Black Sabbath's 'Black Sabbath' Named Heaviest Guitar Riff of All Time by Fans Jacqueline Burt CoteJanuary 24, 2026 at 10:00 PM 0 Photo by Fin Costello on Getty Images What makes one guitar riff heavier than another? It's a question hard rock fans have debated for decades, and people have some pretty passionate opinions on the topic. That's why fans were quick to share their thoughts when Ultimate Guitar asked readers to vote on the heaviest guitar riff of all time a few years back.
- - Black Sabbath's 'Black Sabbath' Named Heaviest Guitar Riff of All Time by Fans
Jacqueline Burt CoteJanuary 24, 2026 at 10:00 PM
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Photo by Fin Costello on Getty Images
What makes one guitar riff heavier than another? It's a question hard rock fans have debated for decades, and people have some pretty passionate opinions on the topic.
That's why fans were quick to share their thoughts when Ultimate Guitar asked readers to vote on the heaviest guitar riff of all time a few years back. With over half a century of headbanging hits to choose from, the list of top 20 picks included iconic musicians from every era of rock music: Buzz Osborne of influential early grunge band the Melvins took the #19 spot with "Honey Bucket" (1993); Eddie Van Halen represented the tail end of the '70s with Van Halen's "D.O.A." (1979) at #15. From 1969, "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" by The Beatles was ranked #7.
Pantera (and the late Dimebag Darrell) kicked off the top 5 with "A New Level" (1992), with Metallica's "Sad But True" (1991) coming in next at #4. One of Soundgarden's most unforgettable tunes, 1991's "Outshined," was listed at #3, with another grunge classic, "Them Bones" (1992) by Alice in Chains, taking second place.
And for the #1 heaviest guitar riff of all time? That honor was given to "Black Sabbath" by, of course, Black Sabbath, from their eponymous 1970 debut album. UG referred to Tony Iommi's iconic guitar work on the song as "simple, it's to the point, and it scares the s—t out of everyone who hears it for the first time."
It's no wonder people get freaked out by the tune, considering its eerie backstory.
"I was asleep and I felt something in the room, like this weird presence," bassist Geezer Butler once said of the inspiration for "Black Sabbath" (according to Rolling Stone, which ranked "Black Sabbath" as the #1 greatest heavy metal song of all time in 2023). "I woke up in a dream world, and there was this black thing at the bottom of the bed, staring at me. … It just freaked me out."
As the infamous tale goes, Butler's band was known as Earth at the time, and they weren't finding a ton of success in Birmingham, England. Then they come up with the novel idea of writing songs that would scare people. After Iommi struck a few chords, lead singer Ozzy Osbourne came up with the opening lines, as if he were addressing the spooky creature in Butler's bedroom: What is this that stands before me?Figure in black which points at me. The group named the song "Black Sabbath" after a Boris Karloff movie of the same name, then changed their own name to match.
Producer Rodger Bain's additions of a thunderstorm and church bell to the song's intro made the track even creepier...but there's no doubt that Iommi's heavy riff is the driving force.
Related: This 1975 Hit Voted 'Greatest Guitar Solo of All Time'
This story was originally published by Parade on Jan 25, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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Published: January 25, 2026 at 02:36AM on Source: OPERA MAG
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