Album
Born Again
Born Again is Black Sabbath's eleventh studio album, and the one record where Ian Gillan fronts the band as lead vocalist. It came out on Warner Bros. Records in 1983, with the month and year given as September 1983. Gillan's arrival marked a sharp turn after the Ronnie James Dio-era albums Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules.
It also closed a chapter. This was the last album with drummer Bill Ward, and the last with bassist Geezer Butler for nine years, leaving Tony Iommi as the thread running through what came next. Critics were divided, yet it sold well, reaching No. 4 in the UK and the top 40 in the United States. The original master tapes, long thought lost, were found in 2021, and Iommi has talked of remixing the album for a reissue. It is a curious, singular entry in the Sabbath catalogue.
Born Again: tracklist, credits and charts
9 tracks · 41:07Tracklist
- 1TrashedButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward4:17
- 2StonehengeButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward1:58
- 3Disturbing the PriestButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward5:49
- 4The DarkButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward0:45
- 5Zero the HeroButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward7:35
- 6Digital BitchButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward3:39
- 7Born AgainButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward6:34
- 8Hot LineButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward4:53
- 9Keep It WarmButler, Gillan, Iommi, Ward5:36
- Produced by
- Black Sabbath, Robin Black
- Recorded at
- The Manor, The Manor, Oxfordshire
- Recorded
- May–June 1983
- Engineered by
- Robin Black
- Label
- Warner Bros. Records
- Length
- 41:07
Line-up
- Geezer Butler · bass guitar
- Tony Iommi · guitar
- Bill Ward · drums (drum set)
- Ian Gillan · lead vocals
- Geoff Nicholls · keyboard · guest
Singles
- “Trashed” · October 1983
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1983 | 4 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1983 | 39 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1983 | 6 |
| Swedish Albums · 1983 | 7 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1983 | 14 |
| Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ) · 2011–2025 | 17 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2011–2025 | 19 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1983 | 37 |
| German Albums · 1983 | 37 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1983 | 38 |
All 12 charts
| New Zealand Albums · 1983 | 44 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1983 | 53 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom · 2025 | Gold |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
55.1
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
1.5k
ListenBrainz listeners
125k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
772
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 12 September
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More from Black Sabbath
Full discography →
Black Sabbath
1970
Paranoid
1970
Master of Reality
1971
Vol 4
1972
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
1973
We Sold Our Soul for Rock ’n’ Roll
1975
Sabotage
1975
Technical Ecstasy
1976
Never Say Die!
1978
Heaven and Hell
1980
Live at Last
1980
Mob Rules
1981
Live Evil
1982
The Sabbath Collection
1985
Seventh Star
1986
The Eternal Idol
1987
Headless Cross
1989
TYR
1990
The Ozzy Osbourne Years
1991
Dehumanizer
1992
Cross Purposes
1994
Cross Purposes – Live
1995
Forbidden
1995
The Sabbath Stones
1996
Under Wheels of Confusion: 1970–1987
1996
Reunion
1998
The Collection
1999
Black Mass
1999
The Best of Black Sabbath
2000
Past Lives
2002
Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath 1970–1978
2002
Black Box: The Complete Original Black Sabbath 1970–1978
2004
Greatest Hits 1970–1978
2006
The Dio Years
2007
Live at Hammersmith Odeon
2007
The Rules of Hell
2008
Greatest Hits
2009
13
2013
Live… Gathered in Their Masses
2013
The End
2016
The Ultimate Collection
2016
The End
2017
Anno Domini: 1989–1995
2024
The best of 1983
All of 1983 →
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Pink Floyd · 1983
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Ozzy Osbourne · 1983
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AC/DC · 1983
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Def Leppard · 1983
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Iron Maiden · 1983
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Iron Maiden · 1983
Show No Mercy
Slayer · 1983
Metal Magic
Pantera · 1983
Works
Pink Floyd · 1983
Another Perfect Day
Motörhead · 1983
More on Warner Bros. Records
The label →
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Meteora
Linkin Park · 2003
Minutes to Midnight
Linkin Park · 2007
One More Light
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A Thousand Suns
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The Hunting Party
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Collision Course
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Reanimation
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The Hunting Party: Acapellas + Instrumentals
Linkin Park · 2014
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Recharged
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1983-09-12; musicbrainz + wikidata 1983-08-07 (36 days apart, likely another territory)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 7 August 1983 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 12 September 1983 | |
| Wikidata | 7 August 1983 | |
| US release | 1983 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 7 August 1983 | earliest UK or European date |
17 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XW | Sanctuary Records | 5414939681776 | other |
| 1983 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 07599239781 | other |
| 1983 | JP | Vertigo | other | |
| August 1983 | DE | Vertigo | 042281427114 | other |
| August 1983 | DE | Vertigo | 042281427145 | other |
| 7 August 1983 | GB | Vertigo | original | |
| July 1987 | DE | Vertigo | 042281427121 | other |
| 5 December 1990 | JP | Vertigo | 4988011323874 | other |
| 22 April 1996 | GB | Essential! Records | 5017615833423 | other |
| 7 March 2001 | JP | Victor | 4988002413379 | remaster |
| 2004 | XW | Rhino | remaster | |
| 2004 | AR | DBN | 5050749207524 | other |
| 25 October 2004 | GB | Sanctuary Midline | 5050749207524 | other |
| 2011 | XW | Sanctuary Records | 5414939680175 | deluxe |
| 6 July 2011 | GB | Sanctuary Records | 602527704067 | deluxe |
| 24 August 2011 | JP | Sanctuary Records | 4988005672421 | other |
| 2015 | XE | Sanctuary Records | 602527704067 | other |
Cover art sources
itunes · native: native 1500x1500
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| itunes ✓ | 1500×1500 | native: native 1500x1500 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |
| coverartarchive | 600×600 | upscaled |