...I still think it is overrated, even though I like it now. Even just among the Tony Martin Sabbath albums, I think Cross Purposes and Tyr are much better.

I've been meaning to go back to all these Martin Sabbath albums so maybe I will later.

Why not just order the new box set?

At the time, this era of Sabbath was often criticized for being a failed attempt by Iommi to replicate the Dio-era of Rainbow.

Whether or not it's actually true, there were more than a few journalists in those days who claimed Iommi was forever chasing Blackmore, that he wanted to be 'taken as seriously' as the Man In Black was.

Odd how things change with time, as Iommi's standing as guitarist is beyond reproach.

That comparison seems pretty apt for Seventh Star but always sounds wild in the context of the Martin era. I get it with Martin sounding similar to Dio and the AOR factor, but I think Iommi’s riffs just lent themselves to darker tones than Blackmore could ever tap into.

Anyway this album rules and I’m hyped to see it finally properly streaming. It’s like a week younger than me so that’s pretty fun.

The whole 80's production with the snare reverb

That title track is easily one of the top 10 songs they've ever written

The songs are all super tightly written, really good clarity to the structures, with rugged but thoughtful riffwork that lets the stellar vocals take the spotlight.

"When Death Calls" is a masterpiece.

Great album, I've been listening to it a fair amount the last several weeks. The songs are all super tightly written, really good clarity to the structures, with rugged but thoughtful riffwork that lets the stellar vocals take the spotlight. The excitement level drops off a tad in the last couple tracks, but every song on here is strong.

I checked out The Eternal Idol the other night in the hopes of more of the same vibe, but was surprised at how muddled and sort of a mess the material was in comparison to this. The vocals and guitars felt like they were stumbling over each other half the time. Not so with Headless Cross, they really perfected the direction on this one.

Give the remaster a shot! It cleans things up a bit. I believe it was called the deluxe edition. It's a 2cd package with lots of demos with Ray Gillen on vocals and things like that. The original mix isn't ideal but the deluxe edition lets the songs shine

This was the best Tony Martin album - the sharpest songs, the coolest atmospheres. "Kill in the Spirit World" was always probably my favorite - what a weird, adventurous tune... but it's all really consistent and the campy Hammer Horror thing was done really well. Tony Martin's vocals are so good here. I've been meaning to go back to all these Martin Sabbath albums so maybe I will later.

I complained about the way the album sounds above, but it's still my favourite Tony martin-era Sabbath album. Tyr never really worked for me and most of the other ones have at least a couple of tracks I just might be inclined to skip. The era as a whole is a bit weird to me -- at times I want to defend it but I also can see how it's maybe not the strongest stuff Sabbath ever put out. I'd make an exception for the songs at least on this record, and what an exemplary vocal performance.

Too much reverb, a generally tinny guitar tone tht never quite manages to sound heavy enough no matter how much you turn up the volume

Inspired by recent conversations on the forum about Black Sabbath made me remember this post and that I had forgotten to give this record a chance. I regret having done so, I couldn't get past the first song, the first thirty seconds sound like a Van Halen song, and then there are those cheap keyboards that keep screaming "WE ARE IN THE 80'S PEOPLE SIII" No wonder most fans of the band completely ignore this period, this has the same Black Sabbath as a Taylor Swift album, horrible, only for absolute geeks.

Why not just order the new box set?

Convinced the people who hate Headless Cross for the 80s sound are really not actually listening to the substance... if that album was produced like any of their old ones, it'd sound absolutely crushing and dark as fuck. It's really just the surface aesthetics that seems to trip some newer listeners up.

Give Cross Purposes a try. Much less stuck in the 80s, and very riffy.

I love Deep Purple and I always thought that the Glenn Hughes, Ian Gillan and Tony Martin albums are almost like a fusion between Black Sabbath and Deep Purple, but if you aren't into 70s and 80s hard rock I understand that some people don't like those albums, but it's their loss, I guess.

On the topic of Hughes and Sabbath, I strongly recommend the Hughes/Iommi album, "Fused". Shockingly heavy and the best thing Tony's been involved with in decades.