TONY IOMMI Says He Originally Wanted GEEZER BUTLER To Play On His 'From The Dark' Solo Album: 'He Couldn't Do It'

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi spoke about his upcoming solo album, "From The Dark", which will arrive on October 23 via BMG. "From The Dark" sees Iommi joined throughout by Norwegian vocalist Jorn Lande, who shares writing credits on all songs, as well as bassist Becky Baldwin and drummer Karl Brazil. The LP was co-produced by Tony and Mike Exeter, his longtime creative partner, co-writer, producer and audio engineer.

Regarding how he connected with Lande for the album, Iommi said: "We've worked with him before. When we'd done the [Ronnie James] Dio tribute after Ronnie passed away [at the 2010 High Voltage festival at Victoria Park in London, England], we had Jorn come and sing a couple of songs with us at the tribute, and I really liked his voice. So, I thought, 'Well, I'd like to use him.' I liked his voice. I mean, you could go and pick some named people, but I've done that."

Iommi went on to say that he did not give Jorn "any lyrical ideas at all" for the songs on the album.

"With a singer, it's good if they can do their own stuff because when they've got to sing it, they can put it over better," Tony explained. "It's like with Ronnie — when he used to write the lyrics, there's certain words that he could really get powerful on. And I think it's the same with Jorn.

Asked if the riffs on "From The Dark" are all new or if they are ideas he had been holding on to, Tony said: "No, they've all been new. The thing is, I've got loads of riffs on CDs, cassettes, and all sorts of stuff. But by the time I've gone back to try and find something on them, I've come up with something new."

As for how Brazil and Baldwin got involved, Tony said: "It's strange, really. I've got a house by the beach, which we go down to now and again. I was walking along the perimeter of the beach, and this guy come up to me and said, 'Oh, Tony, hello.' And I thought he's just a fan. And he said, 'We've got a mutual friend. Mike Exeter is my engineer. I'm Robbie Williams's drummer.' Then Mike, my engineer, he said, 'Oh, yeah, he's a good drummer, Karl.' I used him on one of my instrumental tracks with the perfume thing I did. And then I thought it'd be nice to use him on the album because he's a good player. Also, he's from Birmingham, which is really good because I wanted to try and keep it local.

"Becky lives in Birmingham, and she's a really good player," Iommi explained. "And she's certainly a fan of Geezer [Butler, BLACK SABBATH's bassist], and she plays in Geezer's style. And that's what I wanted. She's really good."

Asked if he had considered working with Geezer on this album, Tony said: "I wanted him to play on this album, but he couldn't do it. He's doing his own album, I think. Or at the time, something happened there, so he couldn't come to England. I wanted to get it done and finally get it out, really. Because Becky's, as I say, a fan of Geezer, and she plays in that style, I though let's give it a try. And she was good."

In 2024, Iommi released an instrumental track, "Deified", to accompany the arrival of another new fragrance. The song saw Iommi reunite with Exeter, who played keyboards and handled production, with Laurence Cottle (who played on BLACK SABBATH's "Headless Cross" album) on bass. The recording lineup was rounded out by Brazil, with Ben Andrews scoring the orchestrations.

Three years earlier, Iommi unveiled "Scent Of Dark" — his first new music in eight years at the time — alongside an accompanying cologne.

At the time of "Scent Of Dark"'s release, Iommi revealed that he had "four or five hundred" unused riffs on his phone, with plans to arrange and record some of them for his various projects.

"Scent Of Dark" and "Deified" were the product of a friendship struck up during the pandemic between Iommi and Sergio Momo, acclaimed perfumer, and designer for Xerjoff, well known for its unique and individual creations and collaborations in the fragrance world. Sergio is also an accomplished guitarist, and his fine fretwork can be heard on both songs.

Iommi's new solo album will be his third, after 2000's "Iommi" and 2005's "Fused".

Joining Iommi on "Fused" was ex-DEEP PURPLE bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes and drummer Kenny Aronoff, whose resume includes the "Iommi" album and a long run with John Mellencamp.

SMASHING PUMPKINS frontman Billy Corgan and Dave Grohl of the FOO FIGHTERS are among the guests who were heard on "Iommi". The LP also featured guest appearances from Philip Anselmo of PANTERA, Henry Rollins and SYSTEM OF A DOWN's Serj Tankian as well as Skin of SKUNK ANANSIE, Peter Steele from TYPE O NEGATIVE, and THE CULT's Ian Astbury.

Iommi is widely regarded as one of the most influential guitarists in modern music. As the founding member and primary composer of BLACK SABBATH, Iommi is credited with helping create the sound and vocabulary of heavy metal.

Iommi's contributions have been recognized with multiple Grammy Awards, induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and honorary academic distinctions in the U.K. He was awarded a doctorate from Coventry University, a Lord Mayor's Award and the Freedom Of The City of Birmingham. Most recently, in June 2026 he has been awarded an MBE, one of the highest honors in British public life.

In his youth, Iommi overcame a serious industrial accident that cost him the tips of two fingers — an event that led him to develop a distinctive playing style and the darker, heavier guitar tone that defined BLACK SABBATH's music. Formed with Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, the band released pioneering albums throughout the 1970s and became one of the most culturally significant British exports of the era.

Across his six-decade career, Iommi has continued to record, perform and collaborate internationally. He worked extensively with the late Ronnie James Dio, released acclaimed solo material, and reunited with the original BLACK SABBATH lineup for the chart-topping 2013 album "13" and the global farewell tour "The End" (2016–2017) which played to 1.6 million fans.

In recent years, his work has expanded notably into broader cultural spheres. In 2023 he collaborated with the Birmingham Royal Ballet on "Black Sabbath - The Ballet", a groundbreaking production based on his early compositions. BLACK SABBATH headlined 2025's monumental metal show "Back To The Beginning" in Birmingham, an all-encompassing show revisiting BLACK SABBATH's origins and a poignant farewell to fans, that took place just a few weeks before the death of his bandmate Ozzy Osbourne.