(September 2015) I have competed phase 59 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to a band’s full discography from start to finish. This episode: BLACK SABBATH. Their catalogue can be summarized by one of their album titles, Heaven and Hell. Heaven is the first four albums, Beautiful Heavy stuff that defined and inspired heavy metal music. Hell is all the post-Ozzy albums — just banal metal that comes off as Spinal Tap trying to imitate Black Sabbath. So this was a rather tedious episode. The last effort, “13,” a reunion effort, shows that while Tommy’s thunder chords (and Geezer’s bass) are the foundation of the band’s career arc, Ozzy’s voice is the special sauce that separates the enjoyable from the crap.
Favourite album: Paranoid
Favourite song: War Pigs
Other song I love: Planet Caravan
Best period: 1970-72
Worst period: 1980-1995 (non-Ozzy years)
Worst Album: Forbidden (1995)
Hidden gem: 13 (2013)
Special sauce: Tommy Iommi
Compared to expectations: same
Opus Project 
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