Under The Sun / Every Day Comes And Goes

Album: Vol. 4 (1972)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The last song on Black Sabbath's fittingly titled album Vol. 4, the lyrics deal with everything from religion to violence. Ozzy Osbourne was their frontman at the time, but bass player Geezer Butler wrote their lyrics.
  • Look no further if you're seeking a song that helped forge the sound of heavy metal. The "Under The Sun" portion has a rumbling intensity that carries a lot of weight; "Every Day Comes And Goes" has a monster guitar riff from Tony Iommi and some big fills by drummer Bill Ward. These guys came on the scene in 1969 and released their first two albums in 1970. They got the Heisman from radio stations but still developed a substantial fan base that grew over the next few years. They had some down years in the late '70s, and Ozzy was booted in 1979, but they found new life with Ronnie James Dio out front. And Ozzy did pretty well for himself as a solo artist.
  • In a Songfacts interview with Geezer Butler, he described Vol. 4 as a "cocaine album."

    "If one of us had an idea, no matter what time of the day or night it was, you'd get up and play your idea to the rest of them," he said. "If you were really tired, you'd do a few 'toots.' It would probably get you through playing together, any particular time of the day or night."

Comments: 4

  • Luna Loud from Royal Woods, MichiganI love the message in this song, don't listen to preachers or religious nuts, or anyone telling you how you SHOULD live your life. Do what you want to do. As long as you're not hurting anyone, it's all good, bro.

    Does anyone know how many different keys this song is in? I sounds like a lot.
  • Cindy from Pure DeliriumI hate when they f--kup good song lyrics too...its annoying!!! This is true Sabbath right here. I went ballistic when they played this in concert. Sabbath f--king Rules!!!
  • Hugo from BrazilThe lyrics are wrong.

    1st line: "demon" should be "jesus freak"
    7th: "with no" should be "I don't want"
    12th: it should be "I can't see through their frustration"
    13th: "Hiding", not "Riding"
    15th: "Behind each flower there grows a weed"

  • Jon from Parma, OhIn Ozzy's book, 'I am Ozzy', he says that Bill had changed the drums every time they played this, and couldn't keep it down because he was so messed up. When they had finally finished the song, they had been calling it "Everywhere Under The f--king Sun".
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Yacht Rock Quiz

Yacht Rock QuizFact or Fiction

Christopher Cross with Deep Purple? Kenny Loggins in Caddyshack? A Fact or Fiction all about yacht rock and those who made it.

Dean Friedman - "Ariel"

Dean Friedman - "Ariel"They're Playing My Song

Dean's saga began with "Ariel," a song about falling in love with a Jewish girl from New Jersey.

Concert Disasters

Concert DisastersFact or Fiction

Ozzy biting a dove? Alice Cooper causing mayhem with a chicken? Creed so bad they were sued? See if you can spot the real concert mishaps.

Michael Glabicki of Rusted Root

Michael Glabicki of Rusted RootSongwriter Interviews

Michael tells the story of "Send Me On My Way," and explains why some of the words in the song don't have a literal meaning.

Kevin Godley

Kevin GodleySongwriter Interviews

Kevin Godley talks about directing classic videos for The Police, U2 and Duran Duran, and discusses song and videos he made with 10cc and Godley & Creme.

Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear: Teddy Bears and Teddy Boys in Songs

Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear: Teddy Bears and Teddy Boys in SongsSong Writing

Elvis, Little Richard and Cheryl Cole have all sung about Teddy Bears, but there is also a terrifying Teddy song from 1932 and a touching trucker Teddy tune from 1976.