Tony Martin

Among the longest-tenured vocalists for Dark Sabbath, Tony Martin fronted the group during two split stints, the initial from 1987 through 1990, and the next from 1994 through 1995. Blessed Anthony Harford on Apr 19, 1957, Martin would hail in the same city as the initial members from the mighty Dark Sabbath — Birmingham, Britain. Originally a guitarist, Martin ultimately turned his primary focus to performing and fronted many obscure rings, including Star, Orion, as well as the Alliance. Also at one stage, Martin was amid forming a task with guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, but supposedly an request from David Coverdale for Vandenberg to become listed on Whitesnake killed from the suggested project before it might take flight. Being a longtime acquaintance of Albert Chapman (a previous tour supervisor for Dark Sabbath through the ’70s), it might be Chapman who recommended Martin to Dark Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi being a suitable addition to the group. With an record already recorded using a different vocalist (Ray Gillen) having provided vocals, Martin was enlisted to re-record the album’s vocals, that was ultimately released in 1987 as The Eternal Idol. Martin would continue to sing on two even more Dark Sabbath albums, 1989’s Headless Combination and 1990’s TYR, before Iommi would re-enlist Ronnie Adam Dio, Geezer Butler, and Vinny Appice for the Dark Sabbath lineup that documented 1992’s Dehumanizer. During this time period, Martin released his first single effort, 1992’s Back again Where I Belong, which ended up being star-studded affair of kinds, featuring guest performances from famous brands Queen’s Brian May, Saxon’s Nigel Glockler, Martin’s ex-Black Sabbath bandmates Neil Murray and Geoff Nicholls, and eventual drummer for the Who (and Ringo Starr’s kid), Zak Starkey. Nevertheless, the Dark Sabbath reunion with Dio will be short-lived, and by 1994, Iommi acquired welcomed Martin back to the fold. Because of this, Dark Sabbath would concern two more studio room albums with Martin on vocals (1994’s Mix Reasons and 1995’s Forbidden), and a live recording (1995’s Cross Reasons Live). But from the past due ’90s, the initial Iommi-Ozzy Osbourne-Geezer Butler-Bill Ward Dark Sabbath lineup got re-formed, as soon as once again, Martin was out of employment. After leaving Dark Sabbath for the next and final period, Martin continued to issue another solo work in 2005, Scream, and offers made an appearance on countless recordings by additional artists through the past due ’90s and early 21st hundred years, including Phenomena, Rondinelli, Dario Mollo, and Aldo Giuntini, amongst others.