Black Sabbath opened for Mountain on its first US tour in 1970. The pairing placed the emerging Birmingham band on American bills with an established hard-rock act as Paranoid began attracting attention.
Black Sabbath’s first US visit followed the release of its debut album and the growing impact of “Paranoid.” The band’s first American concert is generally identified as a performance at Glassboro State College in New Jersey on October 30, 1970. From there, the group played a low-budget run of US dates before becoming a major arena attraction.
Mountain, led by guitarist Leslie West, bassist and vocalist Felix Pappalardi, and drummer Corky Laing, was already known for heavy, blues-rooted rock. The support slot helped introduce Black Sabbath’s darker, denser sound to American audiences. A common mix-up comes from later tours, when Sabbath shared bills with acts such as Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, and Grand Funk Railroad.