15. 13 (2013)

On 13, the stars seemingly aligned for what could be Sabbath’s triumphant return. All four original members were initially on board. Producer Rick Rubin, who produced Slayer’s benchmark Reign In Blood, was set to produce. Things started to unravel: Ward sat out on the recording because of a financial dispute (or was being difficult, depending on who you believe) and Iommi was diagnosed with lymphoma. What was supposed to be the equivalent of the Gods coming down from metal Olympus– Rubin helping the legends recapture their old sound — doesn’t quite get there. Although Iommi still writes the best riffs around they don’t get much support and Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk, while talented, is no replacement for Bill Ward. Ozzy sounds strangely uninspired for his first outing with Sabbath since the late 70s. Supporters of the album will be like fans that rallied to the Star Wars prequels; they are so excited to have Sabbath — or three-quarters of the band — back in their lives that they’ve abandoned their critical faculties. Down the road, they will realize 13 was a disappointment. Regardless, this was the first Sabbath album to ever hit the top slot in the Billboard album charts.