Seventh Star
| Seventh Star | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 28 January 1986[1] | |||
| Recorded | June–August 1985[2] | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:28 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Jeff Glixman | |||
| Black Sabbath chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Seventh Star | ||||
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Seventh Star is the twelfth studio album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath. Released in January 1986, it features founding guitarist Tony Iommi alongside musicians Geoff Nicholls, Eric Singer, and Dave Spitz, playing keyboards, drums, and bass, respectively, and Glenn Hughes, ex-Deep Purple and ex-Trapeze vocalist, as lead singer. The album was the group's first release without bassist and primary lyricist Geezer Butler, who left the band in 1984 after the Born Again tour. It was originally written, recorded, and intended to be the first solo album by Iommi. Because of the pressures from Warner Bros. Records and the prompting of band manager Don Arden, the record was billed as Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi. Despite the issues behind the release's production, it earned moderate commercial success, reaching #27 in the UK and #78 on the Billboard 200 chart.[5]
Album information
As was the case with its predecessor, Born Again, this album was not intended to be a Black Sabbath record. Last-minute pressure from Warner Bros. stemmed from the belief that it was likely to sell more with the famous name. Its sound is a drastic (and intentional) departure from the trademark Sabbath sound. Many of the songs have a very hard rock sound, while some contain a bluesy feel (especially "Heart Like a Wheel"). Seventh Star was the first album to feature long-time keyboardist Geoff Nicholls as an official band member.[6]
"It seemed to me like the band was on its last legs and my heart just went out to Tony," recalled former drummer Bill Ward. "I thought, 'God, how much more can he take?' or 'How much more does he want?'… What I saw was a great band I just felt was diminishing."[7]
The promo-single and video version of "No Stranger to Love" had additional harmony vocals added by Hughes to make it more "radio-friendly". Actress Denise Crosby, who would later portray Tasha Yar in Star Trek: The Next Generation, was featured in the video.
A tour for the album featured Hughes only at the first few shows. He was fired five dates into the tour, and replaced by Ray Gillen, who completed the North American and European legs of the tour, though several dates in the US were cancelled. W.A.S.P. and Anthrax were opening acts on the North American tour.
Hughes has performed "No Stranger to Love", "Seventh Star" and "Heart Like a Wheel" at some of his live concerts.[citation needed] "I really like Seventh Star," Tony Martin told Sabbath fanzine Southern Cross, "mainly because I admire Glenn Hughes' voice."[8]
Seventh Star was rereleased in Europe on 1 November 2010, as a two-disc special edition. Disc 2 includes a concert recorded in 1986, with Gillen on vocals. The single version of No Stranger to Love is a bonus track on disc 1.[9]
Reviews and reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| Classic Rock | 5/10[11] |
| Martin Popoff | 7/10[12] |
| (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide | [10] |
The album peaked at #78 on the Billboard 200 chart.[5] Some retrospective critical assessments of the album have been negative; for example, The New Rolling Stone Album Guide rated the release only two out of five stars.[10]
However, critic Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic gave Seventh Star a mixed to positive review, praising what he saw as the "fiery tunefulness" that makes "aggressive hard rockers like "In for the Kill," "Turn to Stone," and "Danger Zone" uncommonly catchy". However, he argued that the songwriting and vocal work fell flat on songs such as the album's title track. He stated generally that he found the release an "often misunderstood and underrated album".[5]
Reviews from the period were more positive. A reviewer for the magazine Kerrang! gave Seventh Star a perfect score of five out of five.[13]
Track listing
Standard Edition
Music by Tony Iommi; lyrics by Tony Iommi, Glenn Hughes, Geoff Nicholls and Jeff Glixman.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "In for the Kill" | 3:44 |
| 2. | "No Stranger to Love" | 4:25 |
| 3. | "Turn to Stone" | 3:24 |
| 4. | "Sphinx (The Guardian)" | 1:09 |
| 5. | "Seventh Star" | 5:18 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Danger Zone" | 4:20 |
| 7. | "Heart Like a Wheel" | 6:29 |
| 8. | "Angry Heart" | 3:09 |
| 9. | "In Memory..." | 2:30 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 10. | "No Stranger to Love" (Single remix) | 4:00 |
2010 Deluxe Edition Disc 2
Recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in London, England on 2 June 1986, featuring Ray Gillen performing vocals
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Mob Rules" | 2:59 |
| 2. | "Danger Zone" | 4:44 |
| 3. | "War Pigs" | 8:10 |
| 4. | "Seventh Star" | 5:01 |
| 5. | "Die Young" | 3:58 |
| 6. | "Black Sabbath" | 9:33 |
| 7. | "N.I.B." | 1:37 |
| 8. | "Neon Knights" | 4:36 |
| 9. | "Paranoid" | 3:17 |
A contemporary South Korean release sported a much reduced and reordered track listing.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sphinx (The Guardian)" | 1:21 |
| 2. | "Turn to Stone" | 3:27 |
| 3. | "No Stranger to Love" | 4:28 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 4. | "Heart Like a Wheel" | 6:35 |
| 5. | "Angry Heart" | 3:06 |
| 6. | "In Memory..." | 2:34 |
Personnel
Black Sabbath
- Tony Iommi – guitar
- Glenn Hughes – vocals
- Dave Spitz – bass (except on "No Stranger to Love")
- Eric Singer – drums
- Geoff Nicholls – keyboards
Additional Musicians
- Gordon Copley – bass (on "No Stranger to Love")
Release history
| Region | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| United States | January 1986 | Warner Bros. Records |
| Canada | January 1986 | Warner Bros. Records |
| Europe | February 1986 | Vertigo Records |
| Japan | March 1986 | Nippon Phonogram |
| South Korea | May 1986 | Vertigo Records |
| United Kingdom | 1996 | Castle Communications |
| United Kingdom | 2004 | Sanctuary Records |
| United Kingdom | 2010 | Sanctuary Records/Universal Music Group |
Charts
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[14] | 88 |
| Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[15] | 66 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[16] | 10 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] | 51 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[18] | 17 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[19] | 11 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[20] | 27 |
| US Billboard 200[21] | 78 |
References
- ^ "Allmusic Releases". 28 January 2020.
- ^ Iommi, Tony (2012). Iron Man. Simon&Schuster UK. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-84983-321-9.
- ^ "Black Sabbath - Seventh Star". Metal Reviews.com.
- ^ "Ranking: Every Black Sabbath Album from Worst to Best". 9 March 2017.
- ^ a b c d Rivadavida, Eduardo. "Seventh Star" at AllMusic. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
- ^ "Iommi with Glenn Hughes: The 1996 DEP Sessions". melodicrock.com. Archived from the original on 16 December 2004. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
- ^ Schroer, Ron (May 1998). "Bill Ward & The Hand Of Doom – Part IV: Living Naked". Southern Cross (Sabbath fanzine) #21. p. 63.
- ^ Southern Cross (ISSN 0966-5064), No.10, May 1993
- ^ Siegler, Joe (15 September 2010). "Gillen Eternal Idol to be released – FOR REAL!". black-sabbath.com. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
- ^ a b (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. pp. 78. ISBN 9780743201698.
- ^ Elliott, Paul (January 2011). "Black Sabbath – Reissues". Classic Rock. Vol. 153. London, UK: Future plc. p. 112.
- ^ Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
- ^ Kerrang!, January, 1986 issue
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 19. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0648". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
- ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Black Sabbath – Seventh Star" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Black Sabbath – Seventh Star". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Black Sabbath – Seventh Star". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ "Seventh Star Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
External links
- Seventh Star at Discogs (list of releases)
- Seventh Star entry at black-sabbath.com
- 20th Anniversary article about the album
