10 Greatest Classic Rock Albums Of The 1970s
3. Black Sabbath - Master Of Reality
Although this is technically a classic metal album, it would surely be criminal not to name Black Sabbath as one of the 1970s best bands. Choosing between ‘Paranoid’ and ‘Master of Reality’ is an incredibly tough decision for most rock and metal fans, but as far as this list is concerned ‘Master of Reality’ narrowly takes it.
Released in 1971, ‘Master of Reality’ was Black Sabbath’s third album in as many years and continued to solidify their claim as one of the founding fathers to what would become heavy metal.
Even though the original version of the album only consisted of eight songs, it still included a continuous stream of riffs and delivered a perception of musical heaviness that had never been achieved before.
Key songs from this album included ‘Children of the Grave’, ‘Sweet Leaf’ and ‘After the Void’ as well as other great (although generally overlooked) Sabbath tunes. To this day, Black Sabbath are considered to be one of the best metal bands of all time alongside groups such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden.