The 5 Most Underrated Black Sabbath Albums

Black Sabbath fans can go round and round for hours debating the metal legends' best albums. But we're here to give you the five most underrated Black Sabbath albums.

The godfathers of heavy metal have experienced countless highs and lows over the course of a half-century career spanning 19 studio albums. That's not surprising, considering the dizzyingly high bar they set for themselves right out of the gate.

The band's first six Ozzy Osbourne-led albums, from Black Sabbath to Sabotage, pioneered a whole new genre of music and found Black Sabbath constantly pushing the envelope, incorporating different shades into their sinister, doom-laden sound. But by the end of the '70s, Black Sabbath were plagued by rampant substance abuse and intraband dysfunction, leading to a creative and commercial tailspin that resulted in Osbourne's dismissal.

READ MORE: Black Sabbath Songs Ranked (Ozzy Osbourne Era)

A revolving door of singers filled Osbourne's shoes with varying results, from the beloved Ronnie James Dio era to the oft-overlooked Tony Martin era. There were one-offs with Deep Purple alumni Ian Gillan and Glenn Hughes, the latter assisting on an album that was supposed to be a Tony Iommi solo album until his record label determined otherwise.

Some of these albums were received warmly. Others were spat on by critics. Most of them simply flew under the radar as Sabbath toiled in relative obscurity. Yet as with every great hero's journey, Black Sabbath came back from the brink, eventually reuniting with Osbourne and reclaiming their rightful place at the top of the heavy metal heap.

Along the way, some of their less-beloved albums received long-overdue reappraisals. It turns out that even at their lowest, Black Sabbath were capable of a unique brand of spine-tingling, earth-shaking heavy metal that few, if any, of their peers could match.

Diehard fans knew that all along. But in case you forgot, here are the five most underrated Black Sabbath albums.

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