30. Mogwai — Sweet Leaf
Black Sabbath made their name and created their legend early. Mogwai have taken a different, albeit equally heavy, route. Their largely lyric-free post-rock guitar and feedback sound has always had a following, but they did not achieve a Number One album until a quarter of a century into their existence. Their ability and guitar sound were never in doubt, and neither was their commitment to the giants that had come before them. As is the case with this cover of Sabbath. You thought it was heavy before? There were further depths to be found. You will have to take my word for it that the heavy accents of the band during the talking parts make sense and should not cause too much offense, bar the odd eructation. As the “moony” they discuss cannot be seen, all is fine. — Mike Tobyn
29. Eva Under Fire — War Pigs
“War Pigs” is a heavy, heavy song both sonically and in terms of lyrical content. Any covers are always going to be competing with an epic original and have a fine line to walk to stand out without losing the thread. Detroit’s Eva Under Fire hit it out of the park here thanks to the stellar vocals of Eva Marie, highlighted by the perfect amount of doubling and reverb effects, and the heavy-handed drumming of Dave Miller II, who, frankly, goes off. The song is slightly more upbeat but otherwise very reminiscent of the Sabbath classic. It’s a very well-made, fun tribute with enough tweaks to warrant its inclusion on this list. — Mike Misch
28. Coldplay — Changes
When the music world suffers a loss, it is sometimes an artist with no clear musical affinity with the dearly departed who will offer the most moving musical tribute in response. These performances are memorable in part because the loss is fresh and in part because the tribute–in coming from an unexpected source–conveys how extensive was the reach of the artist who has now left us. Think of Norah Jones’ cover of “Black Hole Sun” performed live just days after Chris Cornell’s shocking death. And now we have Coldplay kicking off a show with “Changes” (albeit an abridged version) on the day Ozzy died. I for one didn’t see it coming.
“Changes” was the correct choice of material to send out to Ozzy. It is among Sabbath’s most tender ballads, one of its more popular songs, and maybe its most Coldplay-adjacent track. “Changes” is also a song about loss and trying to move on from it, and so it seemed to the point. And if the cover is abbreviated, it also plays well that way–the performance has the ring of an honest uncalculated gesture of love and respect–egoless. I wonder how many Coldplay fans were singing that poignant chorus on the way home from the concert. — Tom McDonald
27. Moon Duo — Planet Caravan
Aka the weird one from Paranoid, the album, all treated vocals, acoustic guitar and tabla-like percussion. The one, actually, that non-metalheads like me tended to prefer, the sonic background bleeps and boosters making for a very Hawkwind-adjacent sound. So who better than Moon Duo, the wyrd-psych pairing of Wooden Shjips guitarist Ripley Johnson and Sanae Yamada. This comes from What Is This That Stands Before Me, a 2020 tribute to the 1970 release of the first two Black Sabbath long players. The core instrumentation is actually more orthodox than the original, but the effects and echoed delays outdo the sonic limitations of 50 years earlier. One for stoners of all ages to bond over, it is another insight into the anything but predictable feast available through Messrs. Osborne, Iommi, Butler and Ward. — Seuras Og
26. Jason Molina — Solitude
From Sabbath’s 1971 album Master of Reality, “Solitude” is a mellow song about the aftermath of a breakup, and with its folkish guitar and flute, both played by Tony Iommi (who also added piano), and quiet vocals from Osbourne, it would not have sounded out of place on any number of prog albums released in the early ’70s. Jason Molina, who is best known for his recordings as Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co., tragically died in 2013 from the horrifically-described “multiple organ failure,” resulting from alcoholism. Although most of Molina’s music could be described as alternative country, with indie and blues influences, he was a lover of metal, and in the late ’90s, he recorded two Sabbath covers, including a bleak take on “Solitude.” Backed only by an acoustic guitar, and with his quavering, slightly twanging vocals at the forefront, Molina’s version is sadder and more depressing than the original. In a good way. — Jordan Becker
25. Inspiral Carpets — Paranoid
Sabs go baggy? Hmm, well sort of, for this most mysterious confection cooked up by the “Madchester” mavericks. More a rendition to admire rather than necessarily love, it feels as if the five members of the band are pulling in different directions, producing a glorious mess to take your hat off to. The knowledge that it was produced by onetime Joy Division/New order bassist Peter Hook adds to the sense of disorientation. If the vocals of Tim Hingley are disregarded, it is the immaculate, if ragged, swirl of keyboards from Clint Boon that provide the most joy, underpinned by the propulsive simplicity of Martyn Walsh’s bass. The drums are just bonkers, all over the shop, with Craig Gil subscribing to the falling downstairs in a wooden overcoat school of percussion. After a frantic two minutes, a prolonged pause suggests they are done, only for it all to fly up again. — Seuras Og
24. Thou — Lord of This World
There are many heavy covers on this list, but none heavier than Thou. You know those debates about whether Sabbath are best categorized as heavy metal or hard rock? There’s no debate here. Thou included four Sabbath tunes on their 2020 covers collection A Primer of Holy Words, and each one is metal as hell. The instrumentation is sludge or doom, but the vocals are pure throat-shredding screamo. Any of those could have made this list (they also elsewhere do a great “Supernaut”), but we chose this rarely-covered deep cut from Master of Reality. — Ray Padgett
23. Anthrax — Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
These days Black Sabbath are considered beloved pioneers, so it’s hard to believe that in the late ’80s the band was actually considered passé. After the dissolution of their lineup with Ronnie James Dio, the band became largely a Tony Iommi solo project releasing a series of albums with a revolving cast of musicians. But Sabbath’s early music and sound continued to gain influence, and many younger metal bands kept their music alive. One of the standout covers from this period was Anthrax’s “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath.” Included on the band’s platinum 1987 EP I’m the Man, Anthrax turned the track into a full-fledged thrash metal song. The track inspired many ’80s headbangers (including this one) to dive into the Sabbath catalog. — Curtis Zimmermann
22. Brass Against ft. Maya Azucena — War Pigs
When Maya Azucena released her debut album way back in 2003, she titled it Maya Who?! Nobody who hears her singing “War Pigs” comes away thinking that. Check out the comments to this video – the listeners are calling her “valkyrie,” “badass,” and “at the bare minimum a demi god,” to list just a few descriptives. Brass Against brings the metal part, literally, but make no mistake – Maya is the thunder and the lightning here. — Patrick Robbins
21. The Bad Plus — Iron Man
Back in 2003, the Bad Plus rocked the jazz world with twisted deconstructions of songs by Black Sabbath, Nirvana, Blondie, and Aphex Twin. It took audiences a few beats to decide if these covers were for real. Were they sending-up the plodding simplicity of metal and grunge? Were they using pop covers simply as a gimmicky gateway drug to the harder stuff of the band’s original material? Nah, the band was simply playing the music they loved, with songs as important to the trio as any tunes in the jazz tradition that they also loved. If they melted down “Iron Man” with their discordant jazz harmonies they were only honoring the power of the original.
A lot of listeners got it immediately, of course, including Geezer Butler, the Black Sabbath bassist and lyricist. He told Bad Plus drummer Dave King that the Bad Plus version of “Iron Man” was his favorite Black Sabbath cover of all Black Sabbath covers. I wouldn’t go that far, myself. I’m not even sure the Bad Plus recorded the best cover of “Iron Man,” let alone the best Sabbath cover ever. But then Geezer and friends weren’t known for being moderate about their opinions and appetites. — Tom McDonald
For me the best Black Sabbath cover was Generation X’s final encore at High Wycombe’s Nag’s Head in March ’77. Too bad the only version I can find of it today sounds like crap.
That War Pigs cover…