3/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Like many albums of that time, Shades of #DeepPurple features covers. Actually half of the album are covers: Hush, Help!, Hey Joe and I'm So Glad.

The latter starts with a fine psychodelic prelude which is my favourite part of the album.

Overall this is a solid debut record and if you like 60s psych/prog rock, you will like this one too.

2.5 out of 5.

🎵 Prelude: Happiness / I'm so Glad
💿 Shades of Deep Purple (1968)
▶️ https://song.link/y/0Ficnj4EuvM

4/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Only 3 months after their debut, #DeepPurple release their sophomore album "The Book of Taliesyn".

Rob Evan reminds me a lot of Elvis, I forgot to mention this before.

Track 2 is an epic, guitar and organ heavy psych hard rock instrumental:

🎵 Wring That Neck / Hard Road
💿 The Book of Taliesyn (1968)
▶️ https://song.link/y/6N3pr3_tlSE

Meanwhile in the #BlackSabbath timeline, #Ozzy places an advertisement in a local music shop: "OZZY ZIG Needs Gig – has own PA".

5/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Who has the audacity to cover both #Beethoven and #TheBeatles and merge it into one song?

Deep Purple have and I am glad they did!

🎵 Exposition / We Can Work It Out by #DeepPurple
💿 The Book of Taliesyn (/1968)
▶️ https://song.link/y/nBBqwXFAMwU

Also, and I can't stress this enough: Jon Lord!

6/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

The second album in Mk. I formation closes with a cover of an Ike and #TinaTurner song intruduced by "Also sprach Zarathustra":

🎵 River Deep, Mountain High by #DeepPurple
💿 The Book of Taliesyn (1968)
▶️ https://song.link/y/LXAdpyKD-lI

Overall the album is a step up from their debut and gets a solid 3 out of 5.

Ranking:
1. The Book of Taliesyn 3
2. Shades of Deep Purple 2.5

7/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

In June of '69 #DeepPurple release their third album within 10 months.

Their self titled album opens with signature Ian Paice drums:

🎵 Chasing Shadows
💿 Deep Purple (1969)
▶️ https://song.link/y/C272VPp8m4Y

Neil Armstrong hast not set foot on the moon yet.

Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Ozzy Osbourne form #BlackSabbath

8/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Deep Purple (the album) only has one cover song on it (Lalena by Donovan) which is also the weakest track on the record if you ask me.

Why Didn't Rosemary on the other hand is the first one where I thought that its typical #DeepPurple song. It has all their trademark elements and could easily be featured on later albums.

🎵 Why Didn't Rosemary?
💿 Deep Purple (1969)
▶️ https://song.link/y/E0al-MezlTg

9/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

With Deep Purple #DeepPurple drive furhter down the hard rock road.

I'd say it is a is a really good album: 3.5/5

The album closer however, the epic three-part classic rock suite "April", deserves a much higher rating. I honestly haven't heard it before and I am in love!

🎵 April
▶️ https://song.link/y/RaMmBH3pYxY

Mk. I is over. Are you ready for some significant changes?

Ranking:
1. Deep Purple 3.5
2. The Book of Taliesyn 3
3. Shades of Deep Purple 2.5

10/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Pouring rain, thunder, an inverted tritone.

Enter Black Sabbath.

The genre founding and defining riff opens what many consider the first ever #HeavyMetal album - myself included.

"What is this, that stands before me?"
It is the root from which metal will develop in all its beautiful genres.

🎵 Black Sabbath
💿 #BlackSabbath (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/b_EcPEuHvag

11/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

The infamous tritone, also known as the Devil's interval is an element widely used in classical music.

This is where I see parallels with #DeepPurple, who used classic songs and themes throughout their first three albums.

Did this influence #BlackSabbath? You tell me, I have no idea, but at least it sounds feasible.

Meanwhile on track 2, Black Sabbath switch from doom to blues rock:

🎵 The Wizard
💿 Black Sabbath (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/ftKNGzh7t94

12/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

I listended to this album plenty, but this is the first time that I really appreciate Geezer's bass playing. It stands out, especially on Evil Woman, which is one of two covers on the album (the other one is Warning).

Sleeping Village is all over the place - in a good way. Doomy riffs, fast paced, almost jazzy parts but blues rock at heart.

🎵 Sleeping Village by #BlackSabbath
💿 Black Sabbath (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/Za4YaV1x_dw

13/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Here's a question:
Does Wicked World close #BlackSabbath's debut album?

Here's another question:
Is Black Sabbath a GOAT tier album?

I'd say no.

It is a landmark album and a masterpiece though, which translates to 4.5 out of 5 on my scale.

Ranking:
1. Black Sabbath 4.5

Bonus question: shall I do a combined Sabbath and Purple ranking? Shall I post my ranking only in the end?

https://album.link/y/OLAK5uy_l7sDmWvP2VNWTdhZ453bIhVOBGeNh8lJU

14/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

In May of '69 #DeepPurple dismissed Rod Evans and Nick Simpler because they wanted to head in a heavier direction.

The were replaced by Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, Mark II - the most iconic Deep Purple lineup -was born.

And boy, they really added a lot of heaviness to their music.

But was it heavy enough to challenge Black Sabbath?

🚨 Spoler alert: Yes it was.

🎵 Speed King
💿 Deep Purple in Rock (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/W_jfHvcAXRY

15/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Deep Purple in Rock features a song called "Child in Time", but of course you know that.

Honestly, it doesn't really get much better than this.

Oh what an absolute king of a song this is. 🎸👑

🎵 Child in Time by #DeepPurple
💿 Deep Purple in Rock (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/UEjAaLu8Dhs

16/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

"Deep Purple in Rock" is fantastic.

Be it Speed King, Flight of the Rat, Hard Lovin' Man or Child in Time, this album is packed with greatness.

It is as good as it gets and therefore it deserves the perfect score:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Now, is this the first ever metal album? Honestly, I don't care, just enjoy it. 🤘

🎵 Hard Lovin' Man
💿 Deep Purple in Rock (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/1BoLgLGRyIc

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. DP 3.5
3. Book of Taliesyn 3
4. Shades of DP 2.5

17/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

While #DeepPurple started their somewhat slow into the heavier realms, #BlackSabbath started with a bang! 💥

And it took them only 7 months to make another bang.

Paranoid!

War Pigs is probably my favourite Ozzy era Sabbath song. It also is the opener of the album:

🎵 War Pigs / Luke's Wall
💿 Paranoid (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/zVY--knsDc4

18/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

It shall be mentioned that #Paranoid also features Paranoid, which is #BlackSabbath's most famous song, of course. And despite it being played to death this song is so good it can't be played to death.

🎵 Paranoid
💿 Paranoid (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/at/i/1533659669

What I wonder though: why is Ritchie Blackmore running through woods like a maniac armored shield and a neon samurai sword while wearing a helmet, yellow pyjamas and blue underpants on the album cover? 🤔

19/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Listening through Paranoid (again), I realised that this is the first "pure" metal album on my journey.

Yes, #BlackSabbath has lots of metal on it, same as #DeepPurple in Rock, but neither of them are pure metal. Although I have to say In Rock came pretty close, closer than Black Sabbath IMHO.

But overall, this doesn't matter, it's just a detail.

Here's some doom:

🎵 Hand of Doom
💿 Paranoid (1970)
▶️ https://song.link/y/o6HmfTdwYZg

20/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

BlackSabbath's #Paranoid is a GOAT tier album, it is as simple as that.

There is not a single weak track on it, it is perfect and deserves a perfect score:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#DeepPurple and #BlackSabbath really delivered in 1970!

Ranking:
1. Paranoid 5
2. Black Sabbath 4.5

https://album.link/y/OLAK5uy_lhrQQKBwL-MndIQ077Jq-4eKiq5oo-hJw

21/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Two GOAT tier albums in a row. Can #DeepPurple and #BlackSabbath keep the level up?

In July '71 Deep Purple release their 5th studio album, #Fireball. It is their second album in Mk. II formation.

🎵 Fireball
💿 Fireball (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/NwMRYOONsOA

Following the success of Deep Purple in Rock, egos developed which led to tensions within the band.

22/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

The UK version of #Fireball had "Demon's Eye" as track no. 3. The US version had "Strange Kind of Woman".

Why? #DeepPurple recorded Demon's Eye last, however they had an upcoming US tour and didn't manage to put the song on the album in time. So they chose a song they already had and put it on the US version.

I guess this also explains why the US version was released before the UK version.

🎵 Demon's Eye
💿 Fireball (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/VoREMTRNAX0

23/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

I love Fools. The song of course. Easily my favourite on this rather experimental album. Just listen to Ritchie Blackmore's guitar work:

🎵 Fools
💿 Fireball (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/6grqwx-9X2A

24/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

#Fireball is a bit all over the place. #DeepPurple were rushed to make an album right before their US tour, that's why it lacks a bit of a common theme. Heck, with Anyone's Daughter it even has a country song on it.

Regardless, this is still a great album!
Easy 4/5

Also: this was the first album #KingDiamond bought as a kid.

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. Fireball 4
3. DP 3.5
4. Book of Taliesyn 3
5. Shades of DP 2.5

https://album.link/y/OLAK5uy_nRt2N44IpSbnrPbwlgCwxsWlRTztMQZ4M

25/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Between the US and the UK release of #DeepPurple's Fireball, #BlackSabbath released "Master of Reality" in August of '71.

And it starts with a cough 😷

🎵 Sweet Leaf
💿 Master of Reality (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/aXpKtZbHhQI

26/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Please know that I am by no means a #BlackSabbath or #DeepPurple expert. There are plenty of albums I never (conciously) listened to and shockingly #MasterOfReality is one of them.

So one of the main reasons why I am doing this journey is to fill the gaps and find gems.

And oh boy did I find one! How good is Children of the Grave?

🎵 Children of the Grave
💿 Master of Reality (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/1NN67EzOFO4

27/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Wait a minute, is this really Ozzy singing?

🎵 Solitude
💿 Master of Reality (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/1NN67EzOFO4

28/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Why does Into the Void sound so familiar? Ah, Kyuss, that's why!

Overall #MasterOfReality puts me in a tricky position. Don't get me wrong, the album is a masterpiece, an easy 4.5/5.

But! Do I like it more than Black Sabbath? 🤔

Yes, but...

If I had to choose one, it would still be BS I guess.

Ranking:
1. Paranoid 5
2. Master of Reality 4.5
2. #BlackSabbath 4.5

🎵 Into the Void
💿 Master of Reality (1971)
▶️ https://song.link/y/-R5XnrZn47Q

29/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

March 30th 1972:

The world famous and universally beloved #Czech footballer Karel Poborský is born in Třeboň, Czechoslovakia.

#DeepPurple release their 6th studio album named after the american metal band Machine Head. Or something like that.

Anyways, #MachineHead opens with a bang:

🎵 Highway Star
💿 Machine Head (1972)
▶️ https://song.link/y/_hJEyDOn6Ho

30/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Dö dö dööö
dö dö dödööö
dö dö döööö dö döööö

This right there is the single most iconic riff in rock and metal history and nothing comes close.

Yes, there are better riffs, more sophisticated riffs, more brutal riffs. But not more iconic and I am not even gonna start to argue about that.

🎵 Smoke On The Water by #DeepPurple
💿 Machine Head (1972)
▶️ https://song.link/y/1L3XxUxEb6U

31/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

The third album in Mk. II formation is the third great one. A masterpiece even.
4.5 out of 5

It doesn't quite reach Deep Purple in Rock, but what does?

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. Machine Head 4.5
3. Fireball 4
4. DP 3.5
5. Book of Taliesyn 3
6. Shades of DP 2.5

Now please excuse me, I'll be space truckin'

🎵 Space Truckin' by #DeepPurple
💿 Machine Head (1972)
▶️ https://song.link/y/Xt9W_tf32dQ

32/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

#BlackSabbath album number four is called "Vol. 4".

What else but a typical heavy but catchy Tony Iommy riff opens this album, which is considered an underrated one by many.

🎵 Wheels of Confusion
💿 Vol. 4 (1972)
▶️ https://song.link/y/LOF4R8Om8VE

33/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

The first time I ever listened to Snowblind was somewhere in the early 2000s and it was a cover version by System of a Down.

The original by #BlackSabbath is much much better though:

🎵 Snowblind
💿 Vol. 4 (1972)
▶️ https://song.link/y/z2bYZobEQ4g

34/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

#BlackSabbath Vol. 4 gets a 4. Out of 5 that is.

While it is great, it doesn't quite reach Master of Reality level and towards the end it gets a bit long. But this is critizism at a very very high level.

My favourite song was probalby the opener, Wheels of Confusion.

Oh and I decided that I like Master of Reality better than Black Sabbath.

Ranking:
1. Paranoid 5
2. Master of Reality 4.5
3. BlackSabbath 4.5
4. Vol. 4 4

https://album.link/y/OLAK5uy_knwd1nZBUGMuYqPIUvdqLT7uHmdYlZo9E

35/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

With Who Do We Think We Are #DeepPurple leave the metal path for good. Bluesy, partly jazzy hard rock is on the menu.

It sounds good. Not more, not less.

3.5 out of 5

This is also the final album of the legendary Mk. II formation. Two egos collide, Gillan leaves.

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. Machine Head 4.5
3. Fireball 4
4. DP 3.5
5. Who Do We Think We Are 3.5
6. Book of Taliesyn 3
7. Shades of DP 2.5

🎵 Woman from Tokyo
▶️ https://song.link/at/i/724382359

36/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is #BlackSabbath's 5th studio album.

They got heavier and doomier with each album and it looks like this one will continue this path.

#SabbathBloodySabbath starts with such a heavy riff, it must weight as much as a Mastodon.

🎵 Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
💿 Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
▶️ https://song.link/us/i/785231829

37/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Riffs riffs riffs! 🎸

...but also the first time that I thought: "that's a filler" (looking at you Sabbra Cadabra).

The title track and Killing Yourself to Live are standout tracks, the rest is good.

#BlackSabbath gets 3.5/5 for #SabbathBloodySabbath

Ranking:
1. Paranoid 5
2. Master of Reality 4.5
3. BlackSabbath 4.5
4. Vol. 4 4
5. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath 3.5

🎵 Killing Yourself to Live
💿 Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
▶️ https://song.link/at/i/1440228490

38/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

If you have two big egos in a band, one of them leaves eventually.

Only three years after Ian Gillan joined #DeepPurple he is leaving them again together with bassis Roger Glover.

Mk. II is over, but its legacy will live.

Enter Mk. III:

David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes join the band. They release #Burn in 1974.

🎵 Burn
💿 Burn (1974)
▶️ https://song.link/y/jgbf03MJyS4

39/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Hey wait a minute... this is straight up Funk! 🕺

🎵 You Fool No One by #DeepPurple
💿 Burn (1974)
▶️ https://song.link/y/ne7vBIqhKdk

40/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

I listened to #Burn before, but this time it really clicked. It is absolutely great, a masterpiece: 4.5 out of 5

Ritchie Blackmore's guitar work is something else 🔥 🎸

So far I can tell that #DeepPurple influenced heavy, speed, neoclassical and even power metal.

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. Machine Head 4.5
3. Burn 4.5
4. Fireball 4
5. DP 3.5
6. Who Do We Think We Are 3.5
7. Book of Taliesyn 3
8. Shades of DP 2.5

https://album.link/at/i/724392817

41/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

Next up is #Stormbringer which is intrudoced by a hard rock opener followed by a funk song:

🎵 Love Don't Mean A Thing by #DeepPurple
💿 Stormbringer (1974)
▶️ https://song.link/y/7eDJ9k6rIGY

Fun fact: all Mk. III albums were released in 1974

42/n #DeepSabbath #Metaljourney

David Coverdale and Glenn Hughs are exceptional vocalists and their interplay on #Stormbringer is a feast for the ears.

This is the funk album of #DeepPurple, although I think it is not as good as Burn, still a good album though: 3.5/5

Ranking:
1. In Rock 5
2. MH 4.5
3. Burn 4.5
4. Fireball 4
5. Stormbringer 3.5
6. DP 3.5
7. WDWTWA 3.5
8. Taliesyn 3
9. Shades 2.5

Just like that, Mk. III is over and we're heading into troubled water.

https://album.link/y/OLAK5uy_l37MEBkW_TzY08JV1bgWz8w-3OiOSwmIc