Today, we're posting an interview with Brian Aberback, author of Black Sabbath: Pioneers of Heavy Metal from our Rebels of Rock series.
Q: Brian, when
did you know you wanted to be a writer?
A: When
I started working for the Record daily newspaper in Hackensack, New Jersey,
after graduating college in 1996. I was an English major in college and took a
journalism 101 course but always thought I would end up in the publishing
industry, perhaps as a copy editor. After becoming an editorial assistant in the
Features department at the Record and given the opportunity to write stories on
hard rock and heavy metal bands I knew that was what I wanted to do.
Q: How
did you begin your writing career?
A: I
began working at the Record as a part-time editorial clerk. The job entailed
answering phones, taking messages for reporters and writing obituaries. I then
became the editorial assistant in the Features department, where I took on
writing assignments in addition to my main responsibility of compiling calendar
listings. From there I became a full-time features reporter and then a news
reporter. I left the paper in 2007 for a new career in government
communications and have continued to write for the paper and other publications
as a freelancer ever since.
Q: Do
you have a background in music?
A: I
have been a music fanatic since middle school, when I would listen to any hard
rock and heavy metal album I could find. My musical tastes have broadened but
heavy metal will always be my first love. I played guitar and was in a band in
high school. But my brother is the musician of the family. He is a fantastic
percussionist.
Q: How
did you go about researching and planning for writing the Black Sabbath book?
A: My
knowledge base of Black Sabbath was pretty extensive prior to writing the book,
so I knew what I wanted to include and how to weave the tale. I then read
dozens of books and articles on the band and learned some new, surprising
information. For example, I had no idea that Ozzy Osbourne had performed in
school productions of “The Mikado” and “H.M.S. Pinafore.”
A
highlight was being able to quote from and use my own prior interviews with the
band as references. Prior to writing the book I had separately interviewed Ozzy
Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and singer Ronnie James Dio,
who replaced Ozzy. These interviews were for various features in the Record.
Q: Where
there any particular obstacles you encountered while writing this book?
A: The
biggest challenge was how to write an age-appropriate book on a band with a
notorious past that included significant substance and alcohol abuse.
Q: How did you overcome this obstacle?
A: By
being straightforward without going into too much detail or glamorizing the
band’s, and especially Osbourne’s, drug and alcohol problems. I also pointed
out the negative effects that this had on the band, how it led to their breakup
and also made it easier for corrupt managers and agents to cheat Black Sabbath
out of significant earnings.
Q: What
is your typical day of writing like?
A: I
typically wake up early to work on freelance writing for an hour or two before
heading to work. In my job in government communications I’m writing all day,
whether it be press releases, answering reporter inquiries, or working on
internal reports. I will sometimes try to do freelance when I get home, but
have found it more effective to write early in the morning.
Q: If
you weren’t a writer, what might you be doing instead?
A: I
think I would be involved in the music industry, perhaps doing publicity for a
record label or a band. Or I might be an editor at a newspaper, magazine or
publishing house.
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| Paperback ISBN: 978-1-59845-212-9 Library Binding ISBN: 978-0-7660-3379-5 |
Black Sabbath: Pioneers of Heavy Metal can be purchased from Enslow or online retailers, Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
To learn more about Brian and his books, you can visit Brian's website. You can follow him on Twitter @bsa172.
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