Ozzy Osbourne

I’ve delayed writing a post about Ozzy Osbourne because I only recently posted about his last concert in Birmingham and his former band Black Sabbath. The gig happened just a couple of weeks before his death and the timing is poignant. 

Ozzy Osbourne was a unique individual whose lifestyle was so hedonistic that he even succeeded in shocking one of America’s most offensive bands, Mötley Crüe. Many were amazed that Ozzy managed to reach 70 years old, let alone 76. 

He had a fine and unique voice, and it is reported that even though he was known as “The Prince of Darkness” and was perhaps one of the most outrageous rock stars in history, people who knew him and met him report that he was one of the funniest and kindest people you could ever know. 

Here are some examples:

Ozzy grew up in an area of Birmingham called Aston which is about 8 miles from where I was born so I am familiar with the areas he frequented in his youth and the environment which shaped him. If you had heard me speaking when I lived in Walsall you would have been forgiven for thinking that I sounded like Ozzy. My accent was actually stronger than his and although I have lost my own accent now, Ozzy’s remained although in a slightly milder form and tinged with American. 

As I said in my post about Black Sabbath I followed them even after Ozzy was sacked from the band in 1978 but I also followed Ozzy’s solo career, which thrived under the management of his wife Sharon. 

I have to admit that I wasn’t a huge fan of the reality series “The Osbournes” but I did enjoy the bits where Ozzy was unintentionally funny. And he definitely could be funny. Here he is trying a Olivia Newton-John’s health drink:

I’ve read his autobiography, “I  Am Ozzy” and I have to say it is one of the funniest books I’ve read. I even went to work dressed as Ozzy on a charity fancy dress day way back in 2010, complete with my impersonation of him. 

I am saddened by his death, especially such a short time after his gig. It’s a shame and we have lost a national treasure over here in the UK. I’m impressed with what he achieved over his lifetime, especially since we were born such a short distance away from each other. 

I’ll leave you with my favourite five songs from Ozzy’s solo work. 

5. Perry Mason (from Ozzmosis – 1995)

This might be a slightly controversial choice amongst fans of Ozzy’s solo work but I think this is a great song. There’s just something about it that I like, perhaps the idea that this could actually be the theme song to a future Perry Mason series.

4. Shot in the Dark (from The Ultimate Sin – 1986)

This song reminds me of a great time in my life and that’s the reason that It is my number four choice. There was a lot of good music around at that time and it all brings back very fond memories. 

3. Crazy Train (from Blizzard of Ozz – 1980)

When Ozzy was sacked from Black Sabbath it took him a while to recover but he came back with his first solo album called Blizzard of Ozz and this song is probably his best known solo song. I think it’s a great song. In fact an easy listening version of this song became the theme song to the Osbournes.

2. Let Me Hear You Scream (from Scream – 2010)

This song is an absolute heavy metal anthem and I think Ozzy’s voice is amazing in it. It’s a very heavy song and I absolutely love the chorus, which I sing along whenever it is on.  “You’ll hear me scream if you don’t switch that off!” says Mrs PM.  Result!

1.  No More Tears (from No More Tears – 1991)

“No More Tears” is an absolutely amazing song. I love the menace it invokes, the bass line, the guitar and the way the song evolves as it continues, almost in a progressive way, with an orchestral section towards the end that sends a shiver down the spine (well in the full album version anyway). If you like the single version, definitely check out the album cut because it is even better. 

And finally

Here is a beautiful song from the album No More Tears (that I guess can be classed as a power ballad). It is called Mama, I’m Coming Home and shows Ozzy’s voice at its best.

Thanks for everything, Ozzy and Rest in Peace. 

I will miss you.

Black Sabbath

 

This is the first of two posts about legendary music stars that come from Birmingham, a city that is a mere 8 to 10 miles from where I was born. The first post is about Black Sabbath. 

On Saturday 5th July 2025, Black Sabbath played their last ever gig. It was in Birmingham, their home city, at Villa Park, the stadium that is home to Aston Villa, the Premier League football team that the band all support. 

I wasn’t there because it was too far to go and too expensive. However, I saw the them perform courtesy of You Tube. I have seen Ozzy Osbourne live once before, and Black Sabbath, also once, when they were fronted by Ronnie James Dio. 

At the gig Ozzy Osborne performed a set of his solo material, before being joined by the other original members of the band, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward to perform as Black Sabbath. 

This was a poignant moment for me because basically I have grown up listening to Black Sabbath and they were one of the bands that shaped my musical taste in the 1970’s. All four original members of the band were born and brought up in and around an area of Birmingham called Aston, which is about 8 miles from where I was born and raised. The band members and I have a lot in common in that we were all working class people whose parents worked in factories that spewed smoke and were really noisy due to clanging metal machinery. Of course, Black Sabbath are much older than I am (closer to the age that my dad would have been) but they all had musical talent and decided that a musical career was a better potential life than being stuck in a dirty, noisy factory for the rest of their lives. 

Black Sabbath in the 1970's

Black Sabbath in 2025

In fact, the factory environment shaped the style of music that they would ultimately create and excel in. That style of music is reminiscent of the noise and clanging metal environment that they and my own father worked in. 

Thus “heavy metal” was born and Black Sabbath were the founders and pioneers of the genre. 

Some people have said that their music is dark, satanic and evil but really they just wrote songs that sounded like the musical equivalent of horror movies. Yes, there were some satanic and supernatural reference in their material but when you look at the subject matter of a lot of their songs they wrote, the meanings couldn’t be more different. 

They are one of the most misunderstood bands around. 

For example, “War Pigs” and “Children of the Grave” are anti-war protest songs and, of course, “Paranoid” is about mental health awareness. 

The first time I heard Black Sabbath, I was just getting into heavy metal and a friend lent me the double album “We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll”, which was a compilation album featuring all of the best songs from their first couple of albums. 

I loved it so much that I didn’t give it back to my mate for ages. I remember my old man yelling at me to turn the music down because, like most heavy metal, it sounds so much better when it is loud. He loved traditional rock and roll but he absolutely hated Black Sabbath. 

Over the intervening years, as I have become the old git I am now, I have followed the band through all of its changes, including Ozzy Osbourne being sacked and replaced by Ronnie James Dio. In fact for just one album, another of my other musical heroes joined as lead singer. That was Deep Purple’s Ian Gillan. Apparently he got drunk with Tony Iommi and agreed to join. 

Their last concert was an event that lasted all day and featured many other legendary performers and bands including Anthrax, Alice in Chains, Halestorm, Pantera, Tool, Slayer, Guns N’ Roses and Metallica with a host of other famous people including Jason Momoa who hosted the event. No wonder it was so expensive. 

I suppose every band has to finish and it is best to finish on a high. They are all old men and Ozzy in particular has been open about the health problems that he has to contend with. Nevertheless, I will still listen to their music as it helped shape my taste over the decades. 

To finish off I will present my favourite five songs by the band. The order of the songs may not please other Black Sabbath fans but I truly don’t care. All of the following have a special meaning for me personally and I love them. That said, it took me a while to create the list and there are loads of other favourites that could have made the top five. 

 5. Neon Knights (from Heaven and Hell - 1980)

This is a controversial choice perhaps because it features Ronnie James Dio instead of Ozzy Osbourne. The song is from the first album the band released after Ozzy was sacked. I love it because I think that Ronnie is one of the greatest rock singers ever. For me it was perfect to  blend in Ronnie’s style with  that of  Black Sabbath (Ronnie's style as in Rainbow and his own band called Dio) and it marks one of the peaks of my metal mania at the start of the 1980’s. It is just a brilliant song.  

4. Never Say Die (from Never Say Die - 1978)

The album “Never Say Die” was Ozzy’s last one before he was sacked. Of course he reappeared in the band later but we will ignore that for now. This is the first Black Sabbath album I actually paid money for. The album itself is disappointing in retrospect but the title track truly stands out. Again, this may be controversial with some Black Sabbath fans but I stand by my choice. 

3. Spiral Architect (from Sabbath Bloody Sabbath – 1973)

Other Black Sabbath fans may just roll their eyes when they hear this. I just think it’s beautiful song and quite different to what non-Black Sabbath fans may expect of the band (but see later). I love the lyrics:

Of all the things I value most in life

I see my memories

And feel their warmth

And know that they are good

You know that I should

The song includes strings too, which for me adds to the appeal of the song and is just the icing on the cake. It is a pleasing progression from their normal output.

2. Symptom of the Universe (from Sabotage – 1975)

Okay – this is what Black Sabbath are all about. This is a really good heavy metal song with the grinding guitar and deep thumping bass line, accompanied by brilliant drums and Ozzy’s amazing and unique voice. This is a true air guitar song and as a kid I found myself pretending to be a blend of Tony Iommi and Ozzy Osbourne as I jumped around my room listening to this tune. 

1. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (from Sabbath Bloody Sabbath – 1973)

Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is a perfect metal masterpiece and certainly in my top ten heavy metal songs of all time. It has everything you would expect from Black Sabbath – a pounding grinding heavy beat that makes you want to headbang even if you don’t want to. Every time I hear it I lose myself in the music and shut out everything else. I love absolutely everything about it. 

And finally …

For those of you who think that Black Sabbath are just a loud obnoxious heavy metal band, just take a listen to these two songs that completely belie that stereotype. I’ve played this to friends and asked them to guess the band – nobody got it right and nobody could believe who it was. They are both beautiful.

Laguna Sunrise (from Black Sabbath Volume 4 – 1972)

Fluff (from Sabbath Bloody Sabbath – 1973)

The Eccentric Englishman

I read a news article about David Bowie last week in which he was described as the perfect example of an eccentric Englishman.

And that got me thinking (which is always a dangerous thing).

It’s well known that we, as a nation, are considered a little weird by our European cousins, and, dare I say, by the rest of the world. Eccentricity is in our genes and we express ourselves in bizarre ways.

If you don’t believe me, here are two examples.

First, we have gurning competitions.  Are you wondering what gurning is? It’s basically pulling a funny face and we have competitions throughout the country.

(Cheeky) people have suggested that I could win the World Gurning Championship with very little effort whatsoever.

Second, we have Morris Dancing. I used to work with a Morris Dancer and she turned up to a fancy dress party, clad in her full regalia, whereupon, after a couple of glasses of wine, she stunned us all by performing a solo Morris Dance in the middle of a crowded room, with lots of applause, mainly because we appreciated the eccentric nature of her display. She was passionate about her art, so passionate that she eventually married a fellow Morris Dancer. I wasn’t invited to the wedding but I can imagine that the entertainment would have involved bells, waving hankies and shaking sticks.

Here’s an example of Morris Dancing:

Strange, isn’t it?

There are more examples of British weirdness, such as cheese rolling and bog snorkelling that may make any foreigner wonder whether we are all slightly unhinged.

While the whole world has produced eccentrics, I feel that we have more than our fair share.

We have people like Paloma Faith, Noel Fielding, Eddie Izzard,  Ozzy Osbourne, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed  and, though it pains me to say it, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

Boris Johnson could be a future Prime Minister - God help us all!

Brian Blessed - "GORDON'S ALIVE!!!"

Eddie Izzard - Very funny and very surreal

Noel Fielding in one of his more sensible moments

Ozzy will soon have a frog in his throat.

Paloma Faith? Eccentric? HA HA HA!!

Stephen Fry - A man so intelligent it makes the rest of us look totally thick!

Of course, there are honorary foreign eccentrics worth a mention too, like Björk and Lady Gaga but I like to think that these people are also outrageous, something that we Englishmen are a little reluctant to be (with the possible exception of Ozzy Osbourne).

To be honest, when you look at the royal family, and the upper classes there are many weird people mingling in those big houses and palaces.

Possibly my favourite is Prince Phillip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth, a man who constantly makes us cringe with his ill-considered outbursts. Political correctness isn’t one of his strong point.

"Have I embarrassed you again, my dear?"

Here are some of the things he has said:

(To a Scottish driving instructor) “How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough for them to get them through the test?”

(To a 13 year old boy while visiting the Space Shuttle) “Well, you’ll never fly in it. You’re too fat to be an astronaut.”

(To a female sea cadet) “Do you work in a strip club?”

(To a Kenyan woman) “You are a woman, aren’t you?”

Eccentricity is a Scottish trait too as I discovered last Saturday when I attended a Burns Ball. That sounds a lot ruder than it is – I will reveal all in my next post.

I’ll leave you with a song by Paloma Faith that I actually like (much to Mrs PM’s utter shock):

Ambient Rock

I’m off on my travels again next week, this time a short holiday to Berlin. I’ve only been to Germany once, a visit to the Oktoberfest in Munich way back in 1983, when I took on German beer and lost spectacularly.

I thought that it was about time I revisited the country to practice my German again (as poor as it is), and I think it might be nice to start a tradition where I share some of my thoughts about music before trips, before sharing some photos and experience of my visit on my return.

I was going to post some music about Hallowe’en since it’s 31st October today, but rather than encourage something I don’t really believe in, I’ve decided to go to the other extreme and prove to people who hate rock music, that some of the loudest and most obnoxious bands (in their eyes anyway) can be a source of calming pleasure.

Here are five glorious rocks songs that you can relax to with a glass of wine in a candlelit room with your loved one in your arms.

Steven Wilson – Veneno Para Las Hadas




Regular readers will know that I am a huge fan of progressive rock maestro Steven Wilson. He seems to improve with every album, and while his music wouldn’t really be described as “heavy”, his band Porcupine Tree have produced some fantastic rock music. This particular track is from his first solo album called Insurgentes and is a beautiful, slow and mesmerising masterpiece.

Nine Inch Nails – Ghosts 1 – 9

  

Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails is another musical maestro in my view and his music forms a large percentage of my collection. A few years ago, he produced a double album entitled Ghosts I to 4, containing 36 instrumental tracks, nine for each Ghost part. This is the final part of Ghosts I and is a very pleasant little tune.

Foo Fighters – Still

I’m really looking to the new Foo Fighters album in November and I daresay it will have a dominant position in my car for the next few months or so. While the band can produce some magnificent rockers, they are very good at taking it easy and producing a mellow ambient song. In fact, this is one of my favourite songs by the band.

Black Sabbath – Fluff

People who hate rock music hate Black Sabbath in particular. Yet, if you had never heard of the band and listened to this song first of all, you would find it very difficult to imagine that they were the founders of heavy metal with Ozzy Osbourne at the helm. This is a beautiful song and shows just what great musicians they are.

Rammstein – Ein Lied (A Song) 



It seems fitting that the final song comes from a German band. Rammstein are controversial and sometimes very heavy. Yet they too can turn the volume down and produce a lovely little ambient piece. Again, if this was the first song by the band you had heard, you would have no idea of their reputation nor would you imagine there explosive antics on stage.

Anyway, I hope you like the songs and I shall return with photos of Berlin in due course.

Ozzy Comes To Work

Every year in the UK we are treated to a charity telethon called “Children In Need” where people basically do stupid stuff to raise money for children’s charities.

The show on TV is dreadful but the sentiment is admirable.

Last year my company decided to participate for the first time and organised a whole bunch of ideas for fund raising, involving raffles selling home-made food and, most importantly, a fancy dress day at work.

Sadly, last year I was a coward and opted not to dress up, choosing instead to sit and laugh at my work colleagues in their silly costumes.

However, this year, I decided to join in. I was tempted to resurrect my Gene Simmons look but thought that it would be too much hassle for Mrs PM to paint my face first thing on a Friday morning. Besides, I would have had to drive to work with my glasses on, risking smudging the make up and running the whole effect.

So I opted to become Ozzy Osbourne.

It was a relatively easy thing to achieve and it cost next to nothing. The hardest part was drawing

O Z Z Y

in blue biro on my left hand. I certainly didn’t want to emulate the man by reproducing ALL of his tattoos.

To enhance the magic, and unlike some of the other participants, I could actually do a pretty good impersonation of the person I was dressed up as.

You see, Ozzy Osbourne grew up about six miles away from where I was born and it’s not too difficult for me to revisit my old accent for the enjoyment of my colleagues.

I even took some music from my Black Sabbath and Ozzy collection and played it sporadically on my PC throughout the day peppering the tunes with cries of “SHAAARRRROONNN!!!”

Here are some photos:








And here is the man himself for comparison:



The worst thing about the day, apart from looking daft, was wearing the bloody wig. Not only did it drive me crazy causing my head to itch, I also ended up eating most of it when I tried to have lunch and snacks. It was a right pain in the arse.

Nevertheless I stuck at it.

Of course, I didn’t win the competition– but that wasn’t the plan. The plan was to look like a goon and play heavy metal at work – oh and pay the entrance fee to help charity.

I think I might just have pulled it off.

100 Rock Songs (51 to 60)

The next ten …

(51) Guns ‘n’ Roses – You Could Be Mine

In my opinion, “Use You Illusion II” is the greatest album created by Axl Rose and his buddies. “You Could Be Mine”, featured on the soundtrack of “Terminator 2: Judgement Day”, is the best song on the album. A true rock song. Superb.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlzptZ9wieQ

(52) Kingdom Come – Should I?

Kingdom Come were condemned as “Led Zeppelin-clones” and its not difficult to see why. The German singer, Lenny Wolf, has a very similar voice to Robert Plant and the great band’s influence on Kingdom Come is there for all to see. That said, when I heard “Should I?” I was so impressed that I immediately bought the album. The song is terrific and is so similar to Led Zeppelin it is uncanny. Led Zeppelin fans may hate them but I think this song is a classic. Brilliant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjDXd8XhtZg

(53) Metallica – Enter Sandman

Metallica were always too heavy and thrashy for me. Their early stuff, to me, was a wall of deafening noise that had no direction. That’s just my opinion. “Enter Sandman” changed all that. The song is loud and heavy but it shows that the band are essentially great musicians. It is one of my favourite songs of all times. Scary.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRYDetbwegs

(54) Nine Inch Nails - Wish

Trent Reznor is an innovative genius who can do nothing wrong in my view. I discovered “Wish” very recently, although it was released fifteen or so years ago. It is wonderfully dark and heavy and represents Trent Reznor at his very best. Fast drums, wailing guitars and extreme angst – pure ecstacy! I can’t stress how much I love the guy’s work. Deep, dark, nasty and brilliant!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68KxXeeHXHk

(55) Ozzy Osbourne – No More Tears

Ozzy has blossomed since leaving Black Sabbath. The self-proclaimed “Prince Of Darkness” is at his menacing best in “No More Tears”, the title track of the album of the same name. The song is dark and heavy yet has an orchestral interlude that slots in perfectly. A great rock anthem. Menacing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHNmyN6mPsM

(56) Brian May And Cozy Powell - Resurrection

Somebody bought Brian May’s solo album “Back To The Light” as a Christmas present and I was not bowled over until I heard the brilliant “Resurrection”. Brian May as part of Queen has performed on many of the band’s heaviest anthems but with the aid of Cozy Powell I don’t think Queen have produced anything as good as this song. Cozy Powell’s influence is there for all to see and with Brian May at his very best as a guitarist we have a stormer of a song. Blistering.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9BgCvNz1jA

(57) Joe Satriani – Summer Song

I saw Joe Satriani for the first time when he toured with the album “The Extremist”, probably his most successful album to date. “Summer Song” is the big hit from that album and is as the name suggests a feelgood rocker touched with Joe Satriani’s guitar virtuosity. Performed live, the entire audience jumped up and down. A wonderful tune. Heavenly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icdnKydffZQ

(58) Thunder – Empty City
.
“Empty City” from the album “Laughing On Judgement Day” is my favourite song by Thunder. It begins slowly and gradually mutates into a thoroughly decent rock monster. I love it but sadly is not available to view, sad because some of Thunder’s inferior songs can be heard all over the internet. Never mind. As before, if you get a chance to listen to “Laughing On Judgement Day” go straight to “Empty City”. You will not be disappointed.

(59) Ugly Kid Joe - Neighbor

Ugly Kid Joe came to prominence thanks to with “I Hate Everything About You”. From the same album, comes “Neighbor”, a much better song with the same tongue in cheek lyrics. The accompanying video captures the essence of the song perfectly. Very amusing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtNW88sgO04

(60) Coverdale/Page – Whisper A Prayer For The Dying

When David Coverdale and Jimmy Page got together for a one off album in 1993 they created a work of genius. I was sceptical to be honest but after listening to it, I found that the two men had combined the very best of Whitesnake and Led Zeppelin to produce something special. “Whisper A Prayer For The Dying” is typical of the album, a larger than life rock anthem. Jimmy Page’s guitar is exquisite and David Coverdale’s voice is as good as it has ever been. Colossal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7ryUDF_uK0

61 to 70 to follow …