Metal: A Headbanger's Journey2005

[On the subject of who is the first heavy metal band]

Geddy Lee:
If you really wanna go back to the early metal bands, you have to look at Blue Cheer. Nobody talks about them very often because they were kind of a bloop on a screen. But they were, at one point, the loudest most metallic trio going.

John Kay:
Heavy metal lies of course in the lyrics of 'Born to be Wild', which was written by a Canadian; Dennis Edmonton / Mars Bonfire. He was really talking about that whole experience of, you know, big bikes and roaring down the highway.

Robert Ezrin:
For me, my awareness of it came with Led Zeppelin, it really did. As soon as those guys launched people started using the term 'heavy metal'. And I knew instantly that that sound was 'heavy something'.

Lemmy:
As it is today, probably Deep Purple. You know, 'cause they were the first to have this great big f***-off PA... And, uhm... the first to have a lot of pyrotechnics really.

Alice Cooper:
Actually, the first time 'heavy metal' was ever used was used about Alice Cooper in Rolling Stone magazine. Rolling Stone magazine was doing an interview with us. I think it was in '71, '72, '73, something like that. And there was this picture of this giant guy holding me up and it said; "Da-da-da-da-da-da... It's heavy metal", in quotes.

Alex Webster:
Every metal band owes a debt, musically, to Black Sabbath. They were the original.

Randy Blythe:
Indeed, first metal band ever; Black Sabbath.

Rob Zombie:
Every cool riff has already been written by Black Sabbath. Anything everyone else does is just basically ripping it off. Either you're playing it slightly different or fast or slow, but... They did everything already.

Sam Dunn:
For my money, Black Sabbath reigns as the first heavy metal band.