Ozzy Osbourne Says He Wasn’t Allowed to Have Fun With Black Sabbath
The final note has been played for Black Sabbath, though Ozzy Osbourne continues to tour as a solo artist. In a new chat with Rolling Stone, Osbourne says he's enjoying the freedom that comes with the solo shows, echoing a sentiment he discussed back in September when he told the Philadelphia Inquirer that he "didn't have a great time" on Sabbath's final run.
Osbourne elaborated on that idea, stating, "With Sabbath, all I am is a singer with a band. [My solo group] is a different thing. I've got a lot of freedom and I have fun with it."
He continued, "It's not allowed to have fucking fun with Sabbath. It's too serious." He recalled, "Tony [Iommi] was trying to have a go at me, saying, 'Don't fucking talk over my solos.' I go, 'Okay, are you sure? 'Cause most of the fucking song is solos. The intro to the song is fuckin' 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 fucking singer. I'm just a frontman who's trying to get the crowd going in front."
Osbourne had been enjoying a solo run of tour dates in late summer and early fall as part of the "No More Tours 2" tour, but the trek came to an early end when he was diagnosed with a triple thumb infection that required medical attention. He was forced to bow out of the final four dates of the tour, which have since been rescheduled for 2019.
Ozzy is currently off the road, but will return for an Ozzfest performance on New Year's Eve in Los Angeles. After that, he'll head to Europe to kick off a run of dates starting Jan. 30 in Dublin, Ireland. See all of his scheduled stops here.
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