Remembering Ozzy Osbourne

Photo credit: Ross Halfin

This is a “Where were you when you got the news?” day. I was driving and saw the text on my phone from my best friend since high school, Tracey, that said “Did you hear about Ozzy?”. My heart sank, I knew what that meant. Ozzy needs no bio, we all know The Prince of Darkness and this one hurts. I’ve never met Ozzy, but he's been a part of my life for over 40 years. This man had such a profound impact on the world of metal and that world is in a bit of shock right now. The world is playing Ozzy and Black Sabbath songs, watching videos, and reminiscing on what this man meant to each of us. I think in this world that doesn’t seem real right now, Ozzy was our staple, our constant, our comfort from childhood that everything is ok. Now he’s gone and Gen X and the generations after, because we raised our kids on Ozzy, are heartbroken. 

I just want to be with my metal family and Jose ”Metal Ambassador” Mangin made that happen by going on the air on Sirius XM’s Ozzy’s Boneyard connecting with fans. Through the tears and his own broken heart, Jose helped the community, opening the phone lines for fans to share their stories. Part two had several guest speakers, and I loved hearing all their stories but part two really hit me, Nuno Bettencourt (from Extreme) and Sully Erna (from Godsmack). Nuno talked about Jake E Lee, acknowledging the extremely difficult job he had coming in after the tragic loss of Randy Rhodes, knowing the constant scrutiny he would be under filling those big shoes. For “Back to the Beginning”, the two were set to play “Shot in the Dark” and “The Ultimate Sin” together. Due to injuries Jake sustained last year when he got shot, he asked Nuno to take the solo, but Nuno said he’d help and they could double up. During the song, Nuno walked off stage to give Jake the limelight he deserves. Much respect to both of them. Then Sully Erna put into words, so eloquently, what I am feeling but couldn’t find the right words. It’s not a mourning, it’s a celebration. Ozzy held on so he could give a proper goodbye to everyone. It was the best way to go out and I agree with that so much. Thank you so much Jose and the Sirius XM team that put this together so quickly. I work mostly alone and just wanted to connect with my metal family. I saw something on Instagram to call in, so I jumped on Ozzy’s Boneyard and it was like I was in a big hug with my metal family. Thank you for that, Jose!

The one and only time I saw Ozzy was with my BFF Tracey on June 10, 1986 at the San Diego Sports Arena. I grew up in a Jimmy Buffet, ABBA, Chuck Mangione kind of house, not exactly understanding of my love for metal music. Surprisingly, my mom offered to drive us to the concert that night. My grandmother was in the front seat, I think they were taking her to the hospital, she was diabetic, but they were dropping us off first. When my mom pulled over to let us out, my grandmother locked the doors in a panic. “Why are you stopping? You can’t let them out here! Do you see those people?’ Tracey and I laughed, as we were giddy looking at all those hot boys with long hair, dressed in battle vests, and hacky sack circles everywhere. Back in the day we were allowed to tailgate party for hours before the show. We were home! We unlocked the door and jumped out! BYE!

It was the Ultimate Sin Tour with Metallica opening up, a dream line up! It was also the one and only time I saw Cliff Burton before he passed away in the tragic accident just months later. That was only my second rock concert (Dio was my first) and I was just in awe of the stage production and Ozzy going back and forth across the stage clapping, the energy was insane! You could feel that this wasn’t just a job or a performance, this was his purpose, what made him feel alive. 

Like I said I never met the man, but I think we all felt like we knew him and the Osbourne family because they invited us into their home and their lives for years. They put everything out there, the good, the bad, and the funny! The Osbournes showed us it’s ok to be crazy, quirky, loud, say what you feel, do stupid shit, just to be authentically yourself and who gives a fuck what people think of you. I’ve read (or listened) to two of Ozzie’s books that were amazing to hear the stories behind the start of Black Sabbath and Ozzy’s life. He owns up to everything he did, like yeah, maybe that wasn’t the best idea and a lot he doesn’t remember which is why he got sober. …respect! My favorite of their shows is Ozzy & Jack’s World Detour show. He was so gracious and respectful to everyone they met, learning their trade whether it was NASA or goat yoga. My favorite thing growing up and into my 40s was road trips with my dad. My dad wasn’t a rock star, he was a firefighter, but he was gone a lot, so those road trips meant everything to me to have that one on one time. Just the opener with Jack saying they missed out on a lot with Ozzy being on tour so this is them catching up on lost time melted my heart every show. I loved seeing the Prince of Darkness so loving and caring with his grandkids. 

We knew he wasn’t well for many years with cancelled tours and the throne at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we knew. While we wanted to believe he was invincible, we knew it was nearing the end. “Back to the Beginning” was the most perfect, proper farewell. Ozzy Osbourne will live in all of us forever. It’s not just his music, but his life lessons, his compassion, his empathy and his drive. For his Ultimate farewell he raised $190 for Parkinson's and Children’s Hospitals. The Prince of Darkness left this world a better place.