Top 3 WORST SABBATH Albums/CDs/Recordings

[Old_Papa_Rich]

you guys are crazy...

Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die are in my top favorites...

Yeah, I'm with you here. I'm an avid fan of the original line-up.

[clockwork]

Never Say Die
Never Say Die
Never Say Die

[-E5150 StarWanderer-]

1) Seventh Star
2) Forbidden
3) Never Say Die!

Seventh Star, well, it has some good tunes if you take them out of the Sabbath context: Heart Like A Wheel, In For The Kill (could have well been a Budgie song if you ask me, but funnily enough, Budgie already had recorded a song with the same title ) and Turn To Stone. But all in all it sounds like an album that doesn't know if it's supposed to be hair metal, metal or blues. So, it is more accessible if I treat is an Iommi's solo effort - which is what it was supposed to be - but it's still isn't that good.

Forbidden sounds like a tired effort and only has few moments that manage to grab my attention. It seems like no one gave their best on this album, probably due to the confusing time period. To me Kiss Of Death is the only solid track of this contrived album. Luckily it wasn't set to be their final album after all.

And before the NSD! fans start questioning my sanity, here's a post from another thread that summarizes my view on the album:

Looking back at my list, the first two still hold up but at the moment I would replace NSD! with TYR. And Eternal Idol would rank at the same place as NSD! for that matter.

[led sabbath]

I really didn't want to post to a "worst" thread, because this should be a pro-Sabbath site, and everybody has a different opinion. But if I had to pick it would be:
1.Never Say Die
2.Technical Ecstacy
3.Forbidden
Originally Seventh Star would have been in there but after getting the DE my opinion has changed on it. I've come to appreciate NSD and TE a little more also. But like what was said in a previous post when I want to listen to some Ozzy-Sabbath I'm not going to reach for those 2. It is hard for me to believe that if you put them up against the first 2 w/ Dio that you would pick NSD and TE. Same as the first 2 Ozzy solo albums blow them away. It just seems like they both needed a change, and I am happy they did.

Peace

[Soul Sucker]

And happy birthday, btw...

thanks, dude!

[Thelemech]

Forbidden
Technical Ecstasy
Live Evil

And I still like songs from all three of these albums.

[Karl Malone]

1.never say die
2.tecnical esctasy
3.born again

[TYR66]

Never Say Die
Technical Ecstasy
Forbidden

[headlessmatt1983]

1. Forbidden
2. Technical Ecstasy
3. Dehumanizer

[hammerheart]

For ME, the worst three Sabbath albums are in this order, from least worst to worst:

1. Seventh Star (even though I really DO NOT consider it a Sabbath album, I will for this post. Though I do LIKE some songs from this album)
2. Technical Ecstasy (The drugs were starting to take effect)
3. Never Say Die (The drugs were in full force!!!)

[HeadlessCross]

Technical Ecstasy
Born Again
Forbidden

Mans, the first 6 songs on Never Say Die album one of the best BS songs

[KazolOrajia]

Headless Cross
There are only two songs on the album I really like, three if you cound 'Cloak and Dagger'. The rest are either too AOR-sounding, or just boring. Incredible vocals, but mediocre music.

Born Again
There are a lot of great songs on the album, and I am a fan of it, but compared to the rest of Sabbath's catalogue, it just doesn't compare.

Technical Ecstasy
I love TE, but it's the weakest of the Ozzy albums, and compared to most of the albums that came after it, it's unmemorable and just a tad boring.

I just don't get the hate for NSD, and I probably never will. Almost every song on that album is amazing.

[Dr.Fukk]

1 - Forbidden
2- ....umm
3- hmm...

[justme1]

Forbidden

Can't think of 2 others..........

[A Sabbath Historian]

Since I'm a newcomer to BSO this year I thought I would take a look at some of the older threads. This one caught my eye. I'll pick the TWO WORST Black Sabbath records instead of three, simply because I don't consider any of the records with Tony Martin true Black Sabbath records anyway! That said, they all have their fair share of SHINING moments! Anyway, it's pretty easy: 'Technical Ecstasy' AND 'Never Say Die' are equally horrible. Now that I think about it, these two are NOT true Black Sabbath albums either! Thankfully MR. RONNIE JAMES DIO entered the Sabbath picture shortly thereafter! A WELL NEEDED SHOT IN THE ARM FOR BLACK SABBATH! Great thread!

[Soul Sucker]

... because I don't consider any of the records with Tony Martin true Black Sabbath records anyway!

Cross Purposes has the same number of original members on it as the last three Dio-era albums do (Geezer and Tony). Why is that album not a Black Sabbath album, but Mob Rules is?

[maximum]

born again
never say die is the worst sabbaths

[MovieDemon]

1. Forbidden
2. Headless Cross
3. TYR

[A Sabbath Historian]

Cross Purposes has the same number of original members on it as the last three Dio-era albums do (Geezer and Tony). Why is that album not a Black Sabbath album, but Mob Rules is?

Hi 'Soul Sucker' , that's a great point and a fair question. But Geezer has gone on record to say that it was NOT supposed to be a "Black Sabbath" album, even though the other guys dispute that claim. In the case of 'Mob Rules', NONE of the members have EVER said, at least publicly, that 'Mob Rules' wasn't supposed to be a "Black Sabbath" record. Splitting hairs? Sure. But, like it or not, Ronnie was able to carve his own niche with the band, whereas Tony Martin, sadly, wasn't able to despite being a good singer in his own right. Chalk that up to an unfortunate stigma. In fact, it's fair to say that some Sabbath fans see him as a "Dio clone", rightly or wrongly. Personally, I would say his voice lies somewhere between Ronnie James Dio and Don Dokken. Not a criticism, just an opinion. Again, great comment by the way. Thanks BSO.

[Now in Darkness]

Oh man, this is tough. I really like some of the albums that have undergone critical scrutiny here, such as Technical Ecstasy, Never Say Die, and Forbidden. I am absolutely not trying to offend any of the DIO maniacs, but some of the albums with him on vocals just don't do it for me, but Mob Rules is an all time favorite. So go figure. On to the list:

Eternal Idol
Dehumanizer
Born again

A fairly well rounded list of yuck^^^: Martin, Dio, and Gillan. The best of the above worst would be Born Again.

[Wicked Cricket]

Oh man, this is tough. I really like some of the albums that have undergone critical scrutiny here, such as Technical Ecstasy, Never Say Die, and Forbidden. I am absolutely not trying to offend any of the DIO maniacs, but some of the albums with him on vocals just don't do it for me, but Mob Rules is an all time favorite. So go figure. On to the list:

Eternal Idol
Dehumanizer
Born again

A fairly well rounded list of yuck^^^: Martin, Dio, and Gillan. The best of the above worst would be Born Again.

Well I'm not the only one who thinks Born Again was a collosal mistake... though your other 2 didn't make my "worst list", I do find Eternal Idol rather boring.. and Dehumanizer is my least fav. Dio era Sab, including TDYK... The whole album just sounds disjointed to me, no cohesion... too many songs, no reason to have 2 versions of Time Machine when 1 version of that pretty oridinary song is enough... and Buried Alive is the worst final cut on a Sabbath album since Heaven In Black from the Martin era... Heaven In Black is such a great name though isn't it? For a band, a former Sabbath members band and a song.. but the song itself sucks imo...

[The Rules Mob]

Forbidden
Tyr
Cross Purposes

As an aside, there's a few albums you'd still have to get through before you reach Dehumanizer, or Born Again, or Technical Ecstasy. None of which include vocals by Ozzy or Dio.

[OzzyIsDio]

Giving this thread some thought, I don't think there is a worst or worse album.

[DARKEST LIGHT]

The first 6 Ozzy albums are all exceptional
All 4 Ronnie Dio albums are bloody great and perhaps the very best overall in my book

so I pick these three clunkers

3. Born Again (the production is my gripe as well as crappy, unsabbathy lyrics like on "Trashed")
2. Technical Ecstasy
1. Forbidden

[KazolOrajia]

1. Headless Cross
2. Forbidden
3. Technical Ecstasy

[HeadlessCross]

Not in order:

Technical Ecstasy
Born Again
Eternal Idol