Tony Iommi Celebrates His 64th Birthday; We Wish Him MANY More To Come!

Today (February 19), Anthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is celebrating his 64th birthday! Iommi was born in Handsworth, Birmingham, England, and is considered the pioneer of Heavy Metal guitar shredding. As we all know, Iommi is a founding member of Black Sabbath and has been the only member to be part of every incarnation of the band.

Here are some facts about the great Tony Iommi:

- Iommi, a left-handed guitar player, is one of the most important and influential guitarists in Heavy Metal history.

- He originally wanted to play the drums, but due to the noise they produce he picked up the guitar as a teenager, after being inspired by the likes of Hank Marvin and The Shadows.

- According to Allmusic, "Iommi is one of only two guitarists (the other being Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page) that can take full credit for pioneering the mammoth riffs of Heavy Metal".

- In an industrial accident at the age of 17 on his last day of work in a sheet metal factory, he lost the tips of the middle and ring finger of his right hand. After attempting to learn to play right-handed, Iommi instead strung his guitars with lighter strings and made thimbles to extend his fingers.

- Considered the best guitarist of all time according to Guitar World's "100 Greatest Metal Guitarists of All Time".

- Last year, Iommi released his autobiography "Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven and Hell with Black Sabbath".

- On 9 January 2012, it was announced that Iommi had been diagnosed with early stage lymphoma.

We want to wish Tony a very HEAVY birthday and many more to come! \m/





Related links:
Official site of Tony Iommi