G//Z/R is a band led by Birmingham born Black Sabbath bassist/lyricist Geez… Read Full Bio ↴G//Z/R is a band led by Birmingham born Black Sabbath bassist/lyricist Geezer Butler.

On the three albums released so far the band has been known as G//Z/R, Geezer, and GZR, respectively. Despite the changing name, it is still considered the same project. However, Geezer Butler Band from the 1980s is an entirely separate entity.

The bands music is generally of a much harder edge than Butler is known for in Black Sabbath. This isn't a surprise, as the vocalist on his first album, Plastic Planet, was Burton C. Bell from Fear Factory, who is known for more driving and harder edged vocals than ever was displayed in Black Sabbath. The album also featured Pedro Howse on guitar, as well as Deen Castronovo (of Journey fame) on drums. Bell did not stay with the band past the recording of Plastic Planet due to Fear Factory commitments. In 1996 the band re-emerged with an exclusive track for the Mortal Kombat: More Kombat compilation, entitled 'Outworld' and featuring Anger On Anger vocalist, Mario Frasca.

This proved to be a one-time collaboration and Frasca was replaced by Clark Brown (SYMATIC) for their second album Black Science, released in 1997. G//Z/R did play a few live dates in 1997 behind the release of the album, however this was not a full fledged tour, most of these gigs were played concurrent to the Ozzfest tour of that year. The band opened for such folks as Bruce Dickinson, who was playing some live gigs at the time. Castronovo recorded, but did not play any of the live gigs. He was replaced on drums by Chad Smith (not to be confused with the Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer with the same name).

After the handful of live gigs in 1997, the band was mostly put on ice, as Geezer was busy with various things Black Sabbath related for quite a while. Geezer eventually got back into the studio with the same line-up that played the live gigs from 8 years previous, and recorded their third album, Ohmwork, which was released on May 9, 2005. The band is currently working on a new record, and began recording in January 2011, according to Geezer Butler.

The band has actually been marketed with three different names on the three releases they've had. In 1995, the band was marketed as G//Z/R. In 1997, it was merely Geezer, and in 2005, it was GZR. Most fans refer to the band as Geezer, although Butler himself refers to the band name as GEE-ZED-R.This incarnation of the band is not to be confused with Geezer's previous attempt in 1985 to form a solo band, then known as The Geezer Butler Band - the two bands are totally separate.

The band's name is derived from the name of its creator: Terence "Geezer" Butler.

Pedro Howse, the guitarist in the band, is Geezer's nephew.

There are several bands with the name Geezer as well, a stoner rock band and a techno artist, so please vote on the redirected Geezer artist page that this name is correct: http://www.last.fm/music/+noredirect/Geezer

R Lyrics

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Scene from a flickering corner of life
A boy who went and got himself lost

She's there walking right in his shadow
The woman whose path he should have crossed
The light shines on her, I burst into flames

A case of northern wisdom filters my eyes

Embrace the light as mother sighs
I feel a southern breeze ignite my soul
And out of time and space I lose control

She's there walking right in his shadow
The woman whose path he should have crossed
The light shines on her, I burst into flames

A case of northern wisdom filters my eyes
Embrace the light as mother sighs
I feel a southern breeze ignite my soul
And out of time and space I lose control

Looking for answers in my head
Left between what could and should have been instead

A case of northern wisdom filters my eyes
Embrace the light as mother sighs

I feel a southern breeze ignite my soul
And out of time and space I lose control

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of G//Z/R's song Northern Wisdom describe a boy who is lost and searching for answers. He sees a woman who he should have crossed paths with, and as the light shines on her, he bursts into flames. The chorus speaks of a "case of northern wisdom" filtering his eyes, and how he embraces the light as his mother sighs. He feels a southern breeze ignite his soul and loses control, losing himself in time and space.

The song speaks to the idea of missed opportunities and the process of seeking personal enlightenment. The boy is lost and wandering, searching for clarity and understanding. He sees the woman who is meant to be in his life, but instead of interacting with her, he merely observes from a distance. The light shining on her represents the clarity he is seeking, but it also represents the missed opportunity to connect with her. The "case of northern wisdom" refers to the idea of being able to filter out the distractions and noise of everyday life in order to see clearly, and to embrace the light as his mother sighs represents a sense of guidance and protection.

Overall, the song speaks to the human experience of searching for meaning and understanding, and the ways in which missed opportunities can lead to feelings of regret and longing. The chorus speaks to finding a sense of clarity and purpose, and the sense of being connected to something greater than oneself.

Line by Line Meaning

Scene from a flickering corner of life
An unclear, fleeting moment in time.

A boy who went and got himself lost
A young man who has lost his way in the world.

She's there walking right in his shadow
A woman who is closely following and overshadowing him.

The woman whose path he should have crossed
A woman he should have met and interacted with.

The light shines on her, I burst into flames
She is perceived as radiant and attractive to him.

A case of northern wisdom filters my eyes
Moments of clarity and insight gained through life experience.

Embrace the light as mother sighs
Acceptance and appreciation of life's beauty and complexities.

I feel a southern breeze ignite my soul
A sense of awakening and excitement.

And out of time and space I lose control
Being consumed by emotions and losing sense of time and place.

Looking for answers in my head
Searching for understanding within oneself.

Left between what could and should have been instead
Regretting missed opportunities and wondering about alternate paths.