• EARLY SABBATH SHOW, FROM THE BAND’S FIRST LP TOUR • Formed in 1968, Black Sabbath’s first show took place on 30 August 1969, in Workington. They were signed to Philips Records in November 1969, and released their first single, ‘Evil Woman,’ in January 1970. Later releases were handled by Philips' newly formed progressive label Vertigo. • Sabbath's first major exposure came when the band appeared on John Peel's Top Gear radio show in 1969, to a national audience in Great Britain, shortly before recording of their first album commenced. Although the single failed to chart, the band were afforded two days of studio time in November to record their debut with producer Rodger Bain. • Black Sabbath was released on Friday the 13th, February 1970, and reached number 8 in the UK Albums Chart. Following its U.S. and Canadian release in May 1970 by Warner Bros Records, the album reached number 23 on the Billboard 200, where it remained for over a year. It has since been certified platinum in both the U.S. by the RIAA, and in the UK by BPI, and is now generally accepted as the first heavy metal album. • The band toured to promote the new record, and performed a slew of shows across the UK in March and April ’70, and towards the end of April, they played a handful of concerts in continental Europe. This included 2 shows in Switzerland, the first of which, on 27th of the month, was the legendary Sabbath show from the Montreux Casino. Then, on 29th, the Sabs played a remarkable gig at the Electric Circus in Lausanne, most notable as the only time the band played the song, ‘Sleeping Village’ live