Born Again (Black Sabbath album)

Born Again is the eleventh studio album by the English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released in the United Kingdom on 12 September 1983. It marks the only time the band worked with lead vocalist Ian Gillan, and it was the last album to feature bassist Geezer Butler for nine years, as well as the final album with drummer Bill Ward. Critical reception has been mixed, but commercially it performed well, reaching number four on the UK charts and entering the top 40 in the United States. In July 2021, guitarist Tony Iommi confirmed that the long-lost original master tapes had been found and that he was considering a remix for a future re-release.

After Ronnie James Dio and drummer Vinny Appice left in 1982, the band’s future was uncertain. They switched management to Don Arden, who suggested Ian Gillan of Deep Purple as the new vocalist. Before settling on Gillan, the band had considered Robert Plant and David Coverdale. Iommi had wanted to form a new group with Coverdale and drummer Cozy Powell, but Coverdale and Powell decided to stay with Whitesnake. Iommi has claimed the band received an audition tape from Michael Bolton, then working in hard rock, but Butler says Iommi made that up as a joke, and Bolton himself has called it a rumor possibly stemming from his band Blackjack once opening for Ozzy Osbourne.

Iommi told Hit Parader in late 1983 that Gillan was the best candidate, calling his shriek legendary. Gillan was initially reluctant, but his manager convinced him to meet Iommi and Butler at a pub in Oxford. After a night of heavy drinking, Gillan committed to the project in February 1983. The next morning he had no memory of joining and claimed he didn’t even like Black Sabbath’s music, but the deal was done. The project was originally meant to be a new supergroup, not billed as Black Sabbath, but after recording, Arden insisted on using the recognizable name, overruling the members. Butler noted that Arden secured a large advance from the record company on the condition that Gillan be involved and the album released under the Black Sabbath name.

With Cozy Powell staying with Whitesnake, drummer Bill Ward was persuaded to return. Ward said he was newly sober after leaving in 1980 for alcoholism treatment and assured the others he was ready to record and tour.