On the Black Sabbath tribute album Nativity In Black, released in 1994, and its companion piece II from 2000, there were genuine big hitters: Pantera, Slayer, Bruce Dickinson, even Ozzy himself. Such star power is entirely absent on Great Lefty, a 20-track double album of Sabbath covers, named in homage to the guitarist who pretty much invented heavy metal.
Here, the biggest name is Tony ‘The Cat’ Martin, the voice of Sabbath during the band’s leanest years. The highlight is a monumental version of You Won’t Change Me, a largely forgotten track from 1976 album Technical Ecstasy, performed by doom metal cult hero Victor Griffin, formerly of Pentagram.
But this project, while lovingly made, is so low-end that it features actual Sabbath tribute bands, including the brilliantly named Children Of The Gravy, from Wales, rattling gamely through Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. Such things translate better in pub gigs, for obvious reasons.
