Born Again (Black Sabbath)
Encyclopedia
Born Again is the eleventh studio album by English
heavy metal
band Black Sabbath
, released in August 1983.
It has been panned by critics, but reached #4 in the UK charts as well as the top 40 in the United States.
The CD version of this album is not available in the United States, although imports often turn up in American stores. Additionally, the vinyl and cassette versions can still be found, and the album is available on iTunes.
, a former singer for Deep Purple
who was at the time a solo artist, on vocals. The band's guitarist, Tony Iommi
, has said that the group fired their previous vocalist, Ronnie James Dio
, and considered such possible replacements as Robert Plant
(formerly of Led Zeppelin
) and David Coverdale
(also a former Deep Purple singer, now with Whitesnake
), before they settled on Gillan. Gillan had first turned down the offer to join Black Sabbath, but his manager later convinced him to meet with Iommi and the band's bass guitarist, Geezer Butler
. Iommi and Butler met with Gillan at The Bear public house in Oxford
and Gillan officially joined the band in February 1983. The album also featured Bill Ward, the original Black Sabbath drummer who was newly sober. Ward has said that he enjoyed making the album.
Black Sabbath began recording the album in May 1983 at The Manor Studio
.
, daughter of Black Sabbath's then-manager Don Arden
and later Ozzy Osbourne's wife. In the words of Ian Gillan:
's single "New Life". Martin Popoff described the creature on the cover as a "garish red devil-baby". Bill Ward has said that he personally hated the album's cover and according to him, Ian Gillan told the press that he vomited when he first saw the cover. However, Tony Iommi approved the album cover. The cover has been considered one of the worst album covers ever. Ben Mitchell of Blender
called the cover "awful". The British magazine, Kerrang!
, ranked the cover in second place, behind only the Scorpions
' Lovedrive
, on their list of "10 Worst Album Sleeves In Metal/Hard Rock". The list was based on votes from the magazine's readers. NME
included the sleeve on their list of the "29 sickest album covers ever".
and became an American Top 40 hit. Despite this, it became the first Black Sabbath album to not have any RIAA certification in the US.
The album received negative reviews upon its release. Allmusic's Eduardo Rivadavia gave the album one and a half out of five stars and wrote that the album has "gone down as one of heavy metal's all-time greatest disappointments". He also described such songs as "Zero the Hero", "Hot Line", and "Keep It Warm" as "embarrassing". Blender
contributor Ben Mitchell gave the album one out of five stars and claimed that the music on Born Again was worse than its cover. Martin Charles Strong, the author of The Essential Rock Discography, wrote that it was "an exercise in heavy-metal cliche". However, Scott Seward of Rolling Stone
gave Born Again three out of five stars and described the album as a "monstrous beast and one of the best Sabbath albums that hardly anyone has heard." Popmatters
contributor Adrien Begrand has noted the album as "overlooked".
Despite the overall negative reception with critics; the album remains a fan favourite, for Author Martin Popoff
has written that "if any album in the history of Black Sabbath is getting a new set of horns up from metalheads here deep into the new century, it's Born Again." Death metal
band Cannibal Corpse
have covered "Zero the Hero", and the group's former singer, Chris Barnes
, has called Born Again his favorite Black Sabbath album. The song has also been cited as the inspiration for the Guns N' Roses
hit "Paradise City
". Metallica
drummer Lars Ulrich
has called Born Again "one of the best Black Sabbath albums". The album and supporting tour also inspired the parody film This Is Spinal Tap
. Geezer Butler has said that he told the associate scriptwriter of the film the story of the band's performances with their "Stonehenge" stage props.
It was announced that Born Again will be re-released bonus material on May 30, 2011 in the UK. There had been speculation that the album would be re-mixed before being re-released, but the album was only remastered due to the fact that the original multi-track tapes could not be located.
The live tracks are the entirety of a broadcast on The Friday Rock Show
, on BBC Radio 1
, which was aired before the album was released.
A bootleg version of the album exists which contains the unreleased track "The Fallen." (Which was officially released in the 2011 Re-issue) Also, the songs are in a different running order and the song "The Dark" is missing.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
, released in August 1983.
It has been panned by critics, but reached #4 in the UK charts as well as the top 40 in the United States.
The CD version of this album is not available in the United States, although imports often turn up in American stores. Additionally, the vinyl and cassette versions can still be found, and the album is available on iTunes.
Background information and recording
Born Again was the only album by Black Sabbath featuring Ian GillanIan Gillan
Ian Gillan is an English rock music vocalist and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist for Deep Purple. During his career Gillan also fronted his own band, had a year-long stint as the vocalist for Black Sabbath, and sang the role of Jesus in the original recording of Andrew Lloyd...
, a former singer for Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
who was at the time a solo artist, on vocals. The band's guitarist, Tony Iommi
Tony Iommi
Anthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and its sole continual member through multiple personnel changes.Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in...
, has said that the group fired their previous vocalist, Ronnie James Dio
Ronnie James Dio
Ronald James Padavona , better known as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal vocalist and songwriter. He performed with, amongst others, Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell, and his own band Dio, which means God in Italian. Other musical projects include the collective fundraiser...
, and considered such possible replacements as Robert Plant
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...
(formerly of Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
) and David Coverdale
David Coverdale
David 'Jack' Coverdale is an English rock singer, most famous for his work with the his own hard rock band Whitesnake which achieved massive commercial success.-Early life:...
(also a former Deep Purple singer, now with Whitesnake
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English rock band, founded in 1978 by David Coverdale after his departure from his previous band, Deep Purple. The band's early material has been compared by critics to Deep Purple, but by the mid 1980s they had moved to a more commercial hard rock style...
), before they settled on Gillan. Gillan had first turned down the offer to join Black Sabbath, but his manager later convinced him to meet with Iommi and the band's bass guitarist, Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler is an English musician and songwriter. Butler is best known as the bassist and lyricist of heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He was also involved in Heaven & Hell from 2006 to 2010.-Career:Butler formed his first band, Rare Breed, with old friend John "Ozzy" Osbourne in the autumn of...
. Iommi and Butler met with Gillan at The Bear public house in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
and Gillan officially joined the band in February 1983. The album also featured Bill Ward, the original Black Sabbath drummer who was newly sober. Ward has said that he enjoyed making the album.
Black Sabbath began recording the album in May 1983 at The Manor Studio
The Manor Studio
The Manor Studio was a recording studio in the manor house at the village of Shipton-on-Cherwell in Oxfordshire, England, north of the city of Oxford. It was the first residential recording studio in the UK...
.
Song information
"Digital Bitch" is rumoured to have been lyrically inspired by Sharon ArdenSharon Osbourne
Sharon Rachel Osbourne is an English television host, author, music manager, businesswoman and promoter as well as the wife of heavy metal singer-songwriter Ozzy Osbourne....
, daughter of Black Sabbath's then-manager Don Arden
Don Arden
Don Arden , born Harry Levy, was an English music manager, agent and businessman, best known for overseeing the careers of rock groups Small Faces, Electric Light Orchestra and Black Sabbath....
and later Ozzy Osbourne's wife. In the words of Ian Gillan:
Album cover
The album's cover was designed by Steve 'Krusher' Joule. Some consider the cover to be similar to the cover of Depeche ModeDepeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
's single "New Life". Martin Popoff described the creature on the cover as a "garish red devil-baby". Bill Ward has said that he personally hated the album's cover and according to him, Ian Gillan told the press that he vomited when he first saw the cover. However, Tony Iommi approved the album cover. The cover has been considered one of the worst album covers ever. Ben Mitchell of Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
called the cover "awful". The British magazine, Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...
, ranked the cover in second place, behind only the Scorpions
Scorpions (band)
Scorpions are a heavy metal/hard rock band from Hannover, Germany, formed in 1965 by guitarist Rudolf Schenker, who is the band's only constant member. They are known for their 1980s rock anthem "Rock You Like a Hurricane" and many singles, such as "No One Like You", "Send Me an Angel", "Still...
' Lovedrive
Lovedrive
Lovedrive is the sixth studio album by the German heavy metal band Scorpions, released in 1979. Lovedrive was a major evolution of the band's sound, which exhibited their "classic style" that would be later developed over their next few albums. Michael Schenker, younger brother of rhythm guitarist...
, on their list of "10 Worst Album Sleeves In Metal/Hard Rock". The list was based on votes from the magazine's readers. NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
included the sleeve on their list of the "29 sickest album covers ever".
Release, reception and influence
The album was released in October 1983 and was a commercial success. It was the highest charting Black Sabbath album in the United Kingdom since Sabbath Bloody SabbathSabbath Bloody Sabbath
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is the fifth studio album by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released in December 1973. With this album, the band expanded upon their slow, crunching style of music by strings, keyboards and more complex orchestral arrangements.-Recording:Following the 1972–1973...
and became an American Top 40 hit. Despite this, it became the first Black Sabbath album to not have any RIAA certification in the US.
The album received negative reviews upon its release. Allmusic's Eduardo Rivadavia gave the album one and a half out of five stars and wrote that the album has "gone down as one of heavy metal's all-time greatest disappointments". He also described such songs as "Zero the Hero", "Hot Line", and "Keep It Warm" as "embarrassing". Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
contributor Ben Mitchell gave the album one out of five stars and claimed that the music on Born Again was worse than its cover. Martin Charles Strong, the author of The Essential Rock Discography, wrote that it was "an exercise in heavy-metal cliche". However, Scott Seward of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
gave Born Again three out of five stars and described the album as a "monstrous beast and one of the best Sabbath albums that hardly anyone has heard." Popmatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
contributor Adrien Begrand has noted the album as "overlooked".
Despite the overall negative reception with critics; the album remains a fan favourite, for Author Martin Popoff
Martin Popoff
Martin Popoff is a Canadian-born music journalist and critic who covers the genre of heavy metal music. The senior editor and co-founder of Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles magazine, he has additionally written over twenty books that both critically evaluate heavy metal and document its history...
has written that "if any album in the history of Black Sabbath is getting a new set of horns up from metalheads here deep into the new century, it's Born Again." Death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band Cannibal Corpse
Cannibal Corpse
Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band from Buffalo, New York. Formed in 1988, the band has released eleven studio albums, one box set, and one live album...
have covered "Zero the Hero", and the group's former singer, Chris Barnes
Chris Barnes (musician)
Chris Barnes is an American singer-songwriter, best known as a death metal vocalist recognized for his very low guttural vocals and explicitly violent lyrics...
, has called Born Again his favorite Black Sabbath album. The song has also been cited as the inspiration for the Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
hit "Paradise City
Paradise City
-Personnel:* Axl Rose - lead vocals, synthesizer, whistle* Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar, backing vocals, percussion* Slash - lead guitar, backing vocals* Duff McKagan - bass, backing vocals* Steven Adler - drums-Live:...
". Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
drummer Lars Ulrich
Lars Ulrich
Lars Ulrich is a Danish drummer, and one of the founding members of the American thrash metal band Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family. A tennis player in his youth, Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at age sixteen to pursue his training; though rather...
has called Born Again "one of the best Black Sabbath albums". The album and supporting tour also inspired the parody film This Is Spinal Tap
This Is Spinal Tap
This Is Spinal Tap is an American 1984 rock musical mockumentary directed by Rob Reiner about the fictional heavy metal band Spinal Tap...
. Geezer Butler has said that he told the associate scriptwriter of the film the story of the band's performances with their "Stonehenge" stage props.
It was announced that Born Again will be re-released bonus material on May 30, 2011 in the UK. There had been speculation that the album would be re-mixed before being re-released, but the album was only remastered due to the fact that the original multi-track tapes could not be located.
Track listing
All songs written by Tony Iommi, Ian Gillan, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, except where noted.Side one
- "TrashedTrashed (Black Sabbath song)"Trashed" is a single of the album Born Again, by the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It is the first song of the album, and one of the first songs by the Gillan Sabbath lineup....
" – 4:16 - "Stonehenge" – 1:58
- "Disturbing the PriestDisturbing the Priest"Disturbing the Priest" is the third song of the album Born Again, by the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. The song was one of the last songs that was recorded for the album, and it is, in fact, a homage to a priest that lived near the studio where Born Again was recorded...
" – 5:49 - "The Dark" – 0:45
- "Zero the HeroZero the Hero"Zero the Hero" is a song on the album Born Again, by the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It has become moderately popular amongst fans and is one of Ian Gillan's favourite songs....
" – 7:35
Side two
- "Digital Bitch" – 3:39
- "Born Again" – 6:34
- "Hot Line" (Iommi, Gillan, Butler) – 4:52
- "Keep It Warm" (Iommi, Gillan, Butler) – 5:36
2011 Deluxe Edition Disc 2
All tracks recorded live at the Reading Festival on Saturday, August 27, 1983 unless otherwise stated- "The Fallen" (previously unreleased album session outtake)
- "Stonehenge" (extended version)
- "Hot Line"
- "War Pigs"
- "Black Sabbath"
- "The Dark"
- "Zero the Hero"
- "Digital Bitch"
- "Iron Man"
- "Smoke on the Water"
- "Paranoid"
The live tracks are the entirety of a broadcast on The Friday Rock Show
Friday Rock Show
The Friday Rock Show was a radio show in the United Kingdom that was broadcast on BBC Radio 1 from 10pm to midnight on Friday nights from 1978 to 1993. Throughout most of its run it was hosted by Tommy Vance. Ostensibly for the genre of rock in general, it was most closely associated with heavy metal...
, on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, which was aired before the album was released.
A bootleg version of the album exists which contains the unreleased track "The Fallen." (Which was officially released in the 2011 Re-issue) Also, the songs are in a different running order and the song "The Dark" is missing.
Personnel
Credits- Ian GillanIan GillanIan Gillan is an English rock music vocalist and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist for Deep Purple. During his career Gillan also fronted his own band, had a year-long stint as the vocalist for Black Sabbath, and sang the role of Jesus in the original recording of Andrew Lloyd...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Tony IommiTony IommiAnthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and its sole continual member through multiple personnel changes.Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening... - Geoff NichollsGeoff NichollsGeoff Nicholls is a musician and keyboardist, who is best known as the longtime sideman for the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. Nicholls also played in the NWOBHM band Quartz before joining Black Sabbath...
– keyboards - Geezer ButlerGeezer ButlerGeezer Butler is an English musician and songwriter. Butler is best known as the bassist and lyricist of heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He was also involved in Heaven & Hell from 2006 to 2010.-Career:Butler formed his first band, Rare Breed, with old friend John "Ozzy" Osbourne in the autumn of...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Bill Ward – drums
- Steve Barrett - art assistant
- Black SabbathBlack SabbathBlack Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
- producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Robin Black - producer, engineerAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Stephen Chase - engineer, assistant engineer
- Paul Clark - coordination
- Hugh Gilmour - liner notes, design, reissue design, original sleeve design
- Ross Halfin - photography
- Steve Joule - artwork, cover design
- Peter Restey - equipment technician
- Ray Staff - remasteringMastering engineerA mastering engineer is one skilled in the practice of taking audio that has been previously mixed in either the analog or digital domain as mono, stereo, or multichannel formats and preparing it for use in distribution, whether by physical media such as a CD, vinyl record, or as some method of...
- Chris Walter - photography
Release history
| Region | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
August 1983 | Vertigo Records Vertigo Records Vertigo Records today is a UK-based record label operated by Universal Music UK.-History:Vertigo Records was the name Philips Records chose in the late 1960s for its record sub-label to counter the progressive labels of its rivals EMI with Harvest Records and Decca Records with Deram... |
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
4 October 1983 | Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
1983 | Warner Bros. Records |
| United Kingdom | 1996 | Castle Communications Castle Communications Castle Communications was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Terry Shand, Cliff Dane and Jon Beecher. The company was acquired by the American music distributor Alliance Entertainment in 1994 and in 2000 it was absorbed into Sanctuary Records Group... |
| United Kingdom | 2004 | Sanctuary Records Sanctuary Records Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest independent music management company in the world... |
External links
- Gillan the Hero – Fan site with information on the album and subsequent tour.