Geezer Butler: Bringing The Dio Era Back

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal who single-handedly defined a riff fired genre and created a sound that has rabidly influenced generations. Little wonder that they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by a suitably humbled Metallica in 2006. But after Ozzy Osbourne left the band in 1979 it seemed that was the end. That was until Ronnie James Dio, the leather lunged singer from Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow stepped up to the plate.

The magic was immediate and the first fruits of the union was 1980’s classic album, Heaven and Hell. The recording gave Sabbath - Tony Iommi (guitar), Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums) - a whole new lease on life after several years of decline and provided them with their best showing on the charts in both the UK and US in many years. The mighty Sabbath – remade and re-modelled - were reborn with more volume, drama and mystique than ever before.

Sadly, during the tour that followed drummer, Bill Ward, road weary and in poor health, left the band. His replacement was Vinny Appice, brother of Carmine Appice of Vanilla Fudge, Cactus and Beck, Bogert and Appice fame. Empowered by the success of Heaven and Hell, the Mob Rules album followed in 1981 the band’s first with Appice and second with Dio. But by the release of 1983’s Live Evil album which was recorded at concerts on the Mob Rules tour in Seattle, San Antonio and Dallas, Dio and Appice had left the band.

It would be a decade before they again regrouped with Iommi and Butler for 1992’s under-rated Dehumanizer album. Fast forward to October 2005. Tony Iommi and Ronnie James Dio met up and threw around some ideas. Knowing that great chemistry – or in Sabbath’s case, great alchemy - was a timeless commodity, it was decided to record some new material for a proposed compilation album titled Black Sabbath – The Dio Years which was released recently.

The three new songs – ‘The Devil Cried’, ‘Shadow of The Wind’ and ‘Ear in The Wall’ – proved without question that this particular line-up of the Sabbath dragon still had plenty of fire. It was decided to take the next step and reform the band for a world tour. But rather than use the hallowed Sabbath moniker it was decided to underscore the Dio led era of the band and regroup under the banner of Heaven And Hell. Initially, the line-up was to include original drummer, Bill Ward but when he made the decision not to take part, Vinnie Appice was the go to guy.

Now in what will be the metal tour of year by the metal band of all time, Heaven and Hell – Black Sabbath – The Dio Years (Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice) are headed for Australia for the first time in 27 years.

In this exclusive interview Joe Matera caught up with long time Black Sabbath/Heaven And Hell bass player Geezer Butler to talk about the upcoming Australian tour, the band’s legacy and the evolution of his sound.

Ultimate-Guitar: Last time you were in Australia was 27 years ago with Black Sabbath and on that tour you ended up injuring your hand resulting in the remaining Australian dates being cancelled?

Yeah it’s been a very long. We did Japan and Australia on that tour when I was in Japan I got really pissed one night and beat the TV up and broke my finger. But when I went to the hospital the doctor there didn’t think it was a broken finger so just bandaged it and let me go. But by the time I got to Australia it was absolutely killing me. And I was still playing with it yet not knowing that it was broken. So I ended up going to a hospital in Australia and got it looked at properly and this time the doctor found that it was broken in six places! And if he had not fixed it for me properly, I may have not ever played again. So we only ended up performing just two shows on the tour and cancelled the remaining dates.

The earlier Australian tour in 1978 was when the band was at the height of their now documented drug addictions, what do you remember from that tour?

Quite a lot of things happened on that tour. And there was this one time when we went to this really posh restaurant in Sydney and we all ended up in a massive big food fight. And the waiters were like passing us all these cakes under the tables so we could blast each other with cake and everything!

What about when it came to groupies?

Oh yeah, we used to them do them by the ton back then!

Obviously the coke came in handy to keep you going all nite. (laughs)

That’s right as there was no Viagra back then. (laughs)

So what can Australian fans expect this time around with Heaven and Hell?

I say a bloody good show! We’re doing all the stuff from the Dio era…Heaven and Hell, Mob Rules and Dehumanizer and one and two new songs that we did on the best of album. It’s going to be a great show.

You filmed one of the shows on the current tour for an upcoming CD/DVD?

Yeah, we recorded the Radio City Music Hall show we did in New York back in April. It is due for release next month [August]

"The band was on the verge of breaking-up."

During the 1980 tour behind the Heaven And Hell album, Bill Ward exited Black Sabbath and Vinny Appice came onboard. Did you have change the way you approached your bass playing with Vinny after having played with Bill?

No because Vinnie was a big fan of the band and loved Bill’s playing. Bill was one of his favourite drummers and so he knew all his parts and my bass parts and he adjusted accordingly to everybody in the band. He was brilliant. He came in and totally filled in Bill’s shoes.

Before the recording sessions for Heaven And Hell you had left the band so Craig Gruber played bass on some of the demos for the album. You returned a short time later, so did you end up utilizing any of his Gruber’s ideas from those demos when it came for you to come up with your bass parts?

No as I didn’t want to hear what he had done. When I came back as I didn‘t want to do any of the stuff that he had done so I didn’t listen to what he had done until the album was finished.

Ronnie seemed to have come in at a pivotal time in the band’s career?

Yeah the band was on the verge of breaking-up. Once Ozzy had gone off to start a solo career, the band was either going to be destroyed in the process or needing a drastic change to happen. So we decided to give Ronnie a go to see if we could make it work for the both of us. And when he came in, it was such a shock to hear somebody with so much enthusiasm. And somebody that could bring songs to some of the music that we had already written. Songs that Ozzy wouldn’t sing on. But Ronnie came in and completely changed our attitudes so it was great and it was a breath of fresh air.

With Ronnie coming in and contributing to the song writing process, it must have freed you up to concentrate more on your bass playing?

Absolutely because I was sick and tired of like coming up with lyrics and I was also running out of things to write about. Ozzy was so out of it at the time and I had spent weeks doing all these lyrics and yet he wouldn’t even read them. So I was so pissed off, that I stopped writing lyrics and wanted to concentrate on bass playing which is why I am a bass player in the first place. When Ronnie came in and with him being a lyricist also, he came with a total different attitude so it totally freed me up to concentrate on the music side of it.

How did the song writing process for the three new tracks on The Dio Years compilation compare to the band’s early days?

Well those three new songs were written by Tony and Ronnie. I wasn’t even involved at the time because this whole thing basically came about so fast. This time last year we weren’t even thinking of doing this Heaven And Hell thing. Initially the record company approached us about putting out a Black Sabbath compilation album and asked us if we had any unreleased material which of course we haven’t. And then Tony and Ronnie got together and wrote three new songs, told me about it and sent me the new songs and asked me if I wanted anything changed and whether I liked them or not. And they sounded great! So I went over to London and laid down the bass. Later Vinny came over and put the drums on and then we suddenly got all these offers to do a tour. And originally it was going to be just a six week tour and now it has turned out to be a whole year.

What was the musical catalyst that led you to the bass?

My main influence is Jack Bruce. I used to never entertain the thought of bass playing because at the time I was playing rhythm guitar. I was about 13 and used to play a lot of Beatles stuff as I used to love John Lennon so I wanted to be a rhythm guitarist. But towards the end of the Sixties rhythm players were sort of being old fashioned. With players like Cream, Hendrix and John Mayall and The Yardbirds coming onto the scene there wasn’t much of a call for rhythm guitarists anymore. It was then when I went to see a Cream concert and saw Jack Bruce. He completely blew my mind and revolutionized bass playing for me as I didn’t realise you could do those things on the bass. So after I had seen what was possible that you could do with the bass, I switched from rhythm guitar to bass.

Your bass playing sound has evolved over the years along side your choice in bass guitars?

Yeah I started out on a Fender Precision as I loved the sound of that bass and then afterwards I got another Fender Precision which was the bass guitar I used on Paranoid and Master of Reality. Then, when we were on a Canadian tour that bass ended up being smashed up by someone in customs. We had just flown to Canada and when the equipment came through, my guitar was completely wrecked. And as it was a Sunday, there were no guitar shops open. The promoter had to call a friend of his to open up this little music shop. I went there and they had this Dan Armstrong plexiglass bass and it was the only thing that was any good in the shop. So I bought that and I liked it and so I used that for a few years.

Then a guy a named John Birch who made Tony’s guitars too made me about five or six custom basses including an eight-string bass. And I used those including Jaydee basses and an occasional Rickenbacker until we were did the Heaven And Hell album where I switched to B. C. Rich basses. Then after that, I used a Vigier and now am playing Lakland basses.

"It would really be nice to get together one last time and do a complete world tour."

How many basses do you take out on the road with you now?

I take about six of them with me.

What about amps?

Live I have two Ampeg SVT-810s, four custom 4x12 cabinets and two custom 2x15s that are powered by 4 Ampeg SVT-2PRO heads.

How do you feel about the enormous influence Black Sabbath has had on other metal bands?

It is fantastic especially when other musicians and bands I like, bands like Slipknot and Metallica come and say how much they love the stuff we have done. It’s an honour especially for us because we were slagged to death when we first started by all the critics in England who said we didn’t have any chance whatsoever. Then in 1980 when Ronnie came into the band everybody said we were doomed yet we proved everybody wrong. So it’s great for us when all these bands and people cite us as their influence.

What do you think is the secret to your longevity in this tough business considering like you just said, you’ve had critics against you and a musical climate that is ever changing?

It’s because we’ve been doing what we love for so long and we haven’t been trendy, we haven’t sold out like we haven’t become a disco band or something overnight. We just do what we love and just keep it real. That way, people will always know what they’re going to get from us.

I hear you’re not particularly fond of the ‘80s metal period especially the hair metal bands from that decade?

Yes, I hate it. There were all these bands then like Poison and Cinderella and whatever else they’re called, they’re all wearing makeup and lipstick and have great big hair, and they’re all really pop bands. Just because they had long hair and leather jackets, they call themselves heavy metal? And you know, I’d rather be listening to the Backstreet Boys any time than any of those bands!

The number 7 seems to be a dominate force in your life. For example, you were the 7th son, born on the 7th month and various other co-incidences…

Yeah it is but it’s not like I could have done anything about it (laughs) You have to blame my parents for that. A lot of strange things have happened to me like you say starting from when I was born and things happening in 7s. I suppose it is a co-incidence and something I kind of picked up on early in life. To be honest, I was dreading it a few weeks back when it was the 7th of July of 2007 because I thought I was going to drop dead or something.

Finally will there be another Black Sabbath album with Ozzy?

It is something that we’ve thought about and it might happen and it might not. But it would be nice if it did happen just one more time because that original band line-up really hasn’t really toured practically anywhere outside of America since like the Seventies. When we got back together ten years ago we just basically played Ozzfest in America, that’s all we’ve really done really. So it would really be nice to get together one last time and do a complete world tour.

2007 © Joe Matera

Black Sabbath - Heaven & Hell: The Dio Years Australian Tour Dates 2007

With special guests Down

08/02 - Perth Challenge Stadium
08/05 - Adelaide Thebarton Theatre
08/07 - Wollongong Win Entertainment Centre
08/08 - Newcastle Entertainment Centre
08/10 - Melbourne Rod Laver Arena
08/11 - Sydney Entertainment Centre
08/14 - Brisbane Entertainment Centre

Comments

[recliner33]

Great interview, Geezer is one of the best bassists of all time in my opinion. Definately one of the best in the metal genre. And I agree with him about the whole hair metal 80's thing, but I don't know if I would rather listen to the Backstreet Boys over it lol.

[sambargun]

Great player, great attitude, great taste. Jack Bruce is the best bassist.....

[RememberMyName]

Shit yeah friends, I'll be there in Brisbane. To be honest though, Down was the clincher...

[WCS_Is_Worse1]

5th comment, nice interview. Personally I thought Dio was a way better singer than Ozzy, but Ozzy has some highs that no one can hit.

[the_random_hero]

Got my front row tickets handy, I'll be seeing them in a few weeks!

[JB93]

I'm definately seeing them now =)

[Bloodandfire]

I missed out on tickets but i'd probably go lol

[metalmeep]

sambargun wrote:

Great player, great attitude, great taste. Jack Bruce is the best bassist.....

Who?, Geezer is the best bassist.

[Centurion]

Top bloke, and musical genius.

[metal_1019]

SABBATH!!!!! Geezer is easily one of the best bassists of all time.

[Kinderfeld]

Awesome interview. I hope they do make another Sabbath album with Ozzy.

[taylorshidaker]

Geezer is the reason i picked up a bass

Checked

[break-me-in]

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal

I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

[pucci6d6]

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal

I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

yes iron maiden>black sabbath
black sabbath still rule though, adn the interview was good, geezer rules!

[fukkindoyle]

i will always love black sabbath

[fireoptic]

Geezer is the biggest inspiration for my bass playing. His style is just, intense. It's great to see an interview like this. I love how he bashes Hair Metal. DOWN WITH POISON AND CINDERELLA!

[fireoptic]

Oh, and I have the 1969 plexiglass bass that he has =)

[Thefallofman]

Saw H&H in Cincinnati... great show. Geezer is one of the best bassists ever.

[rednightmare]

You Iron Maiden people are funny. But anyways, Black Sabbath are ace and Geezer's an excellent bassist. Great interview and great that Sabbath are still alive(in all senses of the word).

[Seventeen]

Great interview, Geezer is the reason I picked up the bass.

[Chewy120]

even though i really like sabbath and think they're are one of the best bands ever, Iron Maiden are the kings of heavy metal ,hands down

[JimPrenier_11]

I never liked the Dio era, I thought the ozzy era was best.

[666Sabbath666]

No way is Iron Maiden the kings of heavy metal, it has to be Sabbath. You can't compare the dark sound of Iommi and the sound of Murray. The song Black Sabbath is still one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard. Black Sabbath is the heaviest stuff around, death metal, black metal and all that crap doesnt even compare.

[ripper91]

Good interveiw, Geezer is a great bass player he plays some really nice licks.

[mrmrcactus]

Butler is the best bass player in rock n roll. His intro to War Pigs kicks ass.

[recliner33]

I'm a fan of Iron Maiden, but I'd rather listen to good old black sabbath anyday over them. I'd rather listen to judas priest over maiden too. Iron Maiden with Bruce Dickenson reminds me of hard rock opera more then metal, but they were alot better with that Paul Dianno guy on vocals, even though dickenson is a better singer. So, I agree with the people that say Black Sabbath should be the kings of heavy metal, but to me, the American doom metal band called Pentagram are the kings of heavy metal.

[AzureNight]

Geezer > all other bassists

[xvictimofadownx]

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal


I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

yeah, sabbath wouldnt be the undisputed kings...theres definitely a dispute, but definitely they would have a major leg up on the competition, what with them being pioneers of metal

[Shreddy Krueger]

Dude....Geezer is up there as one of the best bass players ever man....he seems like a really great dude to, (no Viagra back then, just cocaine, lol) but I would love to hear another Sabbath album with Ozzy, the 4 of them had something no one else could ever have(except maybe Zeppelin), but the Dio era was okay.

[recliner33]

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal

I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

I like the Iron Maiden doom band from the 1960's more then the popular iron maiden. But after saying that, people will be like "What the hell is this guy talking about? There is only one iron maiden"

[Oxendoobie]

Saw these guys in Detroit, and man it was a kickass show! With Megadeth and Machine Head. Geezer was going nuts on bass I was shocked. Hope they do something with ozzy or some more with dio.

also iron maiden is cool.

[Diamond Dave]

recliner33 wrote:

I'm a fan of Iron Maiden, but I'd rather listen to good old black sabbath anyday over them. I'd rather listen to judas priest over maiden too.

hell yes, judas priest ftw. pretty underrated/unpopular it seems on the UG forums, awesome band though

[Mattmakesmetal]

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal

I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

pucci6d6 wrote:

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal

I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.yes iron maiden>black sabbath
black sabbath still rule though, adn the interview was good, geezer rules!

Dont get me wrong I LOVE Iron maiden, but your both idiots because Black Sabbath is easily the greatest metal band to date, ask any critic.

And cant wait for the Melbourne show! Dio is a great vocalist!

[The Arch-Mage]

Well that was a sweet interview to be posted. I just logged on to the front page, and there was an interview with Geezer Butler. Probably the least expected occurence of my day.

[metalmanjosip]

i know black sabbath and iron maiden are the best bands around folks, in fact sabbath is 2nd and maiden is fourth on my list but u guys are forgeting a few that could dominate for that title. metallica, pantera and judas priest who were the first HEAVY (not acctuall) metal band

[Mass_debator]

If you listen to all the post-Dio Black Sabbath you'll realise how much Iommi needs Geezer. The difference between The difference between shit like Tyr or Forbidden and Dehumanizer is huge. Iommi is a riff monster but Butler keeps the whole thing legit, from the musical side of things at least.

[Mass_debator]

If you listen to all the post-Dio Black Sabbath you'll realise how much Iommi needs Geezer.The difference between shit like Tyr or Forbidden and Dehumanizer is huge. Iommi is a riff monster but Butler keeps the whole thing legit, from the musical side of things at least.

[fireoptic]

How can we even compare Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden? They're both f*cking amazing bands.

[pucci6d6]

metalmanjosip wrote:

i know black sabbath and iron maiden are the best bands around folks, in fact sabbath is 2nd and maiden is fourth on my list but u guys are forgeting a few that could dominate for that title. metallica, pantera and judas priest who were the first HEAVY (not acctuall) metal band

yaeh you said 'are', and pantera isnt a band anymore ( :[ ), and metallica isnt that metal anymore, they went downhill after black album (i love there old stuff though), judas priest, i dont think, is as good as iron maiden or black sabbath, but hey they all are/were amazing so who really cares?

Checked

[Kakatara]

judas priest is beast. iron maiden is awesome. metallica (80's) kicks ass. but black sabbath annihilates all.... mwahahaha

[FunkyFisch]

u freakin iron maiden fans just because u like maiden more than sabbath that doesn't mean maiden is better than sabbath...And to know the biggest influence of maiden's bassist Steve Harris is guess who...Geezer Butler...And the biggest influence of Metallica's best bassist (Cliff Burton R.I.P.) is ...Geezer Butler...And I don't have the patience to site the ppl who were influenced by sabbath...nor to mention all of the covers done by other bands...Iron Maiden came in the 80s and sabbath came in the late 60s...so unless u havent since been to 1st grade of elementary school u can realize that sabbath were first in heavy metal...AND the riffs composed by Tony Iommi cannot be compared to any other bands riffs because they are doomy and catchy...Noone will ever compose such a big library of riffs as mr Tony did.End of story

[shellshock1911]

I like Black Sabbath a lot and give a lot of credit to them but they aren't as "heavy" as some make them out to be. Metal Militia by Metallica is just one song that was released a long time ago that is way heavier than Black Sabbath.

[mrmrcactus]

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal


I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.

Yeah, Iron Maiden would agree.

[Guitar_Music]

You guys are all wrong Black Sabbath are the fathers of metal but then Metallica comes pretty damn close

70's: Black Sabbath
80's: Metallica
90's: Pantera
00's: Trivium? Lamb Of God?

[Jimmi_Hugh]

Guitar_Music wrote:

You guys are all wrong Black Sabbath are the fathers of metal but then Metallica comes pretty damn close

70's: Black Sabbath
80's: Metallica
90's: Pantera
00's: Trivium? Lamb Of God?

Normally when listing the Kings of Metal, people don't just base it upon band's they have heard of and/or like.

[the5thhorseman]

mrmrcactus wrote:

break-me-in wrote:

Black Sabbath are the undisputed kings of heavy metal


I think Iron Maiden might have something to say about that.


Yeah, Iron Maiden would agree.

+1

[recliner33]

FunkyFisch wrote:

u freakin iron maiden fans just because u like maiden more than sabbath that doesn't mean maiden is better than sabbath...And to know the biggest influence of maiden's bassist Steve Harris is guess who...Geezer Butler...And the biggest influence of Metallica's best bassist (Cliff Burton R.I.P.) is ...Geezer Butler...And I don't have the patience to site the ppl who were influenced by sabbath...nor to mention all of the covers done by other bands...Iron Maiden came in the 80s and sabbath came in the late 60s...so unless u havent since been to 1st grade of elementary school u can realize that sabbath were first in heavy metal...AND the riffs composed by Tony Iommi cannot be compared to any other bands riffs because they are doomy and catchy...Noone will ever compose such a big library of riffs as mr Tony did.End of story

I agree with what you said but I don't know if Black Sabbath was the first heavy metal band though. There was a band in the late 60's called iron maiden that is classified as doom metal, but I haven't heard them yet because their stuff is hard to find. But some people I have talked to that heard them say they were more like hard rock, but who knows. And my favourite metal band pentagram formed shortly after sabbath did so they are one of the pioneers of heavy metal too. But sabbath deserves most of the credit though, because they are the band that made metal famous. And Black Sabbath is hands down one of the most influencial bands of all time. They are just as influential as bands like led zeppelin, Nirvana, Metallica, AC/DC, Sex Pistols and the ramones. But I wish more of the popular metal bands would have guitar playing as good as Iommi's. Most of the bands these days think that you have to play really fast or play really complex stuff to sound good. Most of that crap goes through one ear and the other but an Iommi riff stays in your head for a lifetime. Like don't get me wrong, these newer metal bands have talent, but they need to come up with better styles and stuff. And I'm sick of all these new bands trying to be all "hardcore" and stuff with their screaming and growling vocals where it sounds like they are taking a crap or something like that.

[recliner33]

Also I wonder how many iron maiden fans will say "iron maiden wasn't around in the sixties moron" because I am not talking about that iron maiden. There was a band called iron maiden well before them.

[British Josh]

666Sabbath666 wrote:

No way is Iron Maiden the kings of heavy metal, it has to be Sabbath. You can't compare the dark sound of Iommi and the sound of Murray. The song Black Sabbath is still one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard. Black Sabbath is the heaviest stuff around, death metal, black metal and all that crap doesnt even compare.

to true. i don't think that murray or smith or gers have made any riffs comparable to iron mans or black sabbaths or n.i.b.s riffs

[British Josh]

but if black sabbath is 1st, maiden is definitely second

[recliner33]

British Josh wrote:

but if black sabbath is 1st, maiden is definitely second

I disagree, I would put judas priest and maybe even metallica befor iron maiden

[Big Tommy P]

Geezer's an awesome bassist. and as for the undisputed kings of heavy metal, i think it's a three way joint victory between Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. they're all different, but they all rock.

[Big Tommy P]

i wonder what hey would've been like if Ronnie and Geezer worked together on the lyrics, Children of the TV Crimes, lol

[Pepperommi]

recliner33 i think you're mistaken...there was a band called Iron BUTTERFLY in the 60's...BTW Sabbath ARE the Gods of Metal...end of story

P.S. Bill didnt leave the band because of his health...he couldnt stand being on stage without Ozzy

[MikESPviper]

60s:The Doors
70s:Black Sabbath
80s:Metallica
90s:Pantera
00s.System of a Down/Lamb of God/

(even though they were big in the late 90s, they didnt hit it "huge" worldwide untill the 00s)

but my personal fav is Children of Bodom for the death metal.

But have found a love for "love metal" Created by HIM. from finland, though their past album Dark Light was a shit American publicity cry for help. their new album has gone back to the roots of Finland, if anybody is interested in listening to HIM. please buy the albumn Razorblade Romance. I wasnt into it at first, but it brings the love into metal.

[recliner33]

Pepperommi wrote:

recliner33 i think you're mistaken...there was a band called Iron BUTTERFLY in the 60's...BTW Sabbath ARE the Gods of Metal...end of story

P.S. Bill didnt leave the band because of his health...he couldnt stand being on stage without Ozzy

Yeah I know about iron butterfly, why wouldn't I know them? They did the song called In Da Gada Da Vida(In the garden of eden), but I didn't mean them. I was talking about the band called iron maiden from the 60's. I am not mistaken. I am suppose to recieve a burnt copy of one of their cd's in the mail in a few weeks so I will check them out finally to see how much of a metal band they really were.

[Becca138]

MikESPviper wrote:

60s:The Doors
70s:Black Sabbath
80s:Metallica
90s:Pantera
00s.System of a Down/Lamb of God/

(even though they were big in the late 90s, they didnt hit it "huge" worldwide untill the 00s)

but my personal fav is Children of Bodom for the death metal.

But have found a love for "love metal" Created by HIM. from finland, though their past album Dark Light was a shit American publicity cry for help. their new album has gone back to the roots of Finland, if anybody is interested in listening to HIM. please buy the albumn Razorblade Romance. I wasnt into it at first, but it brings the love into metal.

wait did u just say children fo bodom are death metal?????

dude, omg. u have NO IDEA what ur talking about, thats all im gonna say.

COB? death? ummm more like Morbid Angel, Nile and the greatest death metal band ever...DEATH.

[true_bacon22]

^Melodic death metal buddy still death metal....

and I was suprised Gezzer liked Slipknot. Nothing against them but Thats just suprising I cant imagine Butler head banging to duality.

Check

[MikESPviper]

ok Becca, i know who those bands are, excuse me for misplacing them in what "genera" their truthfully in. frankly, i don't give a **** what they are labeled as.

[MikESPviper]

true_bacon22 - thanks for agreeing with me. but i guess i have NO IDEA what im talking about.

[samerika]

darn !

I read WEEZER xD

[zAg1619]

MikeESPviper: Dude don't even worry about stupid genre arguments anymore.. So many people pay way too much attention and spend way too much time classifying what a certain kind of music sounds like. Why? I don't know, but it is ****ing stupid if you ask me...

[MikESPviper]

zAg1619 wrote:

MikeESPviper: Dude don't even worry about stupid genre arguments anymore.. So many people pay way too much attention and spend way too much time classifying what a certain kind of music sounds like. Why? I don't know, but it is ****ing stupid if you ask me...

yeah man, totally agree. "its not grindcore, its grindXcore.. duh" i could care less. as far as im concerned if its good ill listen, no matter what "genre" it is

[Spankey]

I would have guessed that jack bruce would be a huge influence on Geezer. Geezer Butler and Jack Bruce are some of the greatest bass players ever!

[the1mrbass]

it's funny that everyone keeps bringing up iron maiden, or the sellouts(err....metallica), but they're all missing the point! heavy metal is about progression! black sabbath are undoubtedly the what heavy metal is all about! maybe 20 years ago, metallica were worthy of carrying the torch, but face it.....the dropped it so they could win awards on m-tv! metal is the purest, most bludgeoning form of music known to man! (metallica just don't fit that bill anymore). as far as iron maiden... the doi era sabbath cleans the floor with iron maiden! as metal moved into the 80's...dio had "the voice". if metal had moved into an opera direction, we'd all be hailing bruce dickenson, but we're not!!!! with the 90's came pantera, aND YUP....THAT WAS METAL! THEY PICKED UP THE TORCH THAT METALLICA DROPPED, AND CARRIED IT INTO THE NEW MELLENIUM! now...with pantera gone.....i've got my money on slayer! (remember....pure, bludgeoning). it's funny how noone has mentioned HATEBREED as far as the next generation! in the black spirit of what metal is, and will always be.....hatebreed is more than worthy! trivium sounds like they're stuck in the 80's listening to too many iron maiden, and malmsteen records! progressive, heavy, rebelious all out assult on our eardrums! THAT'S heavy metal!!!!! if you don't know hatebreed.....listen to them! heavy as shit!!!!! just like sabbath in the 70's!

[piratemetalhead]

I actually like Iron Maiden better than Sabbath, but I'd say Sabbath would be the metal kings. I mean, they invented metal! I'd say Maiden comes 2nd after Sabbath. Only because they invented metal, though. :P

[recliner33]

the1mrbass wrote:

it's funny that everyone keeps bringing up iron maiden, or the sellouts(err....metallica), but they're all missing the point! heavy metal is about progression! black sabbath are undoubtedly the what heavy metal is all about! maybe 20 years ago, metallica were worthy of carrying the torch, but face it.....the dropped it so they could win awards on m-tv! metal is the purest, most bludgeoning form of music known to man! (metallica just don't fit that bill anymore). as far as iron maiden... the doi era sabbath cleans the floor with iron maiden! as metal moved into the 80's...dio had "the voice". if metal had moved into an opera direction, we'd all be hailing bruce dickenson, but we're not!!!! with the 90's came pantera, aND YUP....THAT WAS METAL! THEY PICKED UP THE TORCH THAT METALLICA DROPPED, AND CARRIED IT INTO THE NEW MELLENIUM! now...with pantera gone.....i've got my money on slayer! (remember....pure, bludgeoning). it's funny how noone has mentioned HATEBREED as far as the next generation! in the black spirit of what metal is, and will always be.....hatebreed is more than worthy! trivium sounds like they're stuck in the 80's listening to too many iron maiden, and malmsteen records! progressive, heavy, rebelious all out assult on our eardrums! THAT'S heavy metal!!!!! if you don't know hatebreed.....listen to them! heavy as shit!!!!! just like sabbath in the 70's!

Hatebreed can't even come close to the greatness of black sabbath. Sure, hatebreed might have talent, who knows, but I hate how the vocalist for hatebreed never sings, he just yells, it annoys me. I use to be a fan when i was younger, but i bought one of their cd's and i was disappointed. All the songs sounded the same and it was just yelling and mostly boring riffs. But oh well, that's just my opinion, they are pretty popular now so someone must love that style.

[euan_soad]

British Josh wrote:

666Sabbath666 wrote:

No way is Iron Maiden the kings of heavy metal, it has to be Sabbath. You can't compare the dark sound of Iommi and the sound of Murray. The song Black Sabbath is still one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard. Black Sabbath is the heaviest stuff around, death metal, black metal and all that crap doesnt even compare.

to true. i don't think that murray or smith or gers have made any riffs comparable to iron mans or black sabbaths or n.i.b.s riffs

The Trooper, Run to the Hills (as shit as that song is), Number of the Beast, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Flash of the Blade, Fear of the Dark, Phantom of the Opera, Transylvania etc etc

[22acacia]

FINALLY , Geezer getting some credit in the sun man. Geezer wrote nearly all the songs Ozzy "claimed" to have written. Geezer is the man hands down.

[22acacia]

British Josh wrote:

666Sabbath666 wrote:

No way is Iron Maiden the kings of heavy metal, it has to be Sabbath. You can't compare the dark sound of Iommi and the sound of Murray. The song Black Sabbath is still one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard. Black Sabbath is the heaviest stuff around, death metal, black metal and all that crap doesnt even compare.

to true. i don't think that murray or smith or gers have made any riffs comparable to iron mans or black sabbaths or n.i.b.s riffs

There is no "King" of metal. Iron Maiden has certainly made more of a global impact from playing live shows and doing it the old fashioned hardcore way. Sabbath has more credit in our metal roots/heritage. Both are great bands. I am specifically talking about sabbath without ozzy of course.

[22acacia]

I saw them in sacramento a few months back, they are in top form. Geezer is the man and wrote almost all the songs Ozzy claimed to have written.

[old strat]

27 years ago I saw this line up at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney,after about 5 min on stage all the amps on stage blew. Ronnie kept the crowd entertained with some light chatter and such then it was back to the music.This time round Im taking my 15 year ols son to the Sydney gig on Aug 11 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre cant wait thanks guys looking forward to the show. Nev...

[22acacia]

old strat :
27 years ago I saw this line up at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney,after about 5 min on stage all the amps on stage blew. Ronnie kept the crowd entertained with some light chatter and such then it was back to the music.This time round Im taking my 15 year ols son to the Sydney gig on Aug 11 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre cant wait thanks guys looking forward to the show. Nev...

A piece of history brother. Thank you very much for sharing my friend. And god bless that young metal fan of yours!! =)

[gotbass]

Geezer Butler is like the pioneer of the heavymetal bass riff. Paranoid will always be one of my favorite songs.

Checked

[TYGBraddles]

pfft, i would say that black sabbath will & always be the kings of heavymetal, i mean, tony, geezer, ozzy & bill are all of my most major influences. Geezer, you have proved to me and the world that you are the king of heavymetal bass, you will alwys be in my mind aswell, because you guys just rock, no other word, i am hoping you guys do get back together as the original lineup, with you gzr, tony, ozzy & bill, because that was my favourite lineup, yeah you guys were still great with dio but my favourite time was the 70's for you guys, cant wait to see you guys play in adelaide, 6 days to go, i cannot wait, best day of my life it'll be. Thnkyou geezer, for your bass playing is my influence. And by the way, hair metal i cannot stnad either, theyre just posers.

[mickb44]

the world is full of kings and queens
who blind your eyes and steal your dreams
its heaven and hell

[FunkyFisch]

euan_soad wrote:

British Josh wrote:

666Sabbath666 wrote:

No way is Iron Maiden the kings of heavy metal, it has to be Sabbath. You can't compare the dark sound of Iommi and the sound of Murray. The song Black Sabbath is still one of the most chilling songs I have ever heard. Black Sabbath is the heaviest stuff around, death metal, black metal and all that crap doesnt even compare.

to true. i don't think that murray or smith or gers have made any riffs comparable to iron mans or black sabbaths or n.i.b.s riffs
The Trooper, Run to the Hills (as shit as that song is), Number of the Beast, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Flash of the Blade, Fear of the Dark, Phantom of the Opera, Transylvania etc etc

Ahem lets list songs form Sabbath that are way better than Iron Maiden's compared to the riffs:Electric Funeral,Iron Man,Black Sabbath(the song which,with three notes gave you the chills)Nib,Behind the wall of sleep,The wizard,Fairies wear boots,sweet leaf,lord of this world,into the void(yeah!),children of the grave(YEAH!),snowblind,under the sun,sabbath bloody sabbath,killing yourself to live,a national acrobat,sabbra cadabra,megalomania,symptom of the universe,hole in the sky,dirty women,neon knights,heaven and hell,mob rules,voodoo,children of the sea,sign of the southern cross(which btw influenced iron maidens "sign of the cross")falling off the edge of the world,zero the hero,digital bitch,seventh star,in for the kill,danger zone,the shining,hard life to love(great song,a must!),headless cross,tv crimes, master of insanity, letters from earth,I,Computer god,psycho man,ear in the wall,the devil cried and of course War pigs and paranoid.Listen to ALL these riffs and basslines.HOW THE HECK COULD THEY HAVE INVENTED THEM!!!Incomparable to any other bands riffs...and to say 2 things to all Iron Miaden to be fans:1st listen to the above songs and 2nd consider that Iron Maiden's half albums were live...And they use the excuse that they give their best self live so as not to have to compose many songs...Cmon...

[LORD V4DER]

I think overall, Black Sabbath stomps Iron Maiden. Sure, Maiden was better live, but there's no way they're heavier than Sabbath. Listen to Number of the Beast, then listen to Black Sabbath (the song), and tell me which one's scarier.

[recliner33]

LORD V4DER wrote:

I think overall, Black Sabbath stomps Iron Maiden. Sure, Maiden was better live, but there's no way they're heavier than Sabbath. Listen to Number of the Beast, then listen to Black Sabbath (the song), and tell me which one's scarier.

Yeah I agree with you. Iron maiden was it's heaviest though before Bruce joined, but after that they sounded more like hard rock opera to me, but a few of their later songs were good too (Like powerslave, Hollowed by thy name). As far as heaviness goes, not many bands have gotten heavier then black sabbath. Hit Parador magazine ranked them as the heaviest band of all time. Now I know a bunch of you will disagree and will start listing all these unkown death metal and hardcore bands and stuff saying that they are heavier then sabbath, but just remember, heaviness doesn't have a darn thing to do with playing fast or growling/screaming vocals. Some of the heaviest bands I have ever heard play really slow and they actually sing instead of grunting or screaming.

[Tubyboulin]

Dude for this tour are they gonna come to Ottawa? cuz it would be sick to see em play, Tony Iommi is just grate and so is Butler. they Rock, way better than any other "Hair Metal" as Geezer said, damn you poison...

[Metal_Militia15]

Tubyboulin wrote:

Dude for this tour are they gonna come to Ottawa? cuz it would be sick to see em play, Tony Iommi is just grate and so is Butler. they Rock, way better than any other "Hair Metal" as Geezer said, damn you poison...

Sorry to say but they were in Ottawa, I was there it was sick. It was maybe last March or April I cant remember. They were opened by Down and Megadeth, it was awesome

[Nesh34]

I'm not a fan of any of the Dio stuff, but the true dark blues of black sabbath is awesome to say the least, and Geezer is one of the best bassists ever without question.

[euan_soad]

FunkyFisch

2nd consider that Iron Maiden's half albums were live...And they use the excuse that they give their best self live so as not to have to compose many songs...Cmon...

What's a half album?
Secondly they were not live, they were recorded live ie. one take. And not all were recorded like that.

[FunkyFisch]

You know what i mean euan_soad...And don't start telling me stories because I've rea all that...

[FunkyFisch]

FunkyFisch wrote:

You know what i mean euan_soad...And don't start telling me stories because I've rea all that...

SOrry for the double post but i had to say one more thing...Still noone can compare Sabbath riffs with Iron Maiden's,neither byt their quantity nor by the quality.There is a saying that goes like this:"Quality is the most important thing and quantity follows".Well Sabbath's riffs are best both in quality and quantity...

[FunkyFisch]

i cn't wqrite with this $#$# keyboard it scks

[JB93]

dudes, this aint no f**king competition between Sabbath & Maiden. To be fair, Sabbath had the more darker sound, when Maiden had the more upbeat stuff. In the end... Its all Rock 'n' Roll dudes!!

[khalil1220]

I just noticed this, Geezer's picture on the front page of UG, doesnt he remind you of a koala bear?

[22acacia]

LORD V4DER :
I think overall, Black Sabbath stomps Iron Maiden. Sure, Maiden was better live, but there's no way they're heavier than Sabbath. Listen to Number of the Beast, then listen to Black Sabbath (the song), and tell me which one's scarier.

Not all metal needs to be doom and gloom, look at bands like Angra. Those guys DESTROY most every band out there with there guitar and vocal work but have a very bright positive sometimes borderline preachy msg. But in terms of maiden being better live your 100% correct.

[fthesystem303]

Black Sabbath were and are the "kings" of heavy metal, they started it all. they invented all the shit there is to know about ****in rockin out. all those ****in bands that are here today (and some that are long gone)are the offspring of Sabbath. INCLUDING IRON MAIDEN. Sabbath is there daddy and can pull out the belt on there brats any day.

[fthesystem303]

black sabbath started it, iron maiden didnt.
iron maiden had somthing to build on and black sabbath just invented it. therefore black sabbath is better.

[FunkyFisch]

khalil1220 wrote:

I just noticed this, Geezer's picture on the front page of UG, doesnt he remind you of a koala bear?

Nope but your name certainly reminds me of a ****ing terrorist....

[khalil1220]

STFU you racist prick
Just because I'm arabic doesn't mean im a terrorist, muslim, or any of the other stereotypes.
Not only that but you don't know me, so again STFU.

[22acacia]

FunkyFisch :
khalil1220 wrote:

I just noticed this, Geezer's picture on the front page of UG, doesnt he remind you of a koala bear?


Nope but your name certainly reminds me of a ****ing terrorist....
POSTED: 08/01/2007 - 05:54 am / quote |
khalil1220 :
STFU you racist prick
Just because I'm arabic doesn't mean im a terrorist, muslim, or any of the other stereotypes.
Not only that but you don't know me, so again STFU.

Your both ****ing ignorant.

[KingGohma]

FunkyFisch wrote:

Nope but your name certainly reminds me of a ****ing terrorist....

I think thats a bit far, don't you think? I believe Khalil has a right to be angry here.

[BennyStruggle]

khalil1220 wrote:

I just noticed this, Geezer's picture on the front page of UG, doesnt he remind you of a koala bear?

i looked at it and yes it does lol..

[Dimmu-Borgir]

MURDERFACE!