This disc was released in 1990, and by all accounts, Black Sabbath was at their lowest commercial point.  Tony Iommi was the only original member at this point and he had a revolving door of singers for many years.  The band finally settled on Tony Martin for 1987’s The Eternal Idol and they were attempting to rebuild the brand during a time when many other bands took up the top spots.  While the Martin-era records get overlooked, I found them still worthy releases.  I especially enjoyed this album, in particular because it had great riffs throughout and I felt that Martin had finally come into his own here.  I remembering being disappointed that they were ignoring the US market for touring.  The previous year’s tour for the Headless Cross record was abruptly canceled due to poor ticket sales.  With a dire climate for their brand of metal, it speaks volumes that they were still able to put together this great collection of tunes.  I recommend any Sabbath fan to revisit Tyr, as I feel it is the best of the Martin years.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) in Music Street Journal: 2019  Volume 6. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2019.

The disc starts off with some mellow guitar work and almost church-like vocals singing the title.  Not quite a minute passes before the full band joins in, and then that unmistakable riffing starts.  Although this was not the single from the record, it was the only track the band performed past this tour.