Vol. 4

Black Sabbath Vol. 4 (often shortened to Volume 4) is the fourth album by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released in 1972. The album was originally to be titled Snowblind, after one of several songs referring to cocaine use, and features several Sabbath classics, such as “Tomorrow’s Dream,” “Snowblind,” “Supernaut” and “Changes.”

Volume 4 demonstrates Black Sabbath beginning to experiment with the heavy sound they had become known for. Although some songs are in their trademark style, others demonstrate a soft, orchestral approach. This is exemplified by the song “Changes”. Written by Tony Iommi, it is entirely in the form of a piano ballad with mellotron. Although the band had used piano on some songs previously, it had played only a minor role in the songs.

At least two songs on the album reference the use of cocaine. The lyrics and title of “Snowblind” is an example of this. The song “Snowblind” also had to be re-recorded because the original version features Osbourne yelling the word “cocaine!” after each verse. On the officially released version, “cocaine” is whispered quite audibly after the first verse, approximately 41 seconds into the song (During live performances Osbourne would again scream the word at the top of his lungs).