Paranoid (studio album) by Black Sabbath

A solid 8/10 album for the casual listener. Tracks 1,2,4,5 are great, the rest are just OK. I can definitely see why metal heads would rate this even higher, though.

Side 1 is possibly one of the greatest sides in hard rock / early heavy metal.

"War Pigs" set the bar for heavy metal protest songs; truly a classic.

"Paranoid" was 20 years ahead of its time; many of the new wave and synth pop bands of the 80s owe their style to that song alone.

"Planet Caravan" has some wonderful guitar work and nice percussion and smooth bass work. This is almost a smooth Jazz/samba fusion; not something you'd hear on a heavy metal album, but you hear it here. A relaxing song, but not quite up to the level of the first two tracks.

"Iron Man" is an iconic heavy metal song with a riff that is played to this day. The song sounds like a fusion of southern rock and heavy metal.

Side Two is very good, but simply can't match the excellence of side one. That being said, this is truly a landmark album in the history of 20th Century popular music.

9.5/10!

Still one of the greatest albums of all time. Despite having heard War Pigs, Iron Man and Paranoid too many times in my life, this is the quintessential heavy metal album.

From JoaoMoreira 02/09/2024 01:05

Solid as fuck record.
Strong, wide and heavy with a purpose.
Great musicianship!

Masterpiece. The riffs and guitar tone on this album are some of the greatest ever put to record. Ozzy is in his absolute prime here.

5 Stars.

Iconic album. First four tracks are incredible, unfortunately it drops in quality after that but it's still an incredible album. War Pigs the pick for me.

Amazing first four songs. Pretty steep decline in the second half.

This is essential listening not only for the metal genre but for music in general as its importance in history is huge. The influence this album had is massive and it has the quality to back it up as well. Musically, it still sounds so fresh and exciting with side 1 being one of the strongest sides of music the metal genre has ever seen. To have War Pigs, Paranoid and Iron Man on one half of a record makes it seem like this is a greatest hit compilation rather than an album. There is a slight drop off in the second half but it is no way near as large as you expect with Electric Funeral and Fairies Wear Boots being absolute classics for the group. The instrumentation on here is simply phenomenal as well with every member of the group shining at one point or the other. As a result of this we get a heavy and cohesive sound that is a joy to experience. Ozzy Osbourne's vocal is extremely impressive on here also as he showcases why he is considered one of the greatest of all time. Overall, this is Black Sabbath's strongest release as it is the most consistent and has some of the greatest instrumental moments they have ever produced.

Solid album