Tony Iommi

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After so many years coasting at the helm of a Black Sabbath that appeared to be on auto-pilot, Tony Iommi -- master of the guitar's black arts -- produced his first solo effort in the year 2000. Many wondered if he had anything more to pull out of his wizard's cap than a dead rabbit, but by assembling an all-star cast of vocal collaborators, Iommi silenced his critics with a masterful collection of songs at once steeped in Sabbath tradition and full of new departures. The strongest section of Iommi is the three-song plummet into doom that moves from the eerie wails of Skunk Anansie's Skin on "Meat," to Dave Grohl's drowsy brooding on "Goodbye Lament," on to the tormented howls of Phil Anselmo on "Time Is Mine." What could have turned out to be an embarrassing crossover attempt turned out to be one of the most forwarding-thinking Metal albums to come along in years. Iommi is just a great record, full of memorable riffs and songwriting, utterly unspoiled by commercial cynicism.