Following the passing of the band’s frontman Ozzy Osbourne, Stephen Knowles is “heartbroken” and officially owns the largest collection of Black Sabbath memorabilia in the world.
An Ozzy Osbourne superfan – who owns the world’s biggest collection of Black Sabbath memorabilia – has been left “heartbroken” by the rock legend’s death.
Stephen Knowles, 59, said he “can’t imagine life” without the singer, who died “surrounded by love” on Tuesday after a battle with Parkinson’s disease. However, the music lover, who roadied for Black Sabbath in the 1990s, praised the farewell gig – earlier this month at Ozzy’s beloved Aston Villa Football Club in Birmingham – a performance Stephen called the “perfect ending”.
We all knew it was going to happen, but it has happened sooner rather than later, Stephen said yesterday from his home in nearby Dudley, West Midlands. “I’m heartbroken, to be honest, he’s been a part of my life since I was ten. At least we had a chance to bid goodbye to Villa Park. Although it was obvious he wasn’t well, he still managed to do it.
To be honest, it still hasn’t sunk in. I can’t imagine life without him because he’s been a part of my life for so long. In the 1990s, I campaigned for him. It’s a lot of work, not glamorous.
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Stephen has accumulated a staggering £250, 000 worth of memorabilia inside his home over the past five decades. The superfan paid £1,500 to attend Villa Park’s Prince of Darkness’ upcoming concert on July 5.
Stephen, a former heating engineer, continued: “I did get to know all of them, the other three guys must be gutted… I’ve hung out with Ozzy a few times. The last time I saw him was in a hospital in Malibu, he’d just got sepsis.
What the hell are you doing here, he said when I went over and saw him. ‘. I last saw him at that point. That man has a lot of good memories and memories for me. Sabbath played on his alleged retirement tour the first time I traveled to America in 1992.
We had to chat up some time backstage with him. Over the years, Sharon has been very supportive of me. She made sure I was present if Sabbath was doing something. At the end of the day, they were fantastic. He has always given to charities, but he has never addressed it. The Villa Park performance reportedly became the biggest charity performance ever.
Stephen thinks Ozzy must have known that his homecoming concert at Villa Park was about to end. He continued, “They were really top secret, protecting Ozzy, and the recent rehearsals were.
He “must have known,” he utterly masterminded this. It’s the ideal conclusion because he had the opportunity to say goodbye. Everyone was still ecstatic over that performance. It has helped to lessen the strain for everyone.
I was informed about the farewell gig at the end of last year because I was a member of the band. Last year, I had my hotel tickets sorted, so I wasn’t missing that. No one touched him on his day, when he was in good health. You couldn’t help but enjoy yourself when he was with you.
After watching Sabbath at Stafford’s Bingley Hall for just £1.50 in 1977, Stephen’s collection first came with a t-shirt from Birmingham’s Bull Ring. Since then, it has expanded to include rare vinyls, t-shirts, ticket stubs, stage passes, posters, old cassette tapes, and tour programs. Despite recent planning to reduce it, he now predicts that his collection will continue to grow.
Source: Mirror
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