Nativity in Black: Tribute to Black Sabbath

Producers: Biohazard, John "The Bastard" (track 1); White Zombie, Bryan Carlstrom (track 2); Max Norman (tracks 3, 10); Hypo Luxa (track 4); Terry Date, Chris Tsangarides (track 5); John Custer (track 6); Andy Wallace (track 7); Toby Wright (track 8); Rachel Bolan (track 9); William Shapland (track 11); Silver/Steele (track 12).
Engineers: John Custer (track 6); Andy Wallace (track 7); Bruce Calder (track 9).
Includes liner notes by Steffan Chirazi.
All songs written by F. Iommi, T. Butler, W. Ward and J. Osbourne.
Megadeth's "Paranoid" was nominated for a 1996 Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.
Black Sabbath's reign over heavy metal is often imitated but never equaled. While other thug rockers of the late '60s relied on their blues backgrounds, Sabbath virtually invented heavy metal and its macabre subject matter.
Today Black Sabbath is still monstrously influential. It's slipping out in the head-banging antics of Beavis & Butt-Head as they hum "Iron Man," or the no-frills riffing and drum massacres of most heavy metal bands. Without Black Sabbath, where would metal and hard rock be?
With this in mind, NATIVITY IN BLACK: A TRIBUTE TO BLACK SABBATH evokes the spirit of the immortal Sabbath, and adds spice to even the hardest of today's metal and alternative acts as diverse as Ugly Kid Joe and Biohazard. From the gorgeous instrumentation of Sepultura's version of "Symptom Of The Universe," to the feedback-drenched "Children Of The Grave" as told by White Zombie, NATIVITY IN BLACK is a Sabbath-lover's treat.
Tributee: Black Sabbath.
Perhaps more than any other single group, the Sabbath sound lay at the heart of Seattle's grunge movement 20-some years later. And many of today's top sonic heavyweights are only too ecstatic to give credit where credit is due. The liner notes may somewhat overstate Black Sabbath's ultimate importance, and quotes from the participating groups tend to gush with the praise of devoted acolytes...but that's exactly the point. The Nativity contributors approach the music with all the passion and spark of real fans, while never boxing themselves into slavish recreations of the original compositions. ~ Roch Parisien