After previous iterations of the group – the Polka Tulk Blues Band and Earth – the band settled on the name Black Sabbath in 1969. They distinguished themselves through occult themes with horror-inspired lyrics and down-tuned guitars. Signing to Philips Records in November 1969, they released their first single, "Evil Woman", in January 1970, and their debut album, Black Sabbath, was released the following month. Though it received a negative critical response, the album was a commercial success, leading to a follow-up record, Paranoid, later that year. The band's popularity grew, and by 1973's Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, critics were starting to respond favourably.
Osbourne's excessive substance abuse led to his firing in 1979. He was replaced by former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio. Following two albums with Dio, Black Sabbath endured many personnel changes in the 1980s and 1990s that included vocalists Ian Gillan, Glenn Hughes, Ray Gillen and Tony Martin, as well as several drummers and bassists. Martin, who replaced Gillan in 1987, was the second-longest serving vocalist and recorded three albums with Black Sabbath before his dismissal in 1991. That same year, Iommi and Butler were rejoined by Dio and drummer Vinny Appice to record Dehumanizer (1992). After two more studio albums with Martin, who replaced Dio in 1993, the band's original line-up reunited in 1997 and released a live album, Reunion, the following year; they continued to tour occasionally until 2005. Other than various back catalogue reissues and compilation albums, as well as the Mob Rules-era line-up reunited as Heaven & Hell, there was no further activity under the Black Sabbath until 2011 with the release of their final studio album and 19th overall, 13, in 2013, which features all of the original members except Ward. During their farewell tour, the band played their final concert in their home city of Birmingham on 4 February 2017. Occasional partial reunions have happened since, most recently when Osbourne and Iommi performed together at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Black Sabbath have sold over 70 million records worldwide as of 2013, making them one of the most commercially successful heavy metal bands. Black Sabbath, together with Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, have been referred to as the "unholy trinity of British hard rock and heavy metal in the early to mid-seventies". They were ranked by MTV as the "Greatest Metal Band of All Time" and placed second on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" list. Rolling Stone magazine ranked them number 85 on their "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Black Sabbath were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. They have also won two Grammy Awards for Best Metal Performance, and in 2019 the band were presented a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sabbath
Studio albums
Black Sabbath (1970)
Paranoid (1970)
Master of Reality (1971)
Vol. 4 (1972)
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
Sabotage (1975)
Technical Ecstasy (1976)
Never Say Die! (1978)
Heaven and Hell (1980)
Mob Rules (1981)
Born Again (1983)
Seventh Star (1986)
The Eternal Idol (1987)
Headless Cross (1989)
Tyr (1990)
Dehumanizer (1992)
Cross Purposes (1994)
Forbidden (1995)
13 (2013)
War Pigs/Luke's Wall
Black Sabbath Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction,
Sorcerer of death's construction
In the fields the bodies burning,
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind,
Poisoning their brainwashed minds
Oh Lord yeah
Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role for the poor, yeah
Time will tell on their power minds,
Making war just for fun
Treating people just like pawns in chess,
Wait 'till their judgement day comes, yeah
Now in darkness world stops turning,
Ashes where the bodies burning
No more War Pigs have the power,
Hand of God has struck the hour
Day of judgement, God is calling
On their knees the war pigs crawling,
Begging mercies for their sins
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings
Oh Lord yeah
The lyrics to Black Sabbath's song War Pigs (Luke's Wall) are deep and thought-provoking. The song speaks to the evils of war, the corruption of politicians, and the consequences of our actions. The opening lines, "Generals gathered in their masses, just like witches at black masses," sets the scene for an ominous event. The imagery is powerful and unsettling, comparing the gathering of generals to a black mass, symbolizing the evil and destruction that will follow.
The second verse takes a shot at politicians, who are responsible for starting the war but do not participate in the actual fighting. The lyrics imply that the rich and powerful have no problem sending the poor to die for their interests, but they themselves are too cowardly to join the fight. The chorus serves as a cautionary warning, telling us that our actions will have consequences, and we will eventually have to answer for our sins.
The final verse brings a sense of closure, as the war is over, and the war pigs, the ones responsible for the destruction, have lost their power. They are now on their knees, begging for mercy for their sins, while Satan, laughing, spreads his wings. The phrase "Luke's Wall" is a reference to the original title of the song, which was "Walpurgis," named after the German festival of the same name that takes place on April 30th.
Line by Line Meaning
Gen'rals gathered in their masses,
A large group of military leaders have assembled to wage war
Just like witches at black masses
The generals are likened to witches with dark intentions
Evil minds that plot destruction,
The generals have evil intentions to destroy
Sorcerer of death's construction
The generals are like sorcerers who create death and destruction
In the fields the bodies burning,
Amidst the fighting, bodies of soldiers are being burned
As the war machine keeps turning
The war continues without stopping like a machine
Death and hatred to mankind,
The violence and destruction that war brings is directed towards humanity
Poisoning their brainwashed minds
The propaganda of war has brainwashed people to accept violence as normal
Oh Lord yeah
Expressing a sense of hopelessness and despair
Politicians hide themselves away
The leaders who started the war are hiding from the consequences
They only started the war
Political leaders are responsible for the wars that kill innocent people
Why should they go out to fight?
Leaders who declare war do not have to fight themselves
They leave that role for the poor, yeah
Poor people who have no choice are forced to fight and die in wars
Time will tell on their power minds,
In time, those in power will face the consequences of their actions
Making war just for fun
Leaders who start wars do it for their own amusement
Treating people just like pawns in chess,
Soldiers are treated as mere game pieces in the political game of war
Wait 'till their judgement day comes, yeah
Those in power will face divine judgement for their actions
Now in darkness world stops turning,
The destruction and death brought by war brings the world to a halt
Ashes where the bodies burning
The aftermath of war leaves behind only ashes from the burned bodies of the dead
No more War Pigs have the power,
Those who start wars will no longer have the power to do so
Hand of God has struck the hour
God's judgement has come upon those who have caused so much death and destruction
Day of judgement, God is calling
The divine judgement that those in power were warned about has now arrived
On their knees the war pigs crawling,
Leaders who started wars are now begging for mercy on their knees
Begging mercies for their sins
Leaders are pleading for forgiveness for the destruction and death they caused
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings
The devil rejoices in the destruction and chaos that war brings
Oh Lord yeah
Expressing a sense of hopelessness and despair
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: F. IOMMI, J. OSBOURNE, T. BUTLER, W. WARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ferenc Zakharides
on Sweet Leaf
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