'Sabotage’ is the sixth studio album by English rock band Black Sabbath, released in July 1975. It was recorded in the midst of litigation with their former manager Patrick Meehan and the stress that resulted from the band's ongoing legal woes infiltrated the recording process, inspiring the album's title. It was co-produced by guitarist Tony Iommi and Mike Butcher. Iommi credits those legal troubles for the album's angry, heavier sound. ‘Sabotage’ is a mix of heavy, powerful songs and softer experimental tunes, such as ‘Supertzar’ and ‘Am I Going Insane (Radio)’.
In 2013 Mojo observed, “Opener ‘Hole in the Sky’ and the crunching ‘Symptom of the Universe’ illustrate that, for all their problems, Sabbath's power remained undimmed on what was what many consider one of their finest offerings.” ‘Sabotage's’ front cover art has garnered mixed reactions over the years. The inverted mirror concept was conceived by Graham Wright, Bill Ward's drum tech who was also a graphic artist. The band attended what they believed was a test photo shoot for the album cover, thus explaining their choice of clothing.
Sabotage peaked at number 7 in the United Kingdom and at number 28 in the United States. It was certified Silver (60,000 units sold) in the UK by the BPI on 1 December 1975 and Gold in the US on 16 June 1997. For the second time, a Black Sabbath album initially saw favourable reviews, with Rolling Stone stating “’Sabotage’ is not only Black Sabbath's best record since ‘Paranoid’, it might be their best ever”.