osbourne, are credited with founding the heavy metal genre and are preparing to reunite one last time this summer. Due to all the recent buzz about their one-off gig, fans have been curious about the meaning behind the name Black Sabbath.
Over on Reddit, someone wrote: “Today I learned that heavy metal band Black Sabbath started as a blues band called Earth, but changed their name after seeing the Boris Karloff horror film Black Sabbath.”
“They liked that ‘people paid money to be frightened’.”
In Osbourne’s autobiography, the heavy metal vocalist explained that the ban ran into some trouble in their early days. They discovered that a band called Earth already existed, so to avoid confusion they decided to switch things up, landing on Black Sabbath.
The English rock band formed in Birmingham back in 1968 with guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and of course, vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. Their first three albums – Black Sabbath, Paranoid and Master of Reality – helped to define the heavy metal genre back in the early 70s.
The group has undergone a number of lineup changes throughout its history, with Iommi being the only constant member throughout their almost 60 year run. However, since 1997 Black Sabbath has settled on the original lineup with the exception of Ward on occasion.
While establishing their heavy metal sound, Sabbath adopted a dark look with horror-inspired lyrics and a recognisably gothic appearance. Believe it or not, Ozzy left the band back in 1977 and was replaced by Dave Walker.
He returned to record Never Say Die! but was later booted out of the band once again, reportedly due to his substance abuse issues. Sabbath later split in 1984 but later reformed in 1997, touring on-off until 2005.
They went on a hiatus in 2006, with the original lineup reuniting again in 2011. To ring out their farewell tour, Black Sabbath performed for the final time in Birmingham back in February 2017. This was the last time they would play together for eight years, with occasional reunions between band members such as Ozzy and Tony’s performance at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
