In a new conversation with Guitar World, Tony Iommi explained why he doesn’t mind Metallica being compared to Black Sabbath.
“So it was brilliant to hear about other musicians liking what I’d done, taking the same kind of idea and improving on it, evolving it into their own sound,” the guitarist said when asked about the impact of Sabbath’s song ‘Symptom of the Universe.’ “Like Metallica, for instance, who probably learned things from us as well as other people.”
He went on, “What they did with the metal sound, turning it into thrash, was fantastic. They’ve always been respectful toward us and they’re lovely guys. I love their attitude toward things, the way they write, and everything. It reminds us a lot of how we were – everyone in one room rehearsing together and taking it seriously.”
Metallica played at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when Black Sabbath was inducted, with Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield giving the induction speech.
“Anyway, I wonder how many times on this very night in the last 20 years that the words ‘If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be here’ have been uttered. Well, here we go once more. Bill, Geezer, Ozzy, and Tony, if it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be here,” Ulrich said in his speech. “Obviously if there was no Black Sabbath, there would be no Metallica.”
He continued, “If there was no Black Sabbath, hard rock and heavy metal as we know it today would look, sound, and be shaped very, very differently. So if there was no Black Sabbath, I could possibly still be a morning newspaper delivery boy — no fun, no fun. So thank you for meeting, thank you for knowing each other, and thank you for forming a band so I would have something relevant and important to do on this Monday night in 2006.”
Hetfield added, “And now, as the former nine-year-old speaks to you here, as an adult musician — I know those two words really don’t go together — I realize that without their defining sound, as my friend Lars has said, there would be no Metallica, especially with one James Hetfield. Never have I known a more timeless and influential band. They have spread their wonderful disease through generations of musicians.”
In March 2010, Black Sabbath and Metallica announced a special limited-edition single for Record Store Day, released on April 17, 2010.
