Episode 23: Black Sabbath - Seventh Star (1986)

That Vinyl Show

There's no question in the mind of any music fan that Tony Iommi is one of the true, unadulterated Godfathers of Heavy Metal - or even heavy music for that matter. And in his 50+ year storied career, he has worn many hats and has taken in music in many different directions. One such direction was in the mid-1980s when, after Black Sabbath had all but completely dissolved and Tony was the only original member who hadn't walked away, he decided to expand his sonic palate and release a Tony Iommi solo record. Tony's plan was to continue the name for himself as a guitar player and songwriter but march in his own style, unhindered by the Black Sabbath name. By 1986, the Heavy Metal landscape had drastically changed from the world Black Sabbath had dominated 10 years prior. Bands with more pomp and flair were taking hold and rocking the world. Tony decided to take his riffs in a bit more of a polished, flair-filled, yet still powerful direction. For what would be his solo album, Tony recruited an all-star band with Deep Purple’s Rock and Roll banshee vocalist, Glenn Hughes, in front of the mic. Unfortunately, his idea of producing a Tony-centered solo, powered by his name and direction, was not going to go to plan. Despite Tony wanting his own solo outing, management, and the record label felt that continuing the use of the Black Sabbath name would help with recognition and the one thing they ultimately cared about: record sales. What started as Black Sabbath Featuring Tony Iommi would eventually fall into obscurity within the Sabbath catalog and be unfortunately forgotten.

In the tradition of starting each new season with a Black Sabbath record, CJ & Motley open Season 3 with Black Sabbath's misunderstood 1986 treasure, Seventh Star.