Jake Chessum of Rolling Stone has written a feature story on Ozzy Osbourne. Portions of the column appear below.
…For the past 50 years, Ozzy Osbourne has been heavy rock’s MVP. He gave metal a sense of menace during his first 10-year tour of duty with Black Sabbath, approximating the sound of a nervous breakdown on songs like Paranoid and Iron Man. Then as a solo artist, he redefined the genre in the Eighties, picking up the pace of his songs and injecting them with baroque noir. He introduced the world to a pantheon of guitar heroes, including Randy Rhoads, Jake E. Lee and his longtime foil, the blond-maned dynamo Zakk Wylde. He became a concert draw and provided crucial stages for everyone from Metallica to Korn in their infancies. In the mid-Nineties, he concocted Ozzfest, hard rock’s answer to Lollapalooza.
And he’s reaped the rewards. All but two of his studio albums — which contain anthems like Crazy Train, Flying High Again and Shot in the Dark — have been certified gold or platinum, and he’s won a Grammy for I Don’t Want to Change the World. When Rolling Stone picked the 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time in 2017, the list contained more recordings by Ozzy than any other artist. And don’t forget, he was able to translate his success into reality-TV megastardom on The Osbournes.
“I never thought I’d make it this far,” he says. “Fifty years is a lot. I don’t understand why I’m alive still after the hell-raising days. I guess whoever the man is upstairs, if there even is one, wants me to stick around.”
[When Ozzy first launched a solo career after being fired from his original band Black Sabbath] his [music started to] climb the charts. Meanwhile, Black Sabbath carried on with former Rainbow frontman Ronnie James Dio as their lead vocalist, and Ozzy embraced the competitive spirit. “I started a war with them and they just got all f–king pissed off,” he recalls. “I admired Ronnie Dio at the end of the day. He had a great voice and was a good singer. They should have had a go at me, but they all just got pissed off. It was more like a divorce, really.” Within a few years, he was seriously outpacing his former bandmates in sales…
…Although he seemed to enjoy Black Sabbath’s farewell tour when it was happening, Ozzy says now it wasn’t the case. “With Sabbath, all I am is a singer with a band,” he says on his day off. “This is a different thing. I’ve got a lot of freedom and I have fun with it.”
“[I’m} not allowed to have f–king fun with Sabbath,” he continues. “It’s too serious. Tony [Iommi] was trying to have a go at me, saying, ‘Don’t fucking talk over my solos.’ I go, ‘OK, are you sure? ‘Cause most of the f–king song is solos. The intro to the song is f–kin’ five minutes and then I sing for about two seconds and then it’s another one.’ With my own thing, I’m looking to have fun, and that’s what music’s about for me. I’m not a serious f–king singer. I’m just a frontman who’s trying to get the crowd going in front…”
…”I’d like to do another album with Zakk if I could.” Ozzy currently has a handful of song ideas that he’s just sitting on for the right time. “There’s one called Mr. Armageddon, which is gonna be a good song,” he says. And what will it be about? “What do you think? It’s not about Christmas. It’s a nice, sweet little song about a man called Mr. Armageddon” Ozzy laughs…
…“I had no idea when we did our first Black Sabbath album, 50 years up the road, I’d be doing all these shows in front of 20,000 people…,” he [says]. “I thought, ‘This will be good for a couple of albums and I’ll get a few chicks along the way.’ I left Sabbath and I did a great thing on my own. I met Randy Rhoads. He was a phenomenal guy. My life has just been unbelievable. You couldn’t write my story; you couldn’t invent me.”
Read the entire article at Rolling Stone.
source: rollingstone.com
30 Responses
Seems like he had some fun with a hairdresser…..
Wig, you beat me to it….I was gonna say the same thing… :o)
LOL!!!
I love Ozzy! The guy has had more than nine lives, with all of the drugs and drinking he has done over the years. His work with the mighty Black Sabbath, as well as his solo stuff, is a testament to the fact that he has a unique voice that is perfect for this type of music. As far as a pure singer, RJD was head and shoulders ahead of Ozzy. To me, Black Sabbath was a different band when Ozzy was fired. You can’t really compare “Heaven and Hell” or “Mob Rules” to any of the Sabbath records Ozzy sang on. I’m not sure Ozzy would have been near as successful as a solo artist had he not found Randy Rhoads. He has had a knack of finding talented guitar players to partner with. Having saw his last tour with Black Sabbath, I agree with his decision to stop touring after this tour. His talent as a live artist wasn’t his singing, but his ability to energize a crowd. But age has started to catch up with him, as he just can’t move as well as he used to. I hope he does another record with Zack, and I’m sure he will do occasional shows, both solo shows and even maybe some shows with Black Sabbath.
Keith,
Please forgive me, but I had to change your spelling of Randy’s last name from “Rhodes” to “Rhoads.” He’s my favorite, so it had to be done.
Cheers,
D 🙂
Keith, you are “spot on” noting Ozzy’s ability to energize a crowd. The guy can’t sing, he can’t play an instrument (save for the harmonica), and the guy can’t write songs. Not the best skills to be lacking for a successful artist. But Ozzy has great management. Sharon may be a b****, but she sure knew her business when it came to managing Ozzy’s career and business affairs.
Dana aka Richard Christi
Can you please explain that comment to me? I cannot tell if that was meant as an insult or a compliment?
All I know of Cristi is, he was a rock drummer (for Iced Earth?) worked for Stern at one time and has red hair. So based upon that limited information, the similarities are endless-LOL!
Take it as a compliment, Dana. Christy is an awesome drummer, just like you’re awesome for what you do on this Site.
BLUSHING!
D 🙂
Blizzard of Oz or Sabbath. Both great and with equally phenomenal guitarists. Funny to hear Ozzy regress about his last run with Sabb. Wished I ‘d had the chance to have seen Ozzy & Randy, Rudy & Tommy. God! That would’ve been awesome to see that castle and feel the energy of those shows. Ozzy will live the longest of the Sabbath guys, just like Ringo will be the last.
Tasker,
Rattle got to see Ozzy live with Randy, he is so lucky to have gotten that opportunity.
D 🙂
You are correct, Dana, as women always are! :o) I did see Ozzy and Randy perform together, with that awesome castle stage setup, on the Diary tour. And I saw the castle set up again with Brad Gillis on guitar after Randy’s untimely passing. And I still got the tour book with pictures of Randy and the rest of that great band lineup.
Rattle,
Please share your impressions of seeing Rhoads live? How did playing translate? Did he appear as petite in person as he looks in pictures?
It seems some really great players come in small packages, I know Nuno Bettencourt is quite small in stature as well.
D 🙂