HarperCollins to publish memoir from Black Sabbath bassist

HarperCollins has acquired world English language rights for Into the Void: From Birth to Black Sabbath – and Beyond by Geezer Butler, the longtime bassist and main lyricist for rock band Black Sabbath.

HarperNonFiction publishing director Kelly Ellis acquired the rights from David Luxton at David Luxton Associates. HarperCollins will be co-publishing with Carrie Thornton at Dey Street. The book will publish on 8th June 2023.

The synopsis reads: "Into the Void sees Geezer tell his side of the Sabbath story for the first time, from early days as a scrappy blues quartet through to the many lineup changes, the record-breaking tours and the international hell-raising with Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward. Featuring Geezer’s candid reflections on his working-class childhood in Luftwaffe-battered Birmingham, his almost-life as an accountant and his fascination with horror, religion and the occult, Into the Void will also include 30 photos from Geezer’s personal collection – some never-before-published.”

Butler said: “I’m incredibly lucky to have spent the last five decades making music and playing to fans all over the world. From my early days in Aston to adventures and antics with Black Sabbath, this book has brought up memories I thought were gone forever.”

Ellis added: “Geezer Butler’s story is one of the last great rock ‘n’ roll stories to be told and I am glad to be the lucky editor who gets to publish it. As a founding member of Black Sabbath, Geezer has lived through some of music history’s most extraordinary moments. In many ways it reads like a fairy tale of how four unassuming lads from Aston, Birmingham went on to conquer the world. It’s one hell of a read.”