Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath 1970-1978
Completely besting the once-classic and classically named best-of,We Sold Our Souls for Rock 'n' Roll,Symptom of the Universecaptures one of rock's heaviest tidal forces in all their glory--and in some more compromising moments. Ranging from the eponymous dirge that opens the set to the boogie-laden energy of more minor Sabbath gems like "Evil Woman" and "After Forever," this two-disc overview doesn't skimp on stone-cold gems like "Paranoid," "War Pigs," "Iron Man," and "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath." The second CD serves up the solo acoustic "Snowblind," a piano-and-Ozzy interlude, "Laguna Sunrise" (from the albumBlack Sabbath, Vol. 4), and the silly, aptly named "Fluff." Here the quartet reaches beyond their grasp, eschewing the grinding, hefty sound that fit Ozzy's flat vocal delivery like a glove; this stuff isn't great, but it's revealing. Decades after their debut, Sabbath's dystrophic rejoinder to '60s and '70s rock still energize nearly all hard rock. So this is rock history, and a blast at that.--Andrew Bartlett