Eddie Van Halen’s favourite Black Sabbath song

Black Sabbath, a rock band that was founded in 1968, rose to prominence and changed the course of the genre by bringing it towards darker and heavier sounds. In just eight hours, Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward recorded their debut album, also known as Black Sabbath. It swept the globe and influenced a wide range of bands in the years that followed.

Over the years, a lot of musicians have borrowed from Black Sabbath—perhaps not directly. Tony Iommi’s twisted blues and heavy sound have become a vital component. Musicians use it to create the sound they want. Eddie Van Halen was one of the musicians who enjoyed the music of the band.

Eddie is no stranger to a good riff; songs like “Hot For Teacher,” “Panama,” and “Runnin‘ With The Devil” are instantly recognizable and bursting with energy. He claimed in an interview that riffs are “just the power.” It just takes you in its embrace. You simply sense it, you know? It causes you to tremble.”

It’s not surprising that Eddie liked Black Sabbath, considering how riff-heavy their music was. When focusing on his sound, he probably listened to a lot of songs, but “Into The Void,” a song by Sabbath from the 1971 album Master Of Reality, really stood out to him.

Over time, Eddie and Tony Iommi became good friends; Eddie also wrote the song “Evil Eye,” which is from the 1994 Sabbath album Cross Purposes. Before they began writing the music, they played “Into the Void” to get warmed up. Iommi had to show Eddie the proper technique because he had been playing it incorrectly.

“I’ve been playing it this way for years,” he said, remembering that I had to teach him how to play it. Since I couldn’t play any of them, I didn’t ask him how he did it.

The early years of heavy metal and rock moved quickly because bands would constantly acknowledge their influences while also attempting to develop upon them. One of the best examples of this is Eddie Van Halen. His music has a strong Sabbath influence that he enhanced with his tapping and shredding style.

When Van Halen opened for Sabbath in 1978, the bands went on tour together, and Iommi remembers being so impressed with the guitarist. “I wasn’t sure if I heard the record first or saw them live,” he admitted. “It’s likely that I heard the record first because I knew they were touring with us.” But my goodness, what a fantastic guitarist he was. My jaw dropped, my senses reeling from the sonic onslaught. Like, “What the hell is this?” Yes, that was the first thing he did. They were such a live and exciting band. They were excellent.

Eddie Van Halen represents the spirit of ’70s rock, a genre that never forgot its origins despite constant change. The intricate sound he produced with Van Halen reminds one of his work with Sabbath. Black Sabbath’s “Into The Void” likely wielded its mighty riff, injecting inspiration for many of Van Halen’s most cherished hits.