10 Moments That Changed Rock Music History
6. Tony Iommi Loses His Fingers
The birth of metal music as we know it would never have occurred if it wasn't for an incident that took place way back when the druid of metal guitar was just 17 years old.
Working in a sheet metal factory the future Black Sabbath guitarist caught his hand in one of the machines he was working with, resulting in the loss of two digits.
This didn't deter Iommi for long, however. In an inspired display of recycling, he managed to manufacture some homemade prosthetics with a couple old fairy liquid bottles and sections of a leather jacket. The lack of sensation in his newly acquired finger tips led him to tuning down his guitar strings. For anyone familiar with the guitar, you know there's nothing more satisfying than the ominous hum to your power chords after dropping those strings.
Not only did a sheet of a heavy metal almost put a premature end to one of the most influential guitar players careers, but it also birthed the sound (and according to some) the name of one of the most popular genres in rock.