Tony Iommi said Black Sabbath had to dismiss singer Glenn Hughes because his heavy cocaine use was disrupting the band. The episode came during a troubled period for Sabbath, after Ozzy Osbourne’s 1979 departure and as Iommi was trying to keep the group going while considering a solo record.

Hughes was recruited to sing on the project that became 1986’s *Seventh Star*, released as “Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi” at Warner Bros’ insistence. Iommi recalled that he had stopped using cocaine regularly, though he admitted occasional use; Hughes’s drinking and drug problems escalated, and a fight with production manager John Downing led to his removal from the tour after six shows. Sabbath later reunited with Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler for *13* in 2013.