Heavy metal was forged through Tony Iommi’s riffs on Black Sabbath’s timeless 1969 debut album, and it spread like wildfire. The ‘70s were dominated by bands pushing that heaviness to new extremes.
Despite its popularity, the genre wasn’t recognized by the Recording Academy with a dedicated Grammy award for another two decades. When it was, things got off to a farcical start when Jethro Tull's Crest of a Knave went up against Metallica's ...And Justice for All for the inaugural win in the category of Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental.
It was a momentous occasion for Metallica. The young thrash metallers had proved resilient in the wake of founding bassist Cliff Burton’s tragic passing, redefining themselves with ...And Justice for All, their monumental fourth album. Everyone was convinced they would win in the category, which also included albums by Jane's Addiction, Iggy Pop and AC/DC.
Tull was so certain to be passed over that they didn't even bother to show up. As former guitarist Martin Barre reveals, the band members were still at home on the night of the award ceremony.
“It was surreal,” he tells Guitar World of the band's inclusion. “We were in the U.K. when we're told that we were nominated, and we were like, 'Wow… we're nominated for a Grammy?' but there was no thought that we would get it.”
They weren't alone. Even the band’s label, Chrysalis, were certain Metallica would win.
“I don’t think there was one single person in the company who thought, Hang on a minute, Jethro Tull might win the Heavy Metal award,” Chrysalis’ founder Chris Wright told Classic Rock.
Barre recalls Chrysalis telling them, "'Metallica are huge, and they've got a big presence at the ceremony and are going to play there, they're going to wipe you out.' And even though we were invited to go, the record company said, 'No, we're not going to fly you over. You're not going to win. Just stay home.'
"So we just sat at home.”
Yet, when Alice Cooper and Lita Ford came forward to present the award's nominees, the outcome surprised everyone, including the presenters. When Cooper opened the envelope, Ford gave a snigger as she glanced at the card within bearing the winning entry. Cooper did the honors.
"And the winner is Crest of a Knave, Jethro Tull."
The shock rocker recalled the award ceremony years later.
“We went to the Shrine Auditorium for rehearsals that day, and that involved opening an envelope with a dummy card inside, which has a name on it,” Cooper said. “But it’s never the name of the real winner, it just gives you something to read out. I think, during rehearsal, the name on that card was Jethro Tull, so I read it out.
“[That night] I opened the envelope, and when I saw the name, I thought they’d given me the envelope from the rehearsal. I looked at it again, and it did have a different seal on it and details like that. It was the real thing.
“There was this huge sort of 'Springtime for Hitler' gasp from the audience. Then everybody broke out laughing.”
“I was home with the family,” Barre recalls today. “I got a phone call saying, 'You've won a Grammy.' We were like, 'You've got to be kidding?'”
Metallica, meanwhile, were rightly shocked to be beaten by a group that didn't qualify as either hard rock or heavy metal.
“All those who are ‘in touch’ — the critics, the day-to-day involved people — assumed that Metallica would walk away with the award,” Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich said. In hindsight, however, he theorizes that “most of the academy who vote for the nominees are in the age group of 40 to 60, and are very much less in tune with what goes on in the music scene.”
Despite the outcry, Jethro Tull didn't let it dampen their spirits.
“I'm really proud of that,” Barre says of the win. “We had a huge party; it was brilliant. It means a lot to me, but it could either mean nothing or everything. It was a weird category, sort of fuzzy around the edges. But essentially, that album obviously deserves that award.”
In the same interview, Barre revealed that says he was a “terrible” rhythm guitar player until a big-name player helped him see the light and revitalize his playing.
Meanwhile, Tony Iommi says he nearly launched Black Sabbath with a Fender Stratocaster, but fate seemingly intervened after a “dodgy” car park swap.
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