Bullseye with Jesse Thorn is a production of MaximumFund.org and is distributed by NPR.

It's Bullseye, I'm Jesse Thorn.

In the history of rock music, has a song ever open stronger than this.

Generals gathered in their masses, just like witches at black masses.

It's war pigs, first track on paranoid, black Sabbath's brick-through album.

Sorcerer of death's construction.

In the fields of bar, you know what makes it great, I mean, Ozzy Osborne's voice,

which sounds like it's coming from some strange surreal past.

Tony Iomi's guitar sounds like I don't know the skeleton of a freight train.

Bill Ward's drums, which just hit you like a ton of ricks.

And of course, on bass, my guest, Geeser Butler.

Patient zero for heavy metal bass riffs, subtle, deep, and pounding.

But here's the thing, Butler isn't just holding down the low end on war pigs.

He also helped write the song.

He wrote or co-wrote so many of Sabbath's greatest tunes, Iron Man Paranoid, The Wizard, after forever.

Now Butler has a memoir, it's called Into the Void, from birth to black Sabbath and beyond.

It's about his childhood in Birmingham and about, of course, the story of Sabbath.

It's also one of those books where you can basically open to any page and something completely crazy is happening

that you can't wait to turn over your shoulder and tell somebody about.

Before we get into my interview with Geeser Butler, let's hear a bit of another Sabbath classic, Paranoid.

Geeser Butler, welcome to Bullseye. I'm so happy to have you on the show.

Thank you very much. Nice to be here.

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