"Hand of Doom" is a song by the English heavy metal band

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

, originally appearing on their second album ''

Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy c ...

'', released in 1970.

Background

The song was conceived after the band had observed a growing number of US soldiers arriving in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

from the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

in the late 1960s with severe drug addictions.''Classic Albums - Paranoid'' by Isis Productions/Eagle Rock Entertainment. The song paints an unflattering picture of hard drug use. The lyrics were written by

Geezer Butler Terence Michael Joseph "Geezer" Butler (born 17 July 1949) is a English musician and songwriter. He is best known as the bassist and primary lyricist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He has also recorded and performed with Heaven & Hell ...

while the music is credited to the entire band.

Cover versions

The song has been covered by various bands, including: * Slayer on the 2000 Black Sabbath tribute album, '' Nativity in Black II''. * Danzig on its 1996 album, '' Blackacidevil'', and on the Black Sabbath fan compilation, ''Nativity in Black III'', based on the tribute albums ''

Nativity in Black ''Nativity in Black: A Tribute to Black Sabbath'' are two Black Sabbath tribute albums, released in 1994 and 2000 respectively. The albums feature various heavy metal groups performing cover versions of Black Sabbath songs in tribute to the band. ...

'' I and II. *

Isis Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...

on its 1999 EP, '' Sawblade''. *

Eyehategod Eyehategod (also abbreviated and referred to as EHG) is an American sludge metal band from New Orleans, Louisiana who formed in 1988. They have become one of the better known bands to emerge from the NOLA metal scene. Their core lineup has r ...

on a split album with

Anal Cunt Anal Cunt, also known as AxCx and A.C., was an American grindcore band that formed in Newton, Massachusetts, in 1988. From its inception, the band underwent a number of line-up changes and never had a bass player. The band, known for its flippan ...

. *

Orange Goblin Orange Goblin is a heavy metal band from London, England. Formed in 1995, the band's lineup currently consists of singer Ben Ward, guitarist Joe Hoare, drummer Chris Turner, and bassist Harry Armstrong. History Orange Goblin was originally f ...

on a split with

Electric Wizard Electric Wizard are an English doom metal band from Dorset. The band formed in 1993 and have recorded nine studio albums, two of which have been considered genre landmarks: '' Come My Fanatics…'' (1997) and ''Dopethrone'' (2000). Electric Wi ...

. * HIM as one of their B-sides on the single '' The Funeral of Hearts'', and on their 2007 compilation album, '' Uneasy Listening Vol. 2''. * Reverend on its 1990 debut album '' World Won't Miss You''. * Jazz Sabbath on its 2020 self-titled debut album.

Personnel

;Black Sabbath *

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

Tony Iommi Anthony Frank Iommi () (born 19 February 1948) is a British musician. He co-founded the pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and was the band's guitarist, leader and primary composer and sole continuous member for nearly five decades. I ...

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

s *

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Bill Ward – drums

In popular culture

* Melissa Auf der Maur, known for her work with

Hole A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...

and

The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also referred to as simply Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, bassist D'arcy Wretzky, guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Ch ...

, was the leader of a Black Sabbath cover band named after this song. *The song was used in a scene in the fourteenth episode of the first season of ''

Elementary Elementary may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Elementary'' (Cindy Morgan album), 2001 * ''Elementary'' (The End album), 2007 * ''Elementary'', a Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Ragin album, 1977 Other uses in arts, entertainment, a ...

'', originally aired on February 3, 2013.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1970 songs Black Sabbath songs Songs about drugs Songs written by Tony Iommi Songs written by Geezer Butler Songs written by Bill Ward (musician) Songs written by Ozzy Osbourne