Talk:Iron Man (song)

Is this article a joke?
The summary of the story is written like one of those rap songs translated into proper, literal English. Furthermore, there is a lot of detail in that summary not present in the song. Further still, the song is quite widely recognized to be an allegory for the Vietnam war. I'm far too lazy to cite sources here, but if no one else will, I propose the page be pared down to release data and made a stub.71.214.127.59 (talk) 16:18, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

Can we not simply remove the "story" paragraph and miscellaneous interpretations in favor of a simple link to the 1968 Ted Hughes novel that is the likeliest source? See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Iron_Man_(novel) and http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/2008/04/we_are_iron_man.html —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.146.1.73 (talk) 05:06, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Maoist Int'l Movement
Deleted "The Maoist Internationalist Movement interprets "Iron Man" as being about a veteran of the Vietnam War ." While that may be true, it's not significant, as many groups may have many interpretations of the song, and it certainly wouldn't belong in the Composition section regardless. Squirrelcar 22:42, 11 April 2007 (UTC)

2000s?
I'm curious why the 2000s decade was picked for popularity at sporting events. I heard the song being played by my high school's marching band as early as 1996. Zarggg 18:11, 11 February 2006 (UTC)

What?
"However, many budding guitarists make the mistake of playing it in the key of E (on the open sixth string) rather than the recorded key of B."

Why? And how do we know?

For sum reason I use to play Low E -0-3-3-5-5-8-7-8-7-8-3-3-5-5 but now I play B 2-5-5-7-7-11-10-11-10-11-5-5-7-7 I was so confused!
 * I removed this; it doesn't even make sense. The first note is B; the key is E minor.  Equalpants 08:36, 4 July 2006 (UTC)

trivia errors.
I removed "In the arcade version of the game Ninja Gaiden, also known as Shadow Warriors, the second level boss theme is highly reminiscent of this song." There's nothing to support this. The second level boss was a barbarian with a sickle who wore armor, he's human however. There little even reminiscent, and if we listed everything reminiscent of something else there'd be little else on the system.

If you're going to add obscure trivia we should have a citation or at least an proof Kinglink 20:20, 23 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Uh... buddy? I hate to break it to you, but the boss themes for Levels 2 and 5 are actually highly reminiscent of "Iron Man." The bosses aren't even a Barbarian with a Sickle either! The bosses were a duo of wrestlers that looked very, VERY much like The Road Warriors of WWF fame, who used the song! The barbarian with armor can refer to two characters: either the Final Boss "Bladedamus" or "Spearmen." Monkeisquad (talk) 19:26, 29 August 2023 (UTC)

Also, the line about the Stayin' Alive cover is wrong, because, while it may have been released in 2005, I recall downloading said Stayin' Alive cover from Kazaa's heyday in 2002/3ish. I even have CDs burned from that period with it. (Also, the "I Am Discoman" line isn't said at the beginning, but somewhere in the middle.)

I agree, and even though I've never played the game; regardless of a few very rare exceptions, the similarities in different musical compositions is a higly subjective and very debatable topic, espcially given the fairly limited palette of music compared to the sheer number of musicians. Personally, I would find this more relevant if the piece in question was an actual, purpose-made song sold commercially on its own merits. That's must me though-I can appreciate the other side to this "debate". 91.125.68.140 (talk) 18:37, 5 January 2010 (UTC)

Transcribed melody
What's with that image of the iron man melody? its wrong - first of all, it shows its in C and that part with the quavers repeats itself, it doesn't change like in the image


 * Yeah, needs some work. Also should reflect the fact that what is being played are power chords, not single notes.  Steve CarlsonTalk 02:11, 3 July 2008 (UTC)


 * The quavers don't repeat the same note. It doesn't show it "In C", it simply is transcribed without a key signature (notice the F#'s). What key should it be in and what is your source for that information? Hyacinth (talk) 02:39, 3 July 2008 (UTC)

Riff Tabbing
Should a tab of the riff be placed, since it's so famous? I can easily make one off of the method I use to play it. Though, I'm not sure if I do it correctly, since it makes reference to a "power chord" in there some where ... anyway, here's an example of how I play it.

E: 0-3-3-5-5-8-7-8-7-8-7-7-0-3-3

Of course, I don't know about the two solos. I've looked everywhere, it seems no one has ever tabbed them before, because I looked through like, 200 + google links, and can't find it. Any way, should this be added? 12.107.246.96 03:28, 4 January 2007 (UTC)


 * You're, uh, playing it completely wrong, dude. It's in B, for one thing, so the first note is on the 7th fret on the E string (or the 2nd fret on the next one up) and then there's several bends between notes (for example, between the second and third notes--which, on your incorrect tab, would be between 3 and 5.)
 * The reason it's *not* played in E is because later on (in the bridge after the first verse and after the final verse) there are notes that go far lower than the initial B note.
 * Also, http://ultimate-guitar.com has literally 'thousands' of guitar tabs--there's probably like a dozen just for Iron Man alone. Use the one with the most possible positive rating--IIRC, Iron Man's first one has over 250 5* ratings. That tab 'also' includes instructions on how to do the intro (the bending of the string done thrice while Ozzy says "I am Iron Man," as well as how to do the solo after the second chorus. Unfortunately I don't think it covers the ending solo piece, but some versions of the track don't even actually *include* it--I didn't know it existed for the longest time.
 * And power chords are chords played on two or three strings only, usually used on an electric guitar in rock/metal musics. What you're actually doing is playing the same note half an octave higher. To play a power chord, you're gonna want to put your pinky on the fret two above the fret your other finger is on--for simplicity's sake, to play a B power chord, you'd want your pointer on 7 on the E string and your pinky on 9 on the next string up.
 * This has been Onslaught Six giving guitar lessons on Wikipedia talk pages. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 71.162.44.30 (talk) 05:59, 28 January 2007 (UTC).


 * Actually, the riff as written in the article is in E minor, not B.123.243.37.236 (talk) 08:22, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

Deleted reference to Birmingham Iron Man
The Birmingham Iron Man was finished in 1993. The song "Iron Man" was written in 1970. Therefore, the Birmingham Iron Man could not have been the inspiration for the song.
 * More than likely it's the other way 'round.

- YES The statue was made as a tribute to black sabbath, who are from birmingham —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.17.216.130 (talk) 12:47, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

take a look at this link - it says the "Iron Man" statue in Birmingham was finished in 1937 - granted, not Birmingham, England - but interesting. http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/ALBIRvulcan.html

Iron Man is Jesus?
I'm surprised no one has yet brought up the idea that the titular character represents (or is at least inspired by) Jesus Christ; it's a rather obvious interpretation. A legendary hero comes to save humanity, but finds that they reject him, so he returns to destroy them. The song could have multiple meanings, but it seems like this ought to be at least be proposed as one. 71.146.32.97 08:12, 23 March 2007 (UTC)


 * Unless you can find a source that says this is a common theory, we can't put it in.Cameron Nedland 01:36, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

I always thought this was a common throught. I don't think the song is about Jesus, but I can see the the similarities:

"...fills his victims full of dread" - Remorse "...is he live or is he dead?" - Well, acording to the Bible, Jesus is a zombie. "...Kils the people he once saved" - Seems to be a second coming reference. "...when he traveled time..." Well, JesusZombie never died again after he walked our of his grave and just kinda wondered away.

Again these are just some references that people think it's JesusZombie but the other references don't make sense....User:erkman1999 —Preceding comment was added at 16:00, 27 January 2008 (UTC)

Excuse, me? The Iron man from the song was simply ignored after he was turned to steel and thus "killed the people he once saved". jesus was never ignored and never killed his followers. Did I make myself clear enough? And I haven't even read the bible (at least not the whole bible) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.5.155.191 (talk) 09:00, 24 February 2008 (UTC)

lol. JesusZombie.

well obviously, if he kills the people he once saved, he would be Satan, since according to biblical tall tales, Lucifer, as you may call him, was an angel at one point. So maybe he saved people? I don't know. Makes more sense than Zombie Jesus. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.254.47.121 (talk) 07:26, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

Or it could just be a science-fiction story about a man who time travels via a magnetic field, is turned to steel, is ignored and unwanted after saving humanity (which is only implied by the "for the future of mankind" and "kills the people he once saved" lines) and is left to stare off into space, frozen in place and unable to move. Infuriated by the neglect, the iron man suddenly begins to move once more, stomping about in his lead boots, killing anyone he comes across. They run as fast as they can, but they can't outrun the iron man. I guess you could extrapolate "cyborg" from the notion of being "turned to steel" but that's about it. Iron man is referred to as being "dead" because he never moves, just stands there, turned to metal and motionless. I'm pretty comfortable with taking this song literally. I can't even read the "Iron Man Is Jesus/Lucifer" posit without giggling. Atypicaloracle (talk) 16:07, 21 June 2010 (UTC)

Then you haven't read the Revelation (Revealing) of Jesus. The kings of the Earth will say "let the mountains fall on us and hide us from the Wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of his wrath has come." That Jesus is Lucifer is an appealing idea. Lucifer is the King of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar who made the golden image was called king of kings. Jesus is called king of kings and bright morning star, which is what Heylel, Lucifer, means. Jesus means to fulfill all the word of God, every jot and tiddle of the prophets, which would include grim chapters like Isaiah 24, where the world is burned and few people are left, and the world is removed out of it's place. He said the world only gets the sign of Jonah, who was a backslider on his way to Tarsus (Saul of Tarsus) and then see's that he's the problem, sacrifices himself by jumping into the ocean, is swallowed by the whale, and returns to Nineveh to warn the people, where they repent and the disaster is averted. Jesus was transfigured with Moses and Elijah, who comes before the day of the lord. "Elijah will reconcile the fathers with the sons LEST I strike the earth with a curse." Paul said "IF I come again, I will not spare." (Paul claimed to have a thorn of Satan in his flesh named Jesus Christ.) "First the son of man must be rejected of this generation." So it does relate to the song where nobody wants him, kills the people he once saved, and as the son of perdition is lost, it's like he's turned to stone. In Daniel's prophecies he returns as the "Rock" crushes Babylon, the feet of Iron and Clay. Only Lucifer was perfect until Iniquity was found within him. Jesus kept the law, but Paul the Pharisee used Jesus to abolish it and create the church age. The pharisees were making up their own tradition, such as the Talmud, and not keeping the Old Testament correctly, so Paul, a pharisee of pharisees, gives us Phariseeism for gentiles. "None of those who were called will enter the marriage supper. Oh so you knew I was a hard man, reaping where I didn't sow." At the very least Jesus condemns the people he once saved. -Stephen the Martyr (Acts 6-8) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.17.186.191 (talk) 18:04, 10 September 2015 (UTC)

Composition.
The entire section really sucks. It needs a serious overhaul. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 71.67.160.216 (talk) 04:43, 26 April 2007 (UTC).


 * What about the section needs to be improved? What would improve them? What is missing? Hyacinth (talk) 03:18, 3 July 2008 (UTC)

i tried to clean up the legacy section. shouldn't there be some mention of the music video?Dizzydark 04:14, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:Paranoid.jpg
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Possible link to Daft Punk?
The first line of "Iron Man", "I am the Iron Man", electronically distorted, sounds mighty similar to the main lyrics to Daft Punk's song "Brainwasher" ("I am the brainwasher"), with exactly the same distortion placed on it. Anyone else see the similarities? Mageslayer99 20:35, 27 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Haha yeah, I'd actually picked this as well. Worth a mention IMO. Geshpenst (talk) 07:55, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

I think it is generally accepted as a sample, but if anyone has the Brainwasher's album booklet it will list the sample origins. Frisbii (talk) 01:47, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Upcoming movie?
Maybe it should be mentioned somewhere that this song will be in the Iron Man movie coming up. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.110.109.165 (talk) 14:46, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

Satanic Riff?
Who says that the main riff is associated with Satanism? That seems more like an opinion. You probably need a source to back that up. Disturbed360 —Preceding comment was added at 02:19, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

As a Satanist myself, I really have to laugh at this comment - precisely how does a grouping of notes (not even lyrical content!) say anything at all about any philosophical or religious system? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.174.255.69 (talk) 13:33, 3 May 2008 (UTC)

I know absolutely nothing about musical notation or notes or anything, but know there is no Satanic messages in Iron Man. however, theoretically i imagine a song's riff could have a message, maybe in like morse code or something. Or in that EGBDC/FACE scale. I guess. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.220.115.175 (talk) 02:50, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Whoever put this would've been better off either typing "[Insert fanatical christian group here] has alleged etc." before this blatantly opinionated statement; or wouldn't have written it at all. Also, it has to be said (or asked, rather): how can vibrations of the air at measured frequency intervals possibly have any religious implications, without more obvious reference points such as lyrics? Or perhaps you should've mentioned that because of the vast difference in Black Sabbath's tonality compared to contemporary music and set against the backdrop of a still fairly conservative Britain in 1970, some regarded the music as "evil" or unorthodox in intent. But don't randomly claim Iron Man is satanic-for the most part, none of the members of Black Sabbath were particularly interested in religion at all. 91.125.68.140 (talk) 18:47, 5 January 2010 (UTC)

Grammy
Why did Iron Man win the Grammy 30 years after it was released? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.7.106.244 (talk) 02:07, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Simpsons
On the part about the Simpsonws, it says DD adlibs the riff. It is Nelson, not DD.=64.231.201.184 (talk) 16:08, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

the lyrics interpetation is subjective..
title —Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.173.117.236 (talk) 18:26, 7 October 2009 (UTC)

dubious
The opening line "I am Iron Man" is stated to be made by both a fan and a talk box. Which is true? Adam850 (talk) 20:55, 18 March 2013 (UTC)

November 2015 edits
Edits explained here for lack of sufficient space in edit summary.

1.Self-fulfilling prophecy link is fairly obvious, I would have thought; the plot element I linked it through is a textbook example of this plot device. 2.The "God is Dead?" award has no apparent relevance to the subject. 3.Replacing the repeated use of the word "this" as a standalone noun - Do I really need to explain this one? 4.The removal of the Nativity in Black piping also seems like an obvious one. Wikipedia has redirects for a reason. 5.Capitalizing proper nouns - Again, do I really need to explain this one? 6.The fact that another band recorded a song called "Iron Man" with actual relevance to the character of the same name, coincidentally around the same time as Black Sabbath's song, is not vital information, but it's worth a side mention. 7.The actors who portrayed the characters in School of Rock has no relevance to the subject. Indeed, that whole sentence is simply pop culture trivia, and on reconsidering, it should be removed entirely.--Martin IIIa (talk) 19:51, 10 November 2015 (UTC)

MID riff
I don't know why the riff is on MID. It can't be played on Wikimedia, nor in VLC! This appears to be very wrong.--MisterSanderson (talk) 02:32, 4 May 2016 (UTC)

IMPORTANT
Should I tag this article or something? This is Black Sabbath’s signature song; I don’t understand why it’s Wikipedia article is so darn short. KevinML (talk) 03:35, 19 February 2021 (UTC)

Seems a pretty subjective statement, unless you can find sources to support it. Surely "Black Sabbath" would be Black Sabbath's signature song, other than that, "Paranoid" is one I hear much more often than "Iron Man" at least it was before it was used by Marvel.2A02:C7F:FC4C:CF00:E16A:B72A:546B:A30A (talk) 21:06, 22 August 2021 (UTC)