Tony Iommi says he turned down a final Black Sabbath album with the band's original lineup.

Iommi told Classic Rock that producer Andrew Watt, who made Ozzy Osbourne's "Ordinary Man" and "Patient Number 9," pitched him on the idea in the early 2020s. "I'd met Andrew Watt when he was producing Ozzy. He was very keen and a bit too excited," Iommi said. "He also didn't know what it was like working with the original Sabbath, working with Bill. Also, we'd done '13', and I didn't like the idea of: 'Now here's another album.'" "13" came out in 2013 and became Sabbath's first US number one, though Bill Ward did not play on it after a contract dispute. The band toured instead, and all four original members finally played together at Back To The Beginning in Birmingham on July 5, 2025. Ozzy died 17 days later.

Photo: Shane Hirschman