A National Acrobat

"A National Acrobat"
Song by Black Sabbath from the album Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Released	December 1, 1973 (UK) January 1974 (US)
Recorded	1973
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	6:16
Label	Castle Records (UK) Warner Bros. Records (US)
Writer	Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward
Producer	Black Sabbath
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath track listing
"Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1) "A National Acrobat" (2) "Fluff" (3)

"A National Acrobat" is the second song from Black Sabbath's fifth album, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. It features a distinctive mid-tempo harmonized opening riff, a psychedelic breakdown riff, and a classic Tony Iommi guitar solo. The lyrics relate to decidedly unusual subject matter, being the miracle of conception ("the universal secret of all time") and how incredibly lucky one sperm is to fertilize the ovum in comparison to the millions that didn't ("The deadly darkness that belies the fate of those who never ran").^{[citation needed]}

The song was covered by Metallica on their covers album Garage Inc. It is part of a medley of "Sabbra Cadabra" and "A National Acrobat", which is only listed as "Sabbra Cadabra". The song was also covered in Medieval style by the Estonian band Rondellus, on their tribute album Sabbatum, for voice, fiddle and frame drum. In their version the lyrics are translated into Latin, and the song has been retitled "Funambulus Domesticus" (literally, "Domestic Ropewalker"). The song was also covered by Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows a gothic medieval German band on the limited compilation album "Jekura-Deep the Eternal Forest" and the song has been retitled "Tabor C'alan O'itana" which is the original title -A National Acrobat- inversed.

Comedian Jim Norton frequently uses the song as his walk-on music at live shows and during his first HBO special.