Ozzy Osbourne, a rock legend, undoubtedly had a success story from his Birmingham roots to becoming a superstar with his band Black Sabbath, whose album put them on the map.
The Black Sabbath story started when four boys from Birmingham got together to form a band in 1968, releasing a self-titled debut album in 1970.
But it was their second album, Paranoid, released in September that year, that really put them on the map – the title track became their most famous anthem and is heralded as one of the greatest heavy metal songs of all time.
By 1976, Black Sabbath were international stars with seven albums and hundreds of sold-out gigs under their belts. And these shots showing the band gleefully posing with gold discs (for record sales of more than 500,000) were starting to become a regular feature for the foursome.
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Ozzy recalled: “We started off as four guys from Aston who had a dream, and it became true beyond our wildest dreams.
“And with the success came all the trappings, and we tried them all.” The women, the women, and the drugs. Our lives were radically altered.
Tony Iommi, the lead guitarist, claimed that their success was due to the early years’ harsh opinions of the critics.
He said, “We firmly believed in what we did, and that is how life has always been for us.” We had to cross many obstacles, but we kept going. You can’t just disintegrate as a result of what others say. You must have faith in your actions. We did, in fact,
Bassist and lyricist Terry ‘Geezer’ Butler recalled: “The early years were a whirlwind for us. In the 70s you were lucky to have five or six albums out and lots of bands disappeared before that. But we built up a strong following around the world.”
We were a pretty tough band then, according to drummer Bill Ward. We had completed numerous tours, traveled extensively, and had millions of fans in our backs. There was a lot to like about us.
However, Ozzy’s erratic behaviour due to alcohol and drugs led to the band firing him in 1979.
However, he bounced back, becoming well-known for his solo albums Bark at the Moon, Diary of a Madman, and Blizzard Of Ozz, and having performed on sold-out tours. And he made 1982 headlines worldwide when he bit a live bat while performing on stage.
Ozzfest, a US and European music festival co-founded by wife Sharon to promote new metal bands, was a huge success. It ran from 1996 to 2018.
According to reports, Sabbath had sold more than 75,000 albums during their career by 2024. The Paranoid album has currently sold 12 million copies, and the single Paranoid reportedly surpassed one billion streams on Spotify’s “Billions Club.”
* The article is extracted from the new Black Sabbath – End Of An Era magazine, which is available to buy now.
Source: Mirror
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