N.I.B.

For other uses, see NIB (disambiguation).

"N.I.B."
Song by Black Sabbath from the album Black Sabbath
Released	13 February 1970
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	6:07
Label	Vertigo (UK) Warner Bros. (US)
Writer	Butler/Iommi/Osbourne/Ward
Producer	Rodger Bain
Black Sabbath track listing "Behind the Wall of Sleep" (3) "N.I.B." (4) "Evil Woman" (5)

"N.I.B."
Single by Primus featuring Ozzy Osbourne
from the album Nativity in Black II
Released	2000
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	5:57
Label	Priority Records
Writer(s)	Geezer Butler, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward
Producer	Primus
Primus featuring Ozzy Osbourne singles chronology
"Electric Uncle Sam" 1999 "N.I.B." 2000 TBA

"N.I.B." is a song released by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It first appeared as the fourth track on the band's 1970 eponymous debut album, Black Sabbath. The lyrics are in the first person from the point of view of Lucifer. Some listeners have claimed that the song is about Lucifer seducing the listener; however, lyricist Geezer Butler clarifies that "the song was about the devil falling in love and totally changing, becoming a good person."^[1]

"N.I.B." begins with a bass solo by Geezer Butler, titled "Bassically" on some US releases. It involves the use of wah-wah on his bass and was recorded in one take, as the amp's volume control is plainly turned up before the distorted bass intro of "N.I.B." begins.

Title meaning

The title was widely rumoured to have stood for "Nativity in Black" (or to a much lesser extent, "Name In Blood"). In a 1992 interview, Geezer Butler states that the title simply refers to Bill Ward's goatee at the time, which the rest of the band thought was shaped like a pen nib; also referred to as nibby.^[2] Apparently, Geezer Butler said: "Originally it was Nib, which was Bill's beard. When I wrote N.I.B., I couldn't think of a title for the song, so I just called it Nib, after Bill's beard. To make it more intriguing I put punctuation marks in there to make it N.I.B. By the time it got to America, they translated it to Nativity In Black."

"Nativity in Black" was also used for the title of a series of Black Sabbath tribute albums. Ronnie James Dio can be heard mentioning (but not confirming) this assumption on several live bootleg recordings with the band from the early 1980s.

Cover versions and other uses

Many bands have covered the song, including Cave In, Type O Negative, Ugly Kid Joe, Anacrusis, Acid Drinkers and Pitchshifter. Ozzy Osbourne and Primus recorded the song for Nativity in Black II. This version also appears in Osbourne's boxed set Prince of Darkness.

The song was featured briefly in the Vietnam War drama Music Within. It has also been featured on BBC coverage of Formula One.

Track listing

1. "N.I.B. (Radio Edit)" - 3:52

References

1. ^ (Quote from the 1992 documentary "The Black Sabbath Story: Volume One.")
2. ^ http://www.black-sabbath.com/faq/faq11.htm#faq11040