Black Sabbath – recorded August 31, 1970 – Montreux Jazz Festival – RTS-FM
Black Sabbath for Saturday Brunch, recorded at the 1970 Montreux Jazz Festival by RTS-FM in Geneva.
Rarities this week – early Black Sabbath, still considered by many at the time to be Hard Rock but soon to become pioneers of Heavy Metal. Strange at first. Getting acquainted with this new genre took some getting used to – it was aggressive and dark and really became symbolic of where Rock, and in fact the world had taken a turn – almost in direct contrast to the fading “peace and Love” aura that was transitioning to the California laid-back/tarot reading/crunchy granola genre which morphed from the 60s into a commercial staple of the mainstream. Black Sabbath signaled something raw – an alternative that spoke to pent-up angst – the protest – the anxiety – fears of being on the planet – lost, isolated and abandoned. Considering Black Sabbath got started in 1969, the year of Altamont and The Manson Family, you got the feeling all was not well in the Garden of Bliss – and Black Sabbath were speaking to a lot of people who felt the same way.
It came as a surprise when Black Sabbath’s debut album was a howling success. Initial scoffs that they were a one-off and something of a parody were quickly dispelled by the time Paranoid came around and they became a force to be reckoned with. Still not essential airplay on FM underground; a distinction reserved for Led Zeppelin who had dominated the underground airwaves since 1969, even though you could draw distinct differences they were still considered at the time, like Zeppelin, to be Hard Rock – Black Sabbath took the sound and pointed it in another direction. Initial responses and reviews likened that new direction as a new direction of sonic ugliness – tell that to the audience who fell in love at the first chord.
This concert from Montreux gives you some idea of what early Black Sabbath sounded like – it’s difficult to imagine the climate where they were new and untested – the closest it got in comparison for many in the U.S. were Blue Cheer, another band considered to be precursors to Heavy Metal, minus the crucifixes and paganism.
Lucky for everyone this recording has survived, it stands as a record of how a genre evolved and offers proof and a glimpse of things to come.
It’s pointless to suggest cranking it up – you’re already doing that.
Enjoy brunch.
