Ozzy Osbourne is an iconic British rock musician. He stands at the origins of the Black Sabbath collective. To date, the group is considered the founder of such musical styles as hard rock and heavy metal.
Music critics have called Ozzy the "father" of heavy metal. He is inducted into the British Rock Hall of Fame. Many of Osbourne's compositions are the clearest example of hard rock classics.
Ozzy Osbourne said:
“Everyone expects me to write an autobiographical book. I assure you that it will be a very thin little book: “Ozzy Osbourne was born on December 3rd in Birmingham. Still alive, still singing.” I look back at my life and understand that there is nothing to remember, only rock ... ".
Ozzy Osbourne was modest. The conquest of fans was accompanied by ups and downs. Therefore, it will be useful to find out how little Ozzy started to become a cult rock musician.
Childhood and youth of John Michael Osborne
John Michael Osborne was born in Birmingham. The head of the family, John Thomas Osborne, worked as a tool maker for the General Electric Company. My father worked mostly at night. Lillian's mother was busy during the day in the same factory.
The Osborne family was large and poor. Michael had three sisters and two brothers. Little Osborne was not very comfortable at home. My father often drank alcohol, so there were scandals between him and his mother.
To improve the atmosphere, the kids played Presley and Berry tracks and had an impromptu home concert. By the way, Ozzy's first scene was the house. In front of the household, the boy performed the song Living Doll by Cliff Richard. According to Ozzy Osbourne, after that he had a childhood dream - to create his own band.
School years of Ozzy Osbourne
The boy did poorly at school. The fact is that Osborne suffered from dyslexia. In an interview, he said that at school he was considered a silly person because of slurred speech.
The only discipline that Osborne succumbed to was metalworking. The skills were inherited from his father. During his school years, the young man earned his first nickname "Ozzy".
Ozzy Osbourne didn't get his high school education. Since the family needed money, the young man had to get a job at the age of 15. Ozzy tried himself as a plumber, stacker and slaughterer, but did not stay anywhere for long.
Ozzy's Legal Trouble
In 1963, a young man tried to steal. He stole a TV for the first time and fell under the weight of the equipment to the ground. The second time, Ozzy tried to steal clothes, but in the dark he took things for the newborn. When he tried to sell them at a local pub, he was arrested.
Dad refused to pay a fine for his thief son. The head of the family refused to contribute the amount for educational purposes. Ozzy went to jail for 60 days. After serving time, he learned a good lesson for himself. The young man did not like being in prison. In later life, he tried not to go beyond the current legislation.
The creative path of Ozzy Osbourne
After his release, Ozzy Osbourne decided to fulfill his dream. He became part of the young Music Machine collective. The rocker played several concerts with the musicians.
Soon Ozzy founded his own band. We are talking about the cult group Black Sabbath. The collection "Paranoid" conquered the charts of Europe and the United States of America. The album brought the band worldwide fame.
Blizzard of Ozz's debut album was released in 1980. She doubled the popularity of the young team. From that moment began a new round in the creative biography of Ozzy Osbourne.
A special place in the history of rock music is occupied by the musical composition Crazy Train, which was included in the debut album. Interestingly, the track did not occupy a leading position in the music charts. However, according to fans and music critics, Crazy Train still remains the hallmark of Ozzy Osbourne.
In the late 1980s, Ozzy and his team presented the brilliant rock ballad Close My Eyes Forever. Osbourne performed the ballad in a duet with singer Lita Ford. The musical composition hit the top ten of the year in the United States of America and appeared in all world charts. This is one of the best ballads of our time.
Extravagant antics of Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne became famous for his extraordinary antics. At the stage of preparation for the concert, the musician brought two snow-white doves to the dressing room. As planned by the singer, he wanted to release them after the performance of the song. But it turned out that Ozzy released one dove into the sky, and bit off the head of the second.
At solo concerts, Ozzy threw pieces of meat and offal into the crowd during performances. One day Osborne decided to do a "pigeon trick". But this time, instead of a dove, he had a bat in his hands. Ozzy tried to bite off the animal's head, but the mouse turned out to be smart and inflicted damage on the man. The singer was hospitalized right from the stage.
Despite his age, Ozzy Osbourne remains completely dedicated to his work even in old age. On August 21, 2017, in Illinois, the artist organized the Moonstock rock music festival. At the end of the event, Osbourne performed Bark at the Moon for the audience.
Solo career of Ozzy Osbourne
The debut compilation Blizzard Of Ozz (1980) was released with guitarist Randy Rhoads, bassist Bob Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake. Osbourne's first solo album is the epitome of drive and hardness in rock and roll.
In 1981, the singer's discography was replenished with the second solo album Diary of a Madman. The tracks included in the collection were stylistically even more expressive, hard and driving. Ozzy Osbourne dedicated this work to the ideologue of Satanism Aleister Crowley.
In support of the second disc, the musician went on tour. During concerts, Ozzy threw raw meat at fans. The "fans" of the musician accepted the challenge of their idol. They brought dead animals to concerts with Ozzy, throwing them on the stage of their idol.
On a tour of the United States in 1982, Randy began work on a live compilation. Rhoads and Osbourne have always written tracks together. However, in March 1982, misfortune happened - Randy died in a terrible car accident. At first, Ozzy did not want to record an album without a guitarist, as he considered it unaesthetic. But then he hired guitarist Brad Gillies to replace Randy.
In 1983, the discography of the British rock musician was replenished with the third studio album Bark at the Moon. This record has a sad history. Under the influence of the title song, an admirer of Osbourne's work killed a woman and her two children. The musician's lawyers had to work hard to protect the reputation of the British rock musician.
The fourth studio album, The Ultimate Sin, Ozzy presented to the public only in 1986. The album peaked at number 200 on the Billboard 6 and went double platinum.
In 1988, Osbourne's discography was replenished with the fifth studio compilation No Rest for the Wicked. The new collection was on the 13th position in the US chart. In addition, the album received two platinum awards.
Tribute: Randy Rhoads Memorial Album
Then came the album Tribute (1987), which the musician dedicated to the tragically deceased colleague Randy Rhoads.
Several tracks were published in this album, as well as the song Suicide Solution, which is connected with a tragic story.
The fact is that under the track Suicide, an underage guy passed away. The young man committed suicide. The British singer had to repeatedly visit the courtroom to plead not guilty.
There were rumors in the circle of fans that Ozzy Osbourne's songs act on the human subconscious. The musician asked fans not to look for something in his tracks that is not really there.
Then the musician visited the popular Moscow Music Peace Festival. The purpose of this event was not only to listen to the legendary musical compositions. The organizers of the festival sent all the collected funds to the Fund for the Fight against Drug Addiction.
Many shocking moments awaited the guests of the festival. For example, Tommy Lee (drummer of the rock band Mötley Crüe) showed his “ass” to the audience, and Ozzy poured water from a bucket on everyone present.
Ozzy Osbourne in the early 1990s
In the early 1990s, the singer presented his sixth studio album. The record was called No More Tears. The compilation included the track Mama, I'm Coming Home.
Ozzy Osbourne dedicated this song to his love. The song peaked at #2 on the US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The tour in support of the album was called No More Tours. Osbourne was determined to end his touring activities.
The creative activity of Ozzy Osbourne was noted at the highest level. In 1994, he received a Grammy Award for a live version of I Don't Want to Change the World. A year later, the singer's discography was replenished with the seventh album Ozzmosis.
Music critics refer to the seventh studio album as one of the best collections of the musician. The album includes the musical composition My Little Man (featuring Steve Wyem), a classic that will never be lost.
Founding of the Ozzfest rock festival
In the mid-1990s, the musician and his wife founded the rock festival Ozzfest. Thanks to Osborne and his wife, every year heavy music fans could enjoy the bands playing. They played in the genres of hard rock, heavy metal and alternative metal. In the early 2000s, the participants of the festival were: Iron Maiden, Slipknot and Marilyn Manson.
In 2002, MTV launched the reality show The Osbournes. The name of the project speaks for itself. Millions of fans around the planet could watch the real life of Ozzy Osbourne and his family. The show has become one of the most viewed programs. His last episode came out in 2005. The show was revived on FOX in 2009 and on VH2014 in 1.
In 2003, the musician performed with his daughter Kelly a cover version of a track from Vol. 4 changes. The musical composition became the leader of the British chart for the first time in Ozzy's career.
After this event, Ozzy Osbourne got into the Guinness Book of Records. He is the first musician who had the largest interval between appearances in the charts - in 1970, the 4th position of this rating was occupied by the song Paranoid.
Soon the singer's discography was replenished with the ninth studio album. The collection was called Under Cover. Ozzy Osbourne included tracks from the 1960s and 1970s on the record that had a strong influence on him.
A few years later, the tenth album Black Rain was released. Music critics described the record as "tough and melodic". Ozzy himself admitted that this is the first album recorded on a “sober head”.
The British singer presented the collection Scream (2010). As part of an advertising campaign that took place at Madame Tussauds in New York, Ozzy pretended to be a wax figure. The star was waiting for guests in one of the rooms. When visitors to the wax museum passed by Ozzy Osbourne, he screamed, which caused strong emotions and genuine fear.
In 2016, the cult British singer and son Jack Osbourne became a member of the Ozzy and Jack's World Detour travel show. Ozzy was the co-host and author of the project.
Ozzy Osbourne: personal life
The first wife of Ozzy Osbourne was the charming Thelma Riley. At the time of the marriage, the rocker was only 21 years old. Soon there was a replenishment in the family. The couple had a daughter, Jessica Starshine, and a son, Louis John.
In addition, Ozzy Osbourne adopted Thelma's son from his first marriage, Elliot Kingsley. The family life of the spouses was not calm. Because of the wild life of Ozzy, as well as addiction to drugs and alcohol, Riley filed for divorce.
A year after the divorce, Ozzy Osbourne married Sharon Arden. She became not only the wife of a celebrity, but also his manager. Sharon gave birth to Ozzy three children - Amy, Kelly and Jack. In addition, they adopted Robert Marcato, whose deceased mother was a friend of Osborne.
In 2016, a quiet family life "shaken". The fact is that Sharon Arden suspected her husband of treason. As it turned out later, Ozzy Osbourne was sick with sex addiction. The performer made a personal confession about this.
A family council soon took place. All family members decided to send the head of the family to a special clinic. Sharon took pity on her husband and decided to postpone the divorce. When the relationship was established, Ozzy admitted that he did not suffer from sex addiction. He just made up this story to save the marriage and justify the relationship with a young girl.
Interesting facts about Ozzy Osbourne
- The British performer considers the amplifier given to him by his father to be the best gift. Largely thanks to this amplifier, he was taken to the first team.
- For many years, the star suffered from alcohol and drug addiction. The singer even wrote an autobiographical book about his addiction: "Trust Me, I'm Dr. Ozzy: Extreme Survival Tips from a Rocker."
- In 2008, at the age of 60, on the 19th attempt, the musician passed the driver's license exam. And the next day, the star got into a car accident in a new Ferrari car.
- Ozzy Osbourne is an avid football fan. The favorite football team of the singer is Aston Villa from his native Birmingham.
- Ozzy Osbourne has read only a few books in his entire life. But that didn't stop him from becoming a cult figure.
- Ozzy Osbourne bequeathed his body to science. Over the years, Ozzy drank, used drugs and poisoned himself with toxic substances.
- In 2010, Osborne was invited to write a healthy lifestyle column for the American magazine Rolling Stone.
Ozzy Osbourne today
In 2019, Ozzy Osbourne was forced to cancel his tour. He severely injured his fingers. The doctors did surgery. Ozzy later suffered pneumonia. Doctors advised the musician to refrain from touring.
As a result, concerts in Europe had to be rescheduled to 2020. The artist commented that he feels bad because of the metal spines installed back in the early 2000s. Although the operation was successful, disturbances in the functioning of the musculoskeletal system made themselves felt.
In the summer of 2019, Osborne shocked with the announcement that doctors had found a gene mutation in him. Interestingly, she allowed the star to stay relatively healthy while drinking alcohol for years. Ozzy took part in an experiment conducted by scientists from Massachusetts.
2020 was a real discovery for fans of Ozzy Osbourne. This year the artist presented a new album. The collection was called Ordinary Man. If the new studio album isn't a miracle, what is? There were many reviews and reviews from music critics behind the presentation of the record.
The new album includes 11 tracks. Including in the collection there are compositions with Elton John, Travis Scott and Post Malone. In addition, such stars as Guns N' Roses, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Rage Against the Machine took part in the work on the disc.
The fact that the collection is ready, Ozzy announced back in 2019. But the star was in no hurry to release the album, increasing the interest of fans. In honor of the premiere, a special promotion was launched. Within its framework, "fans" could hear the new release first, having made a special tattoo on their body.
