Tony Iommi wanted Black Sabbath bandmate Geezer Butler to play on upcoming solo album

Tony Iommi was hoping his upcoming solo album, From the Dark, would feature a mini Black Sabbath reunion.

The guitarist tells Rolling Stone that he originally wanted Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler to play on the record.

"I wanted [Butler] to play on this album, but he couldn't do it," Iommi says. "He's doing his own album, I think. Or at the time, something happened there, so he couldn't come to England. I wanted to get it done and finally get it out, really."

Instead, Iommi recruited musician Becky Baldwin to play bass on From the Dark.

"Becky lives in Birmingham, and she's a really good player," Iommi says. "And she's certainly a fan of Geezer, and she plays in Geezer's style. And that's what I wanted. She's really good."

From the Dark does feature a guest spot from Queen's Brian May, who plays the solo on a song called "Death Wake."

"He’s a very, very close friend," Iommi says of May.

From the Dark is due out Oct. 23. Lead single "World Alone" is out now.

As for Sabbath, Iommi and Butler performed alongside fellow original band members Ozzy Osbourne and Bill Ward for the final time at the 2025 Back to the Beginning concert. Ozzy died just over two weeks later.