Latest News: Ozzy Osbourne

Outliving the Godfather of Heavy Metal

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I once had an intense late-night discussion with friends concerning who’d survive the impending zombie apocalypse (hiya, 2012!): Keith Richards, Ozzy Osbourne, Willie Nelson, or Snoop Dogg. Keith Richards was quickly nixed because he’s practically undead as is. “Well, so is Ozzy!” The Stones contender contested. “Not true! He’s the Prince of Darkness -- that’s different!” I asserted. And it went on like this for hours -- seriously -- ending in a stalemate between Snoop and Ozzy (Willie fell asleep). But I was right. Ozzy would outlive them all, napping through the absolute destruction and waking afterwards with a befuddled look on his face, then: “Sharon!” Ozzy’s career was by no means over when he received a career resurgence thanks to the crazy train success of The Osbournes. But it cast the once-feared, controversy-baiting legend in a new light: as the sitcom dad. He joined the ranks of postmodern papas alongside greats Al Bundy and Homer Simpson. Neither of the aforementioned had a First Act quite like the Ozzman, however. Or, should I say, First and Second Act? Through bandmates’ deaths, public outrage, band and record label woes, and lots and lots of illicit substances, Ozzy still stands (or stoops) as the “Godfather of Heavy Metal.” That inimitable voice and proclivity to shock make Ozzy the ultimate showman of any century; his bio reads like a case study for Behind the Music. After Ozzy was kicked out of Black Sabbath for excessive drug use, he embarked on a solo career that few could have predicted would reach such heights. Behind all the hoopla, though, Ozzy has an ear for melody unmatched by his metal peers. In November it was announced at the Whiskey a Go Go that Ozzy would reunite with the original Black Sabbath lineup for a world tour and new album, which would be produced by Rick Rubin. Let’s hope old foes Tony Iommi and Ozzy have buried the hatchet – it’s time for them to show the younger generation how to properly rawk. And this post would be remiss without one quick Ozzy anecdote: Once freed from his contract with Jet Records after the death of best friend and guitarist Randy Rhoads in a freak plane accident, he showed up drunk to an Epic Records meeting with two doves, one of which he freed and the other of which he killed in the same manner as the infamous bat incident; Osbourne was signed on the spot.

Give that a try at your next job interview, will you? ALL ABOARD!!!

Blizzard of Strings: VSQ Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne

Available now at iTunes

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Available Now! Blizzard of Strings: VSQ Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne

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Available now at iTunes

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Ozzy Osbourne Named Record Store Day Ambassador

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Beloved Black Sabbath front man and solo artist Ozzy Osbourne has been named the Record Store Day Ambassador for 2011. Following Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme in the position, Osbourne told fans to attend the local festivities in their towns across the world in a video posted on the Record Store Day website.

The crew that started this event seemed pretty surprised they scored such a huge icon. Says Record Store Day co-founder Michael Kurtz,  "The Record Store Day Ambassador's main purpose is to claim the mantle of greatness that conveys the majesty of the amazing array of releases made on the world's only holiday devoted to music. We were thrilled when the inaugural position was held in 2009 by the Eagles of Death Metal front man Jesse "Boots Electric" Hughes, and was then followed in 2010 by QOTSA/Them Crooked Vultures' Joshua Homme. We really didn't know who could top this trajectory of camp and circumstance and, needless to say, we were gobsmacked when Ozzy stepped up to the plate."

Ozzy fans will have the first chance to purchase a special 7" vinyl single of Diary of a Madman's "Flying High Again" (with a live version of "I Don't Know" as the B side), along with full-length vinyl versions of the newly expanded 30th anniversary editions of his Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman albums.

For more information on exclusive Record Store Day events, products and participants, visit www.recordstoreday.com Be sure to check out: The String Quartet Tribute to Black Sabbath Available at iTunes and Amazon

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Original Black Sabbath Lineup In Reunion Talks

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The original lineup of Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward, are in talks about reuniting in the coming year for shows, and a possible new album. Osbourne told ABC News Radio that he worries about the possibility of reuniting because "the problem that we have is that if we do an album and it's anything less than where we left off, it's gonna be a big anticlimax." Bassist, Butler, told AOL’s Noisecreep that while each member is interested, Ozzy’s current solo tour is taking up most of the singer’s time this year.
“It's not going to happen [this] year. Ozzy's on tour with his own band for the next year or whatever. I'm sure Ozzy will say 'yes' and 'no' every week for the next year while he's on tour. It's one thing to want to do something like that just before you go out to tour a record. You say, 'Oh yeah, I'm gonna tour for the next five years.' And then six weeks into it, you can't wait to get home. So we'll just see how he feels when he finishes his Ozzy Osbourne tour."
This mirrors Ozzy’s remarks to The Pulse Of Radio late last year, when he noted,
"You know what? I don't want to say yes, and I don't want to say no, because I've put my foot in my mouth so many times. If it's meant to happen, it will happen."
The original lineup of Ozzy, Iommi, Butler, and drummer Ward has not toured together since the summer of 2005, and last convened for their induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in early 2006. Sabbath did try to record a new album 12 years ago, their first since 1978, but abandoned the attempt after just a couple of songs. Ozzy also filed a lawsuit against Iommi in May 2009, claiming that Iommi illegally took sole ownership of the band's name in a filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The legal troubles have since been resolved, and further court dates were discontinued.

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Slash To Release Solo Album in April

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U.K. metal magazine Metal Hammer posted a video that features ex-Guns and Roses legend Slash talking about his new solo album that is scheduled to appear sometime in April in the U.S. The album features a ton of guests, including, Dave Grohl, Iggy Pop, Kid Rock, Lemmy Kilmister, Adam Levine of MAROON 5, Ian Astbury, Fergie Duff McKagan, M. Shadows of AVENGED SEVENFOLD, Chris Cornell, Myles Kennedy, Rocco DeLuca, Ozzy Osbourne, and Andrew Stockdale of WOLFMOTHER. Eric Valentine, who’s done work for the All American Rejects and Queens of the Stone Age, produced the album. Filling out the band’s rhythm section were bassist Chris Chaney (JANE'S ADDICTION) and drummer Josh Freese (NINE INCH NAILS). Slash says in the video, “"The idea was really simple in the beginning. These are all artists I wanted to work with — that I thought it would be amazing to do something creative and collaborative. And I was so impressed with what everyone brought to the table. They were all so committed to doing a good job. And we had a lot of fun making these songs."

The track listing (guest vocalists in parenthesis):

01. Ghost (Ian Astbury, feat. Izzy Stradlin) (3:34) 02. Crucify The Dead (Ozzy Osbourne) (4:04) 03. Beautiful Dangerous (Fergie) (4:35) 04. Promise (Chris Cornell) (4:41) 05. By The Sword (Andrew Stockdale) (4:50) 06. Gotten (Adam Levine) (5:05) 07. Doctor Alibi (Lemmy) (3:07) 08. Watch This Dave (Dave Grohl, Duff McKagan) (3:46) 09. I Hold On (Kid Rock) (4:10) 10. Nothing To Say (M. Shadows) (5:27) 11. Starlight (Myles Kennedy) (5:35) 12. Saint Is A Sinner Too (Rocco De Luca) (3:28) 13. We're All Gonna Die (Iggy Pop) (4:30) Bonus tracks: 14. Baby Can't Drive (Alice Cooper, Nicole Scherzinger) 15. Paradise City (Fergie, Cypress Hill)

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