Without Ozzy Osbourne, there would be no heavy metal.
It’s quite the statement, isn’t it? And usually when statements are as gargantuan as this, there are plenty of holes ready and waiting to be poked in it. However, when it comes to the correlation between Ozzy Osbourne and the history of everything we love and cherish about the incredible musical landscape we have all found solace and solitude in, it’s hard to dispute.
Because Ozzy didn’t just help kickstart all of this. He crafted it, he nurtured it, he upheld it, and he lived it, right up until the very end.
To really try and comprehend the weight of these words, you have to put yourself in the shoes of a music fan in 1970. Between the stratospheric rise and transformations undertaken by the likes of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones and the freewheeling experimentation of the hippie movement pushing popular culture into daring new places, you would feel like you had seen and heard it all by the break of the new decade. Then you spot a copy of ‘Black Sabbath’ by Black Sabbath at your local record shop; the murky horror-tinged cover art intriguing you as much as it sends a shiver up your spine. You take it home, place it upon your record player, and sit back, curiosity at its peak, wondering what exactly you have awakened. The crackle of the vinyl suddenly shifts to a guitar, making the sort of noise that you didn’t think it was capable of. A bludgeoning, cataclysmic, sludgy bellow of strings, the sound of Hell’s Gates creaking open, washing over you like a black cloud. It repeats again and again, each cycle sending you spiralling even deeper into the abyss, before it slows to a soft thud. You regain composure, try and make sense of what you have just unleashed, but then a voice emerges from the darkness.
“What is this that stands before me…”
The birth of heavy metal, conjured by four hippies from Aston, Birmingham, brought together thanks to a classified ad reading “OZZY ZIG NEEDS GIG” posted in the window of Ringway Music by one John Michael Osbourne in 1968, is personified by this experience. A shared realisation that there was so much more left to explore in the possibilities of musical creation, that there were still boundaries left to be shattered, and that culture is there to be shaped by those daring enough to take a chance.
The fact that, after 55 years, this bold experiment remains the blueprint for so many different strands of forward-thinking, ferocious, and fantastical sounds is a testament to the young man who refused to accept that this was all there was. Who dared to do something different.
And though those first six Black Sabbath albums, featuring their original line-up – Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward – released over a mind-boggling eight-year span, all marched to the same chaotic brash beat, Ozzy showed that he was never content with being defined by one thing. Where ‘Master Of Reality’ and ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath’ delved into the most hedonistic and harsh waters, ‘Never Say Die’ and ‘Technical Ecstasy’ bravely prodded and probed at how jazz fusion and prog rock would fit into this wild universe that he had helped craft. Even when you compare the darkness that was unleashed on February 13th with ‘Black Sabbath’ to the now iconic grooves that make up ‘Paranoid’ that dropped just eight months later on October 18th, it is evident how far and wide he wished to leave his mark. Such a desire to be unclassifiable, such an intent to never stand still, even when it proved detrimental, is a characteristic that followed Ozzy through every chapter of his life, and one that has proven inspiration for any band looking to scratch whatever itch their heart is beating towards.
And it was in his unbridled support of those bands, those groups of young people inspired by what he had helped set in motion and wanting to put their own stamp on it, that came to define much of his time during the years he was out there doing it on his own. He took Def Leppard out on the ‘Blizzard Of Ozz’ tour in 1981, Mötley Crüe on the ‘Bark At The Moon’ tour in 1984 and Metallica on the ‘Ultimate Sin’ tour in 1986, showcasing his want to uplift those making their way through the ranks, with each chalking up the experience as vital to not just their growth but understanding of how to function as part of this counterculture. All different in sound and intent, but all united by the same want and need to push beyond.
Fast-forward to 1999, and he was the one who gave future festival headliners their first taste of the big time, with Slipknot making a mayhem-tinged name for themselves on the second stage at Ozzfest in May and a young System Of A Down delivering their brand of vital chaos at Black Sabbath’s “last” show in Birmingham in December. Two bands born out of leftfield, once again delivering sounds that nobody had heard before, but still receiving plaudits from the man who kicked it all off. To have such an understanding of the community you helped forge and to want to continue seeing it thrive, even after almost 30 years into the expedition, is the mark of a true devotee.
The same devotion can be traced to the musicians that he surrounded himself with, especially when it came to the guitar. From the eternal Randy Rhoads, responsible for bringing the insatiable fury of ‘Crazy Train’ and ‘Mr Crowley’ and the rousing atmospheres of ‘You Can’t Kill Rock And Roll’ and ‘Believer’ to life in 1980 and 1981 respectively, to Zakk Wylde pushing the ante even further on Ozzy’s solo efforts between 1988 and 2022, how he yearned to have the best of the best by his side whilst expanding his empire, allowing them the freedom to do whatever felt right, only further cemented just how much this meant to him.
And it’s even in the last few years, his unwavering support for those who wished to fly the flag in their own way was still apparent. He worked with Post Malone on both the punk-tinged ‘It’s A Raid’ on his 2020 solo record ‘Ordinary Man’ and the atmospherically beautiful ‘Take What You Want’ alongside Travis Scott on Austin’s dark 2019 effort ‘Hollywood’s Bleeding’. He even took YUNGBLUD under his wing, appearing alongside his wife Sharon in the video for ‘The Funeral’ whilst also gifting him his iconic cross from around his neck, a gesture that says more than words ever could. It’s a sentiment that Dom repaid in abundance at the ‘Back To The Beginning’ show, delivering a cover of ‘Changes’ that feels like it will be talked about for many years to come.
And that only scratches the surface in terms of the breadth of bands and artists who came together to celebrate everything Ozzy had given them at the ‘Back To The Beginning’ show. From Halestorm to Lamb Of God, Gojira to Guns N’ Roses, Sleep Token to Limp Bizkit, they all played their own part in an occasion that demonstrated exactly how far the influence and impact of Ozzy plunging into the unknown has stretched. That songs as vastly different as ‘Love Bites (So Do I)’ and ‘Laid To Rest’, ‘Ocean Planet’ and ‘Paradise City’, ‘The Summoning’ and ‘Rollin” are all intrinsically connected because of this one person. It boggles the mind as much as it warms the heart.
There’s a video, if you so wish to seek it out, of the day that Ozzy met his idol, Sir Paul McCartney, back in 2001. As clear as it is that Paul is delighted to have the chance to spend time with the Prince of Darkness, it’s even more apparent just how nervous Ozzy is to be standing before a Beatle. “It’s great to meet you, man, it’s been a lifetime ambition of mine,” Ozzy manages to utter after sharing an emotional embrace with Paul, and as the reality of the occasion washes over him, the years melt away before your eyes. In that moment, Ozzy is the teenager he was in 1968 all over again, having found a home, an escape, and a purpose in music, trying his best to sum up everything he has wanted to say to his inspiration. It’s a moment that many of us will relate to, as many more have had the experience of being lucky enough to come into contact with Ozzy at some point over the years and share similar sentiments. In the same way that he looked to Paul, John, George and Ringo, thousands of bands have looked to him, and will continue to look to him. But within all of that, the truth is that Ozzy never stopped being that fan either. He never stopped being that lover of music, that kid from inner Birmingham with a longing to be a part of something. Because of how much he genuinely cared. Of how, from the beginning right to the very end, this was all fuelled by love.
And in many ways, that is a love that we all share. No matter what it was that introduced us to this music, this way of living, this refusal to settle for the ordinary. No matter if we have now found ourselves in grindcore or power metal, hardcore or nu-metal, deathcore or thrash, the strands all lead back to that realisation of there being something different out there for us. That others have felt the same pining to search out for something harder, faster and darker for many a decade now. That is what makes heavy metal still so fantastical, so boundless, so exhilarating all these years later. For all of us, no matter when we stumbled across this magical community, Ozzy has always been at the root. No matter where our lives have taken us since, a part of Ozzy has always been there to accompany us. And it is why, in now having to say goodbye to one of the main reasons that we are who we are, we feel closer to him than ever. Because we are all cut from the same cloth. Without Ozzy Osbourne, who knows what we would have had in the place of heavy metal. Whether the depths that we have had the pleasure of diving into would even have been made available. To imagine such a reality is even more reason to allow the ripples of what he helped set in motion over half a century to continue inspiring us.
Because Ozzy never slowed down, so why should we?