'Black Sabbath'
The very first impression of Sabbath, certainly for those lucky enough to witness their rise and doubtless for countless others too, would have been this striking cover. But where to start analysing it? The vaguely psychedelic, washed out colours? The creepy old house? The gorgeous, almost regal looking yet still distinctly B-movie style logo? Or, the terrifying centrepiece, that mysterious woman. Who is she? Why is she dressed all in black? And, ah, why's she staring at me? It's that moment in 70's horror films where the camera pans across a bare landscape, then back and suddenly zooms in on some disturbing looking vagrant. It's chilling, engaging, slightly surreal in feel and one of the most perfect album covers in history.
So much so that, amongst various other artists, Japanese psych-noise freaks Acid Mother's Temple (in their 'Acid Mother's Temple And The Cosmic Inferno' form) spoofed it for their album 'Starless And Bible Black Sabbath', an acid munching tribute to King Crimson and Black Sabbath.
'Paranoid'
Hmm, an odd one, this. After label disputes over calling the album 'War Pigs' due to 'public sensitivity' at the time, the album art was also changed at last minute without much input from the band.
The band's original artwork was a lot more grim, a deranged, feral wildman lunging for the paranoid protagonist perhaps more appropriate than the faintly ridiculous, bright pink replacement. Nonetheless, many still view this as a classic album cover, and although not their finest visual moment, the cover still includes some awesome visual cues. The tree in the shadows adds a kinda creepy 'forest at night!' vibe. Listen to 'Planet Caravan' deep in the woods at night, and it becomes apparent that maybe this cover is more appropriate than it initially seems.'Master Of Reality'
And thus, the world become a heavier place to live in. This logo is nothing short of iconic, it's mysterious wave running down the letters conjuring up images of the words floating about inside the thick goop inside lava lamps, or perhaps being written on the side of some enormous flag blowing in the wind as it's strapped to the back of a huge, elaborately painted caravan... It's so simple, but beautiful. Big, bold and beautiful.
More spoofery for this one too, as Ministry's Al Jourgensen took on Sabbath's 'Supernaut' and mutated it into a bizarre, stompin' industrial mess under the name 1000 Homo DJs...
'Volume 4'
Well...this one just speaks for itself. Ozzy's outstretched arms, his flowing sleeves, the garish orange/red/yellow (depending on the pressing) glow he gave off, the darkness surrounding him, a joyfully bouncy logo and the immortal 'Vol 4'. The image is the equivalent of Jesus nailed to the cross for those who worship at the holy altar of The Riff, proudly displayed on homes, chests, at places of work. Ozzy's stance is almost biblical, his looming figure both a provider of hope, a beacon against all the world's impurities, a solitary 'peace' sign raised in the darkness. Was this, as some have suggested, a more pessimistic outlook than the hippy generation, or was it a more defiant gesture of love whilst acknowledging it's bleak backdrop? Don't ask me, I wasn't even born yet!
Once again, the cover has been lovingly mocked by many bands, with the legendary Sleep blatantly stealing it for the cover of their EP 'Volume Two', which also contained a cover of 'Lord Of This World'.
'Sabbath Bloody Sabbath'
Woah, things got scary again! The sight of a man being attacked on a curiously Satanic looking bed by floating demon babies with the ground breaking, none-more-metal lettering of 'Sabbath Bloody Sabbath' makes for yet another striking addition to Sabbathian lore. The fact that the words 'Black Sabbath' themselves were written right underneath in lower case is testament to the fact that they didn't need to rely on phony theatrics - this is heavy shit, and as it's all going on and descending into chaos, sat smugly, right at the heart of it all, is Black Sabbath.
'Sabotage'
This curious cover depicts the band in full rock-star posturing mode, (check out Bill's red trousers!) against a magical reverse mirror, with smoke circling around their feet. Many have written this off as a result of way too many drugs, but another more interesting explanation is that it's a wry comment on the level of fame the band had accumulated by this point, that all this hype is just 'smoke and mirrors' amidst a series of carefully manipulated images. Theories that people who believe this are on almost as many drugs as the band themselves are perhaps a little cruel.
'Technical Ecstasy'
As Sabbath's sound continued to experiment and venture into weirder territories, so too did the artwork. 'Technical Ecstasy''s extraordinarily literal interpretation of the title features, in Ozzy's words, "two robots screwing on an escalator". This is the first cover not to adopt a mainly black colour scheme (the first album didn't really either, but still looked dark - this one's wighter than wight!), and as the music here draws a lot more from rock'n'roll and blues than it does from the occult, it's kinda fitting.
'Never Say Die'
Hmmm, another very odd one... As Sabbath's final album with the original (only? It's OK, we can admit this now) line-up, it's definitely an awesome note to end on. But the cover? Two guys in masks against a plane and a blue sky? Rumor has it that's Ozzy and Bill in those two masks, which, if true, lends the cover a new sense of meaning. Half of Black Sabbath is ready to take flight, to leave, "freedom fighters sent out to the sun", but despite this end of an era, despite what's to follow, we should never say die. Black Sabbath will live on forever not only in our hearts, but in the ringing in our ears, the cramp in our necks, and the very centre of our souls.
But it is still a pretty odd cover...
