Tony Iommi Talks About Why The Band Replaced Bill Ward With Brad Wilk

BLACK SABBATH will be releasing their comeback record entitled '13' on June 10 via Vertigo (album artwork & details HERE). Talk about beating all odds! Not only was the record produced in the midst of Tony Iommi's ongoing cancer treatment, but they also lost their legendary drummer Bill Ward because of contractual issues.

Members of the band were recently interviewed for a cover story in the July 2013 issue of Guitar World magazine. During the interview, Iommi talked about having to replace Bill Ward with Brad Wilk (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, AUDIOSLAVE).

Iommi on Bill Ward's complains about the financial terms presented by the band: "I was shocked. We were hearing stuff from lawyers, like, 'I'm not happy with this. I'm not happy with that.' We waited a long time for Bill and we wanted to sort it out. But at the end of the day, especially after I was diagnosed, I thought, Fucking hell, that's it. We've got to get a move on. I might pop off next year! So I emailed him and said, 'Bill, we can't wait any longer. We've got to get on with it.' And that was it."

On having Brad Wilk record drums on '13':

Iommi: "We had our doubts, because they play a different, funky sort of music. But after a few days of rehearsal, we knew [producer] Rick [Rubin] was right. Brad was a really good player, and he was getting it. We liked his style and the way he tried different things instead of being regimented. It was sort of jazzy and loose, like Bill."

In other SABBATH news, last week, the band performed a NEW song from '13' on the season finale of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Check it out HERE!
 
Upcoming BLACK SABBATH tour dates:


DATE                    CITY                     VENUE

+Thu- Jul 25          Houston, TX          Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

+Sat-Jul 27           Austin, TX             Frank Erwin Center

<Mon-Jul 29          Tampa, FL             Live Nation Amphitheatre

+Wed-Jul 31          W. Palm Beach, FL Cruzan Amphitheatre

~Fri-Aug 02          Bristow, VA           Jiffy Lube Live

*Sun-Aug 04        Holmdel, NJ           PNC Bank Arts Center

+Tue-Aug 06        Detroit, MI            DTE Energy Music Theatre

+Thu-Aug 08        Uncasville, CT        Mohegan Sun Arena

+Sat-Aug 10         Philadelphia, PA     Wells Fargo Center

^Mon-Aug 12        Boston, MA           Comcast Center

*Wed-Aug 14        Toronto, ON          Air Canada Centre

+Fri Aug 16           Tinley Park, IL       First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

+Sun-Aug 18        Indianapolis, IN       Klipsch Music Center

+Thu-Aug 22        Vancouver, BC       Rogers Arena

*Sat-Aug 24        Seattle, WA           Gorge Amphitheatre

+Mon-Aug 26        San Francisco, CA  Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View

+Wed-Aug 28       Irvine, CA              Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

+Fri-Aug 30          Phoenix, AZ           US Airways Center

+Sun-Sep 01        Las Vegas, NV       MGM Grand Garden Arena

*Tue-Sep 03        Los Angeles, CA     Los Angeles Sports Arena

*Previously announced date.
^On sale Friday, May 3
+On sale Saturday, May 4
~On sale, Friday May 10
<On sale, Saturday, May 11
>On sale TBD

Nov. 20 - Hartwall Arena, Helsinki, Finland
Nov. 22 - Friends Arena, Stockholm, Sweden
Nov. 24 - Telenor Arena, Oslo, Norway
Nov. 26 - Forum, Denmark, Copenhagen
Nov. 28 - Ziggo Dome, Holland, Amsterdam
Nov. 30 - Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany
Dec. 02 - Bercy, Paris, France
Dec. 05 - Fiera Arena, Milan, Italy
Dec. 07 - 02 Arena, Prague, Czech Republic
Dec. 10 - 02 Arena, London, UK
Dec. 12 - Odyssey Arena, Belfast, Ireland
Dec. 14 - Arena, Sheffield, UK
Dec. 16 - Hydro, Glasgow, UK
Dec. 18 - Arena, Manchester, UK
Dec. 20 - LG Arena, Birmingham, UK 

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Related links:
BLACK SABBATH's Official Website