Sabbath top the charts....

BLACK Sabbath are one again top of the charts...well they're top of the t-shirt charts anyway!

In a remarkabla piece of trivia...well as long time Sabbath fans we're interested in this sort of trivia...the reformation of Ozzy, Geezer and Tony under the Sabbath banner has prompted a surge of interest in bearing the Sabbs banner upon their chest.

That is according to HMV!

The t-shirt concerned is from the 1978 tour (ironically not one of their best) and sits proudly ahead of such rock luminaries as The Beatles and Rolling Stones. Here's the full top-10:

1. Black Sabbath - US Tour 1978

2. Led Zeppelin – US Tour 1977

3. Led Zeppelin – 'Celebration Day'

4. David Bowie - Smoking

5. Bruce Springsteen - Sand Tour

5. Foo Fighters - Gold logo

6. AC/DC - Angus Young And Brian Johnson

7. Metallica - Skull Explosion

8. Rolling Stones - Union Jack Tongue

9. Beatles – 'Sgt. Pepper...'

10. Guns N' Roses – 'Appetite For Destruction'

And yes - we know that makes 11 t-shirts, but that's HMV's figures!

More interestingly - well it is to us - you will note that seven of these tops are from hard rock or heavy metal acts. Some of these purchases are obviously being made by mums and dads for their little hard rockin' children, but set beside the story carried in no less a newspaper than The Times it sort of makes sense.

Yes, The Times has declared that 2013 is to be 'the year of heavy metal', which, if we are to be honest worries us.

Yes, it will be great for more hard rock and metal acts sell more albums and merch (especially our local standard bearers) but what does it mean when the mainstream declares metal as the 'next big thing' as if it hadn't been around for the past 40 odd years.

Does it mean that 2014 metal is dropped? Will we see more rock orientated acts on reality TV shows? Will celebs start sporting classic acts t-shirts (remember Beckham once wore the Exodus Bonded in Blood t-shirt!)?

All of those things are worthy of concern, but on a more hopeful note it might mean that more little hard rockers and metalheads come into the fold, are exposed to the local rock and metal acts and become lifelong devotees to the dark side, where there awaits a sweaty club full of long hairs and weirdos, where you own a computer to organise your playlists, where you discover the joys of vinyl, and the rock t-shirt has tour dates on the back and you actually were at one of the tour dates.

In short - as Sabbath would say - they'll have sold their souls to rock 'n' roll! Come to the Sabbat dearies, it's much warmer here!