Album artwork for Volume 4 by Black Sabbath

By the time Black Sabbath began work on what was to be their fourth album in '72, the conveniently titled 'Volume 4', they were very much in the ascendant. Their fan base was growing with each succeeding tour and album, and their style was firmly established. However, to the band members, the treadmill of the rock cycle - album / tour / album / tour in perpetuity - offered no challenge any more. they wanted to stretch themselves, to push the parameters of what they'd already created. So, for the new album, the band took a leap of faith into the unknown. Musically, the band weren't prepared to superglue themselves back into a comfort zone and just do what was expected of them. They wanted to go beyond the darkness and gloom which seemed to surround so much of their music until that point. Here was an opportunity to open Sabbath out to unexplored worlds, to be the band who led, rather than one of the many who merely followed. and they succeeded, as there's an elegance about 'Volume 4' which underscores the way in which the band had matured and developed, both as songwriters and musicians. Released in September '72, this was a three dimensional album, as if Sabbath were now determined to use the control they'd gained over its recording and to prove what was now possible.This re-mastered and sumptuous gatefold digipack edition of the album boasts a comprehensive story of the album, sleeve notes by renowned rock critic Malcolm Dome and a plethora of rare and previously unseen photographs and items of memorabilia.

Black Sabbath

Volume 4

Sanctuary
Album artwork for Volume 4 by Black Sabbath
CD

£11.99

Released 21/09/2009Catalogue Number

0602527168579

Learn more
Black Sabbath

Volume 4

Sanctuary
Album artwork for Volume 4 by Black Sabbath
CD

£11.99

Released 21/09/2009Catalogue Number

0602527168579

Learn more

By the time Black Sabbath began work on what was to be their fourth album in '72, the conveniently titled 'Volume 4', they were very much in the ascendant. Their fan base was growing with each succeeding tour and album, and their style was firmly established. However, to the band members, the treadmill of the rock cycle - album / tour / album / tour in perpetuity - offered no challenge any more. they wanted to stretch themselves, to push the parameters of what they'd already created. So, for the new album, the band took a leap of faith into the unknown. Musically, the band weren't prepared to superglue themselves back into a comfort zone and just do what was expected of them. They wanted to go beyond the darkness and gloom which seemed to surround so much of their music until that point. Here was an opportunity to open Sabbath out to unexplored worlds, to be the band who led, rather than one of the many who merely followed. and they succeeded, as there's an elegance about 'Volume 4' which underscores the way in which the band had matured and developed, both as songwriters and musicians. Released in September '72, this was a three dimensional album, as if Sabbath were now determined to use the control they'd gained over its recording and to prove what was now possible.This re-mastered and sumptuous gatefold digipack edition of the album boasts a comprehensive story of the album, sleeve notes by renowned rock critic Malcolm Dome and a plethora of rare and previously unseen photographs and items of memorabilia.