Children of the Grave


"Children of the Grave" is a song by British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, from their 1971 album Master of Reality. The song lyrically continues with the same anti-war themes brought on by "War Pigs" and "Electric Funeral" from Paranoid, adding in Geezer Butler's pacifist ideals of non-violent civil disobedience. Two previously unreleased versions of this song are released on the deluxe edition of Master of Reality. The first is a version with alternate lyrics, the second an instrumental version.
The song has been featured on several greatest hits and live albums. As well as being performed by Black Sabbath in concert in its various incarnations, Ozzy Osbourne performed it in concert many times as a solo artist. It appears in the video game as a playable song. It was also referenced in the online game League of Legends as the name of the ultimate attack of the metal-themed character Mordekaiser before his rework, and is the background music for the opening level of the video game Brütal Legend.
One feature lost on CD is that on vinyl the track was the last on the side, and continually looped a whispered "Children of the Grave". This looped part has an individual, yet rarely used name of 'The Haunting'.
The guitar and bass, as is common with Black Sabbath, are tuned down a minor 3rd.
"Children of the Grave" was ranked the third best Black Sabbath song by Christoph Rehe in his book Rock - Das Gesamtwerk der größten Rock-Acts im Check.

Track listing

  1. "Children of the Grave" – 5:49
  2. "Children of the Grave" – 3:50

    Cover versions

White Zombie

The band White Zombie covered "Children of the Grave" for the Black Sabbath tribute album Nativity in Black. It was later released as a promo single in 1994. In 2014, Mac Sabbath, a fast food-themed Black Sabbath tribute band, recorded a parody version entitled "Chicken for the Slaves".

Nepal

The Argentine thrash metal band Nepal recorded a cover version of the song for their third studio album, Manifiesto.

Havok

American thrash metal band Havok included a cover of the song on their third studio album, Unnatural Selection.

Master

American death metal band Master covered the song for their 1990 debut album Master. Whilst keeping the clean finger picking intro of Embryo and the opening build up, the rest of the cover is more similar to the style of Venom.