I don´t knowm but they decided tp change the album title without changing the artwork,” moans Ozzy.
Released in september ´70, Paranoid soared to the top of the charts in the UK / it climbed to 12 in the US when it was released in ´71, remaining on the chart for close to fie year/. In Britain the single hitNumber Foue, creating a new, unwelcome audience for Sabbath.
“That single attracted screaming kids,”winces Tony. “We saw people dancing when we played it and we decided that we sholudn´t do singles for a long while after that to stay true to the fans who´d like us before we´d become popular.”
From opener, War pigs, to the crunchy Iron man, the wistful Planet caravan and the remarkably titled Fairies wear boots / written after Geezer had received a good kicking by a bunch of skinheads beforthe rest of the band could wade in/, Paranoid established Sabbath as a force to be reckoned with. For the band it also meant the start of a slow descent into hedonism on an unparalleled scale.
“We went madder than before. There were more groupies on the road, more drugs, more booze, more everything. It became decadecence on wheels,”recalls Geezer. Financially too, the band werw kept sweet with the regular delivery whatever they required.
“We found we could buy cars and horses after that,” nods Tony. “We never aske where money was coming from or where the rest was going. We were just enjoying ourselves.”
Along with enjoyement came a sens of ambition wich manifested itself on the band´s third album Master of reality. Again with Bain producing, Sabbath refused to tone things down, serving up some of the heaviest moments of tjeir career.
The phlegm- coughing Sweat leaf opns the histilities extolling what many believe to be the virtues of marijuana. “Actually, the title comes from a packet of Irish cigarettes I´d picked uo callet Sweet afton,” clarifies Geezer. “I didn´t know what ot write the song about and there was this slogan on the sode of the box that mentioned “It´s a sweet leaf, so I just went from there and the song started to work on a totally different level.” Alongside Sweet leaf came the iconoclastic After forever, the scatching Into the void and the pummelling Childre of the grave, the latter marking what Bill terms as “my first ever overdub.”
The band´s dsire to stretch out is showcased in the reflective Solitude, while Tony allows himself a couple of guitar interlues in the form of Embryo and Orchid.
“it was an exporatory album, “ recallls Bill.