Black Sabbath was not an immediate critical success. Most reviewers dismissed it as a crude, amateurish noise compared to the virtuosity of Led Zeppelin or the artistry of The Beatles. But the fans understood. The album climbed into the UK Top 10 and reached No. 23 on the US Billboard charts, selling steadily by word of mouth.
The self-titled debut album by , released on Friday, February 13, 1970, is widely heralded as the definitive birth of heavy metal. Emerging from the industrial, working-class landscape of Birmingham, England, the record offered a stark, dark contrast to the "flower power" and psychedelic optimism of the late 1960s. The Making of a Legend black sabbath album black sabbath
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