Black Sabbath Albums Ranked

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IntoTheEndlessVoid

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Oct 19, 2015
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Hey everyone, I am new here. I am into Doom, Stoner, and Thrash metal, mostly. This means I love Sabbath.
I was curious as to people's rankings of the 19 Black Sabbath Albums?
Here is my list

1. Paranoid
2. Black Sabbath
3. Master of Reality
4. Vol 4
5. Heaven and Hell
6. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
7. Dehumanizer
8. Sabotage
9. Tyr
10. Mob Rules
11. 13
12. Headless Cross
13. Born Again
14. The Eternal Idol
15. Technical Ecstasy
16. Never Say Die!
17. Cross Purposes
18. Forbidden
19. Seventh Star
 
Well it all depends if one consider "Seventh Star" a Black Sabbath album or an Iommi solo album (as it was originally intended and fucked up by the label). So for the sake of conversation let's include it on the list:

1)"Heaven and Hell"
2)"Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath"
3)"Technical Ecstasy"
4)"Black Sabbath"
5)"Headless Cross"
6)"Vol.4"
7)"Paranoid"
8)"Master Of Reality"
9)"Mob Rules"
10)"Born Again"
11)"Sabotage"
12)"Dehumanizer"
13)"Tyr"
14)"Seventh Star"
15)"Cross Purposes"
16)"Never Say Die"
17)"The Eternal Idol"
18)"13"
19)"Forbidden"

I'm very sure about positions 1, 18 & 19, in between shuffle can be done depending on day and mood.

BTW, welcome to the board, read the rules and post as much as you can, we need new blood around here ;)
 
Wow -- Look at Tech Ecstasy getting some love!


Master of Reality
Heaven and Hell
Paranoid
Tyr
Black Sabbath
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Sabotage
Headless Cross
Seventh Star
Dehumanizer
13
Vol 4
The Eternal Idol
Mob Rules
Born Again
Cross Purposes
Technical Ecstasy
Never Say Die!
Forbidden
 
I think "Technical Ecstasy" is a great album from head to toes. Most Tony Martin era is very solid (except for the dreadful "Forbidden"), and criminally tried to be forgotten by Shozzy and their henchmen.
 
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Vol. 4 is certainly top 4. I'd probably list Dehumanizer in my top eight or something like that. Forbidden of course has to be 19th, and at the top of my list there would be often underrated, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath.
 
1. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
2. Paranoid
3. Black Sabbath
4. Vol. 4
5. Master of Reality
6. Mob Rules
7. Technical Ecstasy (Above Sabotage because of "Gypsy" and "Dirty Women")
8. Sabotage
9. Heaven and Hell
10. Born Again
Meh... sort the rest how you wish.

P.S. My brother once did an imitation of Ozzy on Gypsy while we were listening to the album. While I was taking a swig of soda, he went "She read my fortune then she read my mind. She didn't like my thoughts at all..." Soda squirted out of both nostrils like I was a Pepsi-breathing dragon!
 
1. Black Sabbath
2. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
3. Paranoid
4. Master Of Reality
5. 13
6. Heaven And Hell
7. Mob Rules
8. Vol 4
9. Sabotage
10. Never Say Die!
11. Dehumanizer
12. Technical Ecstasy
13. Born Again
14. The Eternal Idol
15. Headless Cross
16. Tyr
17. Seventh Star
18. Forbidden
19. Cross Purposes

I think neither Gillan/Martin nor the music from those periods were a good fit for Sabbath, so it's a double blow for that stuff. I want to like Seventh Star because Glenn's voice has great character on the album, but most of the music is lacklustre.
 
1) Heaven and Hell (while the collective Ozzy-era is pure god, no album - in any genre - can compete with H&H)

2) Sabotage (sure, their first few are more influential. but, pound for pound, this albums is the greatest of the Ozzy era)
3) Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath (see note above. it's applicable here, but this one simply isn't as dominant. with that said, "Spiral Architect" is among their ten greatest masterworks).
4) Paranoid (any album that counts "Hand of Doom" and "Electric Funeral" amongst its 'second tier' can only be a masterpiece)
5) Black Sabbath
6) Master of Reality
7) Volume 4
8) Mob Rules
9) Born Again (arguably the most under-rated album of all time)
10) Technical Ecstasy (another in the top-ten of all-time underrated gems)
11) Eternal Idol (an unexpected masterpiece)
12) Tyr (see note above)
13) Cross Purposes (the hot streak continues)
14) Dehumanizer
15) 13
16) Devil You Know
17) Never Say Die
18) Headless Cross
19) Forbidden
20) Seventh Star
 
IntoTheEndlessVoid said:
I think Dehumanizer is criminally underrated as a Sabbath album, along with Tyr. Great lists guys!
Click to expand...

I'm definitely in the minority but I believe that the Ronnie James Dio vocaled Sabbath albums are superior to the Ozzy lead Sabbath. Those releases are simply great. I still love to hear Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and IV on occasion but it's that RJD vibe that I come back to the most.
 
1 - Sabotage
2 - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
3 - Vol 4
4 - Heaven and Hell
5 - Paranoid
6 - Master of Reality
7 - Dehumanizer
8 - Black Sabbath
9 - The Mob Rules
10 - Technical Ecstasy
11 - Never Say Die
12 - Born Again
13 - Cross Purposes
14 - Eternal Idol
15 - Seventh Star
...

16 - Headless Cross
17 - Tyr
18 - Forbidden

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

19 - 13. Absolutely bland, uncreative and unambitious.
 
This will be hard. I'm going to rank them from best to worst.

1.Master of Reality
2.Paranoid
3.Volume 4
4.Black Sabbath
5.Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
6.Heaven and Hell
7.Mob Rules
8.Dehmanizer
9.Technical Ecstasy
10.Never Say Die!
11.Born Again
12.13
13.The Eternal Idol

I haven't listened to the rest. Also, I forgot Sabotage, add that in around fith place.
 
I find this a bit difficult since the album and musical direction was so different with each line up. Though I do believe that Sabbath with Ozzy was the defining. I find it interest how the writing changed with each singer to something closer to the band they were in previous to joining Sabbath. I think this just shows that the only time Sabbath were really an almost original band was with Ozzy.
So I'll break it down like this, perhaps not the best but my favorites;

Ozzy albums
1. Black Sabbath
2. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
3. Vol 4
4. Paranoid
5. Master of Reality
8. Sabotage
9. Never Say Die!
10. Technical Ecstasy
11. 13 (this album was just sad, like watching an action movie with the guy who is 50 years to old to still be doing it, Could be my less fav or second to)

Dio albums
1. Heaven and Hell
2. Mob Rules
3. Dehumanizer (never got the hype on his one, love Dio but this point of Sab and Dio that just happened to sound the same just really wasn't doing it for me. Certainly one of my less liked Sab albums, but above 13 and Forbidden))

Martin albums
1. Headless Cross
2. Cross Purposes
3. TYR
4. The Eternal Idol
5. Forbidden (This was a terrible album, just terrible.

Others
1. Born Again (Good Deep Purple album)
2. Seventh Star (it was ok, certainly a product of its time)
 
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When I first saw the title of this thread I thought, 'awesome', then I clicked on it and realised that I'd forgotten that I'm not at all qualified to discuss most of the Tony Martin etc albums and that I walk around living my life having completely forgotten that they exist. So I'll rank the albums that I own/know (still need to buy Mob Rules and Dehumaniser can you believe it).

1. Paranoid
2. Master of Reality
3. Heaven and Hell
4. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
5. Black Sabbath
6. Vol 4
7. 13
8. Sabotage
9. The Mob Rules
10. Dehumaniser
11. Never Say Die
12. Technical Ecstacy
 
Last edited:
Heaven And Hell was my no.1 trip song when I used to take durgs but Black Sabbath is my favourite album
 
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