The The Eternal Idol

The The Eternal Idol

by Black Sabbath
The The Eternal Idol

The The Eternal Idol

by Black Sabbath

CD

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    Available for Pre-Order. This item will be released on August 8, 2025

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Overview

After years of playing a dispiriting game of musical chairs with various lead singers during the early '80s, Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi finally stumbled upon a dependable frontman when he admitted relative unknown Tony Martin into the fold, thereby initiating the original heavy metal band's long awaited return to respectability -- if not chart-topping success. Martin joined the oft-interrupted sessions for what would become 1987's The Eternal Idol album already in progress, stepping in for an unreliable Ray Gillen when the latter moved on to Jake E. Lee's Badlands, and helping Iommi rescue an astonishingly solid long-player from the jaws of complete and utter chaos. As it turned out, Martin's powerful, muscular voice -- though bearing more than a passing resemblance to former singer Ronnie James Dio -- was ultimately the perfect foil for full-bodied heavy metal anthems like "Hard Life to Love," "Glory Ride," and "Born to Lose," which were built upon some of Iommi's heaviest, most undeniable riffs of the decade. A hodgepodge of temporary backing musicians and short-lived producers somehow manage to fill in the gaps, and make The Eternal Idol sound like a very cohesive LP. If anything, however, it's the ever-reliable Geoff Nicholls who embodies a third pillar of stability, by adding impeccable supporting keyboards throughout -- most notably to "Ancient Warrior" and the fantastically gloomy title track. And above all else, The Eternal Idol contains a bona fide heavy metal classic for the ages in its monumental opener, "The Shining," which Iommi had been kicking around in demo form since 1984, and which, in its final glorious form, is rightfully considered one of Black Sabbath's greatest songs bar none, regardless of singer, era, or album sales. In tandem with the consistently stellar songwriting all around, there's no denying The Eternal Idol's standing as quite possibly Black Sabbath's most underrated opus, and arguably their best without either Ozzy Osbourne or Ronnie Dio at the microphone. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia

Product Details

Release Date: 08/08/2025
Label: Rhino
UPC: 0603497813612

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Black Sabbath   Primary Artist
Dave Spitz   Bass
Tony Martin   Vocals
Bev Bevan   Percussion
Geoff Nicholls   Keyboards
Eric Singer   Drums
Bob Daisley   Bass

Technical Credits

Tony Iommi   Composer
Tony Martin   Composer
Shoot That Tiger!   Cover Design
Cindy Palmano   Photography
J. Glixmkan   Producer
Black Sabbath   Composer
Jeff Glixman   Producer
Vic Coppersmith-Heaven   Producer
Chris Tsangarides   Producer,Engineer,Mixing
Patrick Meehan   Executive Producer
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