Seventh Star

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 bassist and 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. Due to pressures by Warner Bros. Records and the prompting of band manager Don Arden, the record was billed as Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi. Later releases label the album as simply by Black Sabbath. Despite the issues behind the release's production, it earned moderate commercial success, reaching #78 on the Billboard 200 chart.[4]

Seventh Star
Studio album by
Black Sabbath
Released28 January 1986[1][2]
Recorded1985
StudioCherokee Studios, Los Angeles, California
Cheshire Sound Studios, Atlanta, Georgia
GenreHeavy metal[3]
Length34:55
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerJeff Glixman
Black Sabbath chronology
Born Again
(1983)		 Seventh Star
(1986)		 The Eternal Idol
(1987)
Tony Iommi with Glenn Hughes chronology
Seventh Star
(1986)		 The 1996 DEP Sessions
(2004)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]
Classic Rock5/10[6]
Martin Popoff7/10[7]

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.[8]

"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."[9]

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. "I really like Seventh Star," Tony Martin told Sabbath fanzine Southern Cross, "mainly because I admire Glenn Hughes' voice."[10]

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.[11]

Reviews and reception

The album peaked at #78 on the Billboard 200 chart.[4] 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.[5]

However, critic Eduardo Rivadavia of Allmusic has given 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".[4]

Reviews from the period were more positive. Popular Rock publication Kerrang! magazine gave Seventh Star a rare perfect 5/5 score.[12]

Track listings

Music by Tony Iommi; lyrics by Tony Iommi, Glenn Hughes, Geoff Nicholls and Jeff Glixman.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."In for the Kill"3:48
2."No Stranger to Love"4:28
3."Turn to Stone"3:28
4."Sphinx (The Guardian)"1:12
5."Seventh Star"5:20
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."Danger Zone"4:23
7."Heart Like a Wheel"6:35
8."Angry Heart"3:06
9."In Memory..."2:35
2010 Deluxe Edition Disc 1 bonus track
No.TitleLength
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.TitleLength
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

Personnel

Black Sabbath

Additional Musicians

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

Chart performance
Year Chart Position
1986 Sweden 11
Finland 12
Norway 17
United Kingdom 27
Germany 51
United States 78
Australia 88

References
  1. "Allmusic Releases". 28 January 2020.
  2. "Metal Archives". 28 January 2020.
  3. "Ranking: Every Black Sabbath Album from Worst to Best". 9 March 2017.
  4. Rivadavida, Eduardo. "Seventh Star" at AllMusic. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  5. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. pp. 78. ISBN 9780743201698.
  6. Elliott, Paul (January 2011). "Black Sabbath – Reissues". Classic Rock. 153. London, UK: Future plc. p. 112.
  7. 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.
  8. "Iommi with Glenn Hughes: The 1996 DEP Sessions". melodicrock.com. Archived from the original on 16 December 2004. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  9. Schroer, Ron (May 1998). "Bill Ward & The Hand Of Doom – Part IV: Living Naked". Southern Cross (Sabbath fanzine) #21. p. 63.
  10. Southern Cross (ISSN 0966-5064), No.10, May 1993
  11. 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.
  12. Kerrang!, January, 1986 issue
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