#139 Black Sabbath, 'Paranoid' (1970)

Coming only 7 months after their debut record, ‘Paranoid’ is arguably Black Sabbath’s greatest record and one of the greatest Heavy Metal records of all time. Building on the sound that they had pioneered on their debut record, most of the songs on this record were born out on-stage jams. The album opens with the slow sludgy guitar sounds of ‘War Pigs’ accompanied by a siren; a call to arms in the truest sense, before the tempo picks up. “Generals gathered in their masses/Just like witches at black masses.”