Black Sabbath Vol. 4 Song by Song Thread

Tomorrow’s Dream
One of the more standard and basic Black Sabbath songs, this one differs greatly from Wheels in that it has just two parts - the main part of the song and the bridge, which is slow and atmospheric/spacey. Probably good to sequence the basic song right after the complex one. It may be basic, but basic in the hands of Black Sabbath is still different - I remember hearing this on a mix tape in 1982 and it stood out among a lot of 1970s and 1980s hard rock - even a simple Sabbath song! 7.5 out of 10.

 

This is one of my all-time favourite albums, so it's very hard to write anything critical about any of these songs. There are albums that you have played to death at some point of your life and rarely play anymore, but this is one of those albums I have played to death but never tire of listening. I have a UK original which I got for a song in the nineties, but there's no need to be jealous because the shape is far from desirable.

This is one of the albums where they tuned down 3 semitones, which makes the low E a low C# which is real low, making the sound real dark. I remember reading that Iommi had explained the original reason for this being that loose strings are easier on his fake fingertips. I'm not convinced about this explanation, because they went back to regular tuning on later albums.

Wheels of Confusion is just amazing. The vocal melody is so beautiful. The song is so depressing that it's uplifting. I love the final lines: "Try your hardest, you'll still be a loser. The world will still be turning when you're gone." Couldn't have put it better.

Tomorrow's Dream is always a delight. Very groovy and a nice breath of fresh air between Wheels and the sadness that follows next. Instead of a chorus they just do this cool little riff. The bridge part with the broken major chords is the real highlight.

 

Tomorrow's Dream

Great choice for the second track.

I've mentioned this many times here but I am generally a big believer in hitting the ground running with album sequencing - call it front loading if you will - but coming out of the gate strong and not making the listener work toooooo hard right away is generally my preference (there are multitudes of exceptions of course)

So, a crisp, brisk and simple track is a welcome counter punch to the epic dreary awesomeness of Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener.

A little brisk Sabbath goes a long way - be it Tomorrow's Dream, Paranoid or Never Say Die - relatively fast paced, major chord stompers help balance the load of sludge.

Bill Ward stakes his claim as a physicist on this song (and Vol 4 in general). The man is everywhere, doing everything, all at once - a herculean effort, I might add, to keep that boat afloat.

 

Bill Ward is just brilliant on this track with his swaggering drum part and awesome auxiliary percussion. That ascending sound when Tony's solo starts at the 1:54 mark is always a rush for me!

 

I was going to write something about "Tomorrow's Dream", but what you said pretty well wraps it up for me. Very nice.

 

Are the treats kudos for being super cool? Or because they gotta throw the dog a bone?

 

We continue through the sludge with Tommorow's Dream, a continuation of sorts lyrically it's predecessor in the way that love, or lack of it, has isolated him/her. It's like that initial period after a break up. You still have all those feelings, but carry on like nothing is wrong. You try to get away, from that feeling as fast as you can, but you're still stuck with your thoughts. You never dreamed it would happen, but here we are.

The playing here isn't anything too complex. It's more chord work than anything, but the way Tony's hand slide across the neck is what gives the song its punch. The edge of his tone has a bit of frizzle to it, like bangers and eggs cooking away in an iron skillet. Ozzy sounds his usual depressed self. His tone fits the content well. What can you say about Bill? Could any other drummer have added to this track in the same manner? His time seems unorthodox here a bit, adding accents that might not make sense, but work within the content of the song. The real secret weapon is Geezer. His bouncing after Tony does his slide move is what drives the song. The lyrics are one of an sad, lonely, person, and are probably about Bill as he was going through major relationship issues.(more on that at Changes)
No wonder this song was the single, and one that opened quite a few shows.

 

Tomorrow's Dream:
What a great guitar sound! I can almost feel the heat of the tubes. The keyboard (?) in the guitar solo adds a cool little touch.

 

I think more $$$$ for more songs on the albums back then.

 

Well said, agree throughout. Bill is fantastic - I wish Geezer were higher in the mix, but when I hear him I like what he is adding.

 

Tomorrow's Dream

After the prog-esque Wheels ofConfusion, its nice to have a fairly basic rocker. I love that main riff. Tony really was the master wasn't he? The tones he got...Good vocals from Ozzy. Whole band sounds really good and you can hear why this was the obvious single.

 

Live:

 

Tomorrow's Dream - Bill Ward and Geezer really drive this one; Bill's drums are up front in the mix (nice) but Geezer is somewhat buried, to bad because his bass sound is so sludgy and fluid at the same time - fantastic work. Frank's (lol) solo reminds me a bit of his solo on "Iron Man" with the high pitched lead-in. The lyrics are more mundane dealing with love and leaving a bad relationship - ok stuff but can do better. Nice, quick, psych/metal - 7.5/10
Lyrics for Tomorrow's Dream:

Well I'm leaving tomorrow at daybreak
Catch the fastest train around nine
Yes I'm leaving the sorrow and heartaches
Before it takes me away from my mind
Send me love and I may let you see me
Send me hopes that can spin in my head
But if you really want me to answer
I can only let you know when I'm dead
When sadness fills my days
It's time to turn away
And then tomorrow's dreams
Become reality to me
When sadness fills my days
It's time to turn away
And then tomorrow's dreams
Become reality to me
So realize I'm much better without you
You're not the one and only thing in my heart
I'll just go back to pretending I'm living
So this time I'm gonna have to depart

Songwriters: Michael Butler / Ozzy Osbourne / Tony Iommi / William Ward

 

The album really benefits from the original Side 1 / Side 2 layout and break. I think Sabbath track sequencing and opener choice was really good on this album (not too shoddy on the others BS to SBS too).

 

I looovvee John's voice in 'Tomorrow's Dream'. It drips with passion.
I can see in my mind how his brow knits when he sings and loves on that microphone. Only small parts of his complete embodiment of emotion.
Makes me want to fly with this character to be there and make him feel better. He is flying too, to escape the pain.

 

...a great one-two punch to start off the album.

 

Did you make this video? Very nice.

 

No I didn't, I just posted it.

 

This is from California Jam April 6, 1974 Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario, California.
California Jam - Wikipedia

 

Not your fault, but some of that is laughably wrong! Anyone wanting accurate Sabs lyrics should go to the official site The Official Black Sabbath Website :: Discography

 

Yes, but the video depicts the performance of KYTL (maybe another also) so someone used the video footage from Cal Jam to go with audio of TD.
Is there video footage somewhere of Tomorrow's Dream from Cal Jam? I'd die for that.
As usual, of course, correct me as needed.

 

One of the pics from inside the vinyl

 

sabbath@caljam

 

I think I'm confused

 

Tomorrow's Dream

Geezer and Billy lay down a great muddy groove. Love that fuzzy sound of Iommi's guitar. The interlude at 1:36 sounds like a precursor to Ozzy's solo stuff. Great song, and nice to place a short one after the long opening track.

Laguna Sunrise

A really pleasant little song, with some nice guitar. Not much else to say.