Rank #10Metal1970sLiving
Tony Iommi
Invented heavy metal guitar despite losing fingertips in an accident. Black Sabbath's riffs are the foundation of an entire genre.
96% approval
Career Highlights
- Black Sabbath (1970)
- Paranoid (1970)
- Master of Reality (1971)
- Invented heavy metal despite losing fingertips
Influence
Created the heavy metal guitar vocabulary from scratch — downtuned riffs, tritone intervals, slow crushing tempos. Every metal guitarist since plays in his shadow.
Legacy
Lost the tips of two fingers in an industrial accident and invented an entirely new style to compensate. Heavy metal as a genre would not exist without him.
Stats
Overall Rank
#10Genre
MetalEra
1970sUpvotes
39,400Downvotes
1,700Approval
96%Elite — Top 10