Metal Reviews

Well, it's all in the thread title. Discuss.

I'd go with Ian Gillan. Wanna know why? Ask me.

Glenn Hughes for me. Never really cared for Seventh Star that much, even as a standard 80's hard rock album. Hughes is a great rock singer but his voice did not fit Sabbath's sound at all. Ray and Ian didn't really quite fit the classic Sabbath mold either but they both had greater range than Hughes ever did. A shame Sabbath went with Martin on Eternal Idol instead of holding onto Gillen a little longer as his vocals really shine on those songs. Oh well, Badlands was a much better fit for him anyway.

I really like Born Again to be honest. Certainly one of Sabbath's most underrated records. Gillan screams a little too much but really kills it most of the time. Some of the band's best post-Ozzy tracks are on this album, i.e., Trashed, Zero the Hero and Born Again. If this had come out five years earlier, it would have been fucking massive.

Tony Martin

All I hear/see on the internet is how good some of the albums he's done with Sabbath are, but every time I try and listen to any of them I have to shut it off. Boring and weak. Something I thought I would never say when Tony Iommi is involved.

Gillian

His old man vocals destroy Born again, I can understand votes for Martin though.

It really seems like Sabbath reflected more the styles of their singers than the sound of the original era. After booting Ozzy from the band, the music really changed from their classic sludgy dirge to a cleaner, up-beat style more in the vein of Dio's past material. Same with Born Again and Ian Gillain. The vibe is heavy on the Deep Purple side with Trashed being almost a kid sister to Highway Star. My totally biased love towards Purple definitely influences my liking for that record, but there are still some high quality tracks there. The rest of Sabbath's output until Dio returned in 91' was just standard 80's hard rock with Iommi providing a Sabbath edge here and there. Poor man's Dio though he may, I thought Martin was okay given what Iommi was going for at the time.

From a purely objective viewpoint Ozzy was the worst vocalist to work with Sabbath. He had and still has virtually no technique in his vocals and an extremely limited vocal range. While this works well with the sludgy sound which made Sabbath early on it really hurt the band both on the new record and on Never Say Die.

Personally I feel Dio's vocals on Heaven & Hell and Mob Rules were quite poor but loved his work on Dehumanizer.

This. I could never get into Sabbath with Ozzy barring a few tracks here and there. He sounds terrible and laughable at times. All the other vocalists listed would be better than Ozzy even on their worst day. And I would take any post Ozzy Sabbath album over Sabbath with Ozzy any day. Sabbath could've been much better with a more capable vocalist.

Barring a track here and there (Dio doing War Pigs just kills), I can't divorce Ozzy's vocals from any of the band's classic material. His cracking, nasally whine fits the eerie quality of early 70's Sabbath so well. None of the other guys can really tap into that same dark vibe quite like the Oz. From an ability standpoint, I can understand why folks put him at the bottom though.

This, objectively Ozzy is a terrible vocalist, subjectively he is the only vocalist whose style actually suits the dark, heavy, atmosphere of the band's early material.

I get both of your points. It's actually what most people feel or maybe everyone feels as I have yet to come across someone who thinks otherwise. But personally, even on the classic tracks Ozzy's vocals put me off. I can't help but wonder what if they hadn't found Ozzy and had another vocalist who suited their style just as well.

I'd like to hear Ozzy (in his prime, ha) sing some Dio songs. Heaven and Hell, Sign of the Southern Cross, Falling off the Edge of the World, etc... Wonder how that would sound.

Isn't there an Ozzy clone somewhere? Thought I heard one in one of the stoner metal bands.

Ozzy for me. Every song from Live Evil that was originally done by Ozzy was bested in every possible way when Dio sang those songs. I don't even mind Ozzy as a singer, but those albums are really average. Sorry. I can think of five solid excuses not to listen to Ozzy-era sabbath and that's enough for me to find something else to listen to.

Gillan sounds like...uhhh...I don't consider that sort of tone to be good. You better be exceptionally talented like Steve Perry or Coverdale if you need to add that much raspiness and Ian is very average for his era. So what if he can hit a few high notes, who can't?

On that note... Hughes produces a huskier sounding voice the right way. With his chest and the right amount of airflow and pull. It's rich sounding, not raspy sounding.

Tony Martin sounds alright I guess.

Dio was one of the best ever. He shouldn't have been a poll option since it's asinine to suggest this.

From a purely objective, technique based, position Ozzy is obviously the worst singer Black Sabbath has worked with. To say that would be to answer this question based on its literal meaning. From a fan's perspective though I'll say Glen Hughes. I don't like most Sabbath post Ozzy but Hughes' stint I found particularly offensive to the ear.