Sabbath doubted Ward could keep up

Had to ask: Iommi, Osbourne and Butler

Ozzy Osbourne says he, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler doubted that Bill Ward could play his full part in the Black Sabbath reunion.

And the singer has suggested that there was more to the drummer’s lack of involvement than a straightforward contract argument, observing that the drummer “can’t be surprised that he didn’t get the gig.”

Ward bowed out soon after the metal giants announced they’d be making a new album together. The project has continued without him and 13 – featuring Rage Against The Machine’s Brad Wilk behind the kit – is released on June 10.

Osbourne accepts part of Ward’s reason for declining to take part was indeed contractual: in 2012 he said he hadn’t been offered a deal he regarded as “signable.”

But the frontman tells Mojo, via Blabbermouth: “There was also another side to it. When Bill came along, we all had to ask, ‘Can he do an hour-and-a-half, two-hour gig? Can he cope?’

“My suggestion was that we run through a set and see how he got on. He was so out of condition – and the drummer is the most demanding job in the whole band.

“Bill couldn’t remember what the fuck we were doing. You know them yellow stick-on memo notes? He had them all over his fucking drums. I was like, ‘What the fuck’s that for, Bill?’ He said, ‘I can’t remember what I’m doing.’

“I go, ‘How are you gonna remember out of those 500,000 bits of paper stuck all over your kit, which one you’re looking at, Bill?’ ‘I’ll know.’ ‘Ah, okay – great.’”

Osbourne further says that Ward didn’t discuss the matter with his bandmates – and things could have been different if he had. “He didn’t come clean and say, ‘I can’t cut this gig, but can we work something out, guys, where I’ll come on but with another drummer backing me up?’ Or, ‘I’ll come and play a few songs.’ That would have been cool.”

But that’s not to say the singer blames his old colleague. “I get where he’s coming from – his pride was hurt,” he reflects. “And I get it. I really do get it. The guy will always be a dear, dear friend and a brother to me.

“But he can’t be surprised that he didn’t get the gig. I’m not going to give Bill a hatchet job, but at the same time we haven’t got the patience to deal with it.”

Producer Rick Rubin recently explained why he wanted Ginger Baker to play drums for Sabbath, but that Wilk was also one of his suggestions. Sabbath tour the UK in December.

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Ozzy didn’t believe Sabbath had influence

Suspicion: Ozzy

Ozzy Osbourne didn’t realise Black Sabbath had been such an influence on other bands until he heart Metallica playing his songs – and suspected they were laughing at him.

The iconic frontman recalls a moment in 1986 when the thrash giants were supporting him on tour.

He tells the Telegraph: “I came past their dressing room, and I had to ask one of their assistants if they were taking the piss out of me, because they were playing Black Sabbath.

“For someone to tell you ‘Black Sabbath changed my life’ is a weird thing to get your head round.”

But despite the band’s legacy of dark-edged music, Osbourne insists it’s all about having fun to him.

“I’ve never wanted to be serious, to have solemn music,” he says. “The way that all that happened with the music and the name and everything, if I remember, is we used to rehearse in a movie theatre. So we decided to write songs inspired by scary movies.

“It was all flower-power and love – but for us, living in the industrial town of Birmingham, we liked scary movies.”

Osbourne is at work on his first Sabbath album since 1979 alongside bandmate Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and producer Rick Rubin. Drummer Bill Ward failed to reach a contractual agreement and bowed out of the original lineup reunion. He recently stated he’d like to be part of Sabbath’s future.

They’ve written 15 songs, 12 of which are slated to appear on the album, and tracking is well underway. Sabbath haven’t revealed its title but have confirmed it’s due out in April next year.

They’ve also announced a four-date tour of Australia between April 25 and May 4. The following week they’ll headline the inaugural Japanese edition of Osbourne’s travelling tour Ozzfest.

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Soundgarden sorry for Sabbath slur

Changed days: Chris Cornell

Revitalised grunge-powered outfit Soundgarden are no longer the band who said they wanted to be “Black Sabbath without the parts that suck.”

That’s a statement guitarist Kim Thayall made long before their public meltdown in 1997, when bassist Ben Shephard threw down his instrument and marched off ahead of official confirmation they’d split.

But now singer Chris Cornell tells Classic Rock: “We’re trying to add all the parts that suck back in.”

His comments appear in the current edition of the magazine, dated July 2012, as Cornell talks about the organic nature of their reunion – which came about as they discussed tidying up business arrangements such as merchandise deals and online presence.

Since those first meetings they’ve released new track Live to Rise, and a new album is on the way.

But Cornell insists Soundgarden are remaining flexible about their musical approach, after having suffered for the previously rigid beliefs. “Rock should be about an attitude – about where a person is coming from,” he says. “It could be almost anything.”

And when his band appear before Black Sabbath on the Download main stage tonight, they’ll be showing a little more respect to the metal pioneers than they might have done 15 years ago.

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Black Sabbath Announce Birmingham Show

Black Sabbath will play the Birmingham O2 Academy on May 19.

The low-key date is the band’s third confirmed appearance after they replaced their planned world tour with an ‘Ozzy Osbourne & Friends’ billing, following guitarist Tony Iommi’s diagnosis of cancer. He’s completed chemotherapy and continues to recuperate.

Sabbath, without original drummer Bill Ward, will appear at this year’s Download Festival at Donington, UK, in June and also at Lollapalooza, Chicago, US, in August.

The Birmingham warm-up is their first hometown appearance in 13 years. Tickets go on sale on Friday.

Sabbath are currently working on their first studio album in 33 years with producer Rick Rubin.

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Black Sabbath To Play One American Date

Black Sabbath will play one show in America this year – and it’ll happen in August.

Sharon Osbourne revealed this news when interviewed by VH1 Radio Network. The date itself is to be announced shortly.

Sharon also commented on the current state of play with drummer Bill Ward, who is still claiming he’s not been offered a reasonable contract to reunite with Sabbath.

“It’s up to Bill. The door is open for him to join us, so it’s up to him.”

The band without Ward are currently working on a new studio album, which is apparently going well.

“They’re doing really well in the studio,” said Shazza. “Gosh, they must’ve written 15 new songs already and it’s going great.”

As reported, Sabbath have had to cancel all their European dates because of guitarist Tony Iommi’s ongoing treatment for lymphoma.

The only show they’re still booked to play is headlining the Download Festival on Sunday, June 10. The remainder of the Sabs’ European dates are going to be honoured by Ozzy & Friends – who, besides the Double-O on vocals, will feature Zakk Wylde on guitar and Geezer Butler on bass.

Find out more at www.blacksabbath.com

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Black Sabbath For Download

At a press conference today, Black Sabbath announced their reunion and headline slot at Download 2012.

This means the classic Sabs line-up will get back together on stage next summer – that’s Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward.

The surprise news was that the reunion will include a new album, produced by Rick Rubin, due for release next autumn.

The announcement took place in Los Angeles at the famed Whisky A Go Go on the Sunset Strip.

Host Henry Rollins talked about the impact the Sabs had on his life.

“I was a very alienated young person,” Rollins said, “and when I heard Black Sabbath I realised my life had a soundtrack. I realised there were people out there using music to make great statements. When I heard Iron Man, high school became powerless over me. This is true outsider music.”

Rollins hosted a Q&A before the band answered questions from the press.

Asked about the re-formation, Ozzy Osbourne simply said: “It’s just time.”

Tony Iommi added: “It’s now or never. We get along great. Everything’s really good.”

The band also credited Rubin for helping get them back in the studio.

“He kept phoning us every five minutes,” Tony Iommi revealed.

Geezer Butler added: “We plan to get back to the old Sabbath style and sound.”

Download takes place June 8-10, 2012. At the moment it is not known which day Sabbath will headline.

The reunited quartet will also embark on a full world tour.

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Big Black Sabbath Announcement Soon?

Is there to be a major Black Sabbath announcement soon? It would appear so.

The official Black Sababth website is now displaying the date 11.11.11, suggesting something important will on that day. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, Tony Iommi has revealed that there was nearly a Black Sabbath musical.

Talking to VH1 Classic Rock Nights, the celebrated guitarist said: “I remember years ago when we were approached to do a Black Sabbath musical, like We Will Rock You. The chap who’d done The Who, I forgot his name now, who’d done Tommy, the producer, he wanted to do something with us many years ago. We never did, because we thought, ‘Oh, that’s a weird idea’. Of course now, he was way ahead of his time”.

To find out more about Black Sabbath, click through to the Classic Rock Archive, with 13 years of articles, interviews and reviews.

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Ozzy Talks About Possible Sabbath Reunion

Ozzy Osbourne has said that plans for a reunion of the original Black Sabbath line-up are still in the early stages.

Talking to Billboard, the Prince Of Darkness said: “It’s in the very early stages, so we haven’t recorded anything yet. If it works out, it’ll work out. If it doesn’t, I’ll keep doing my thing”.

Reports of a Sabbath reunion gained massive momentum in August when the Birmingham Mail ran a story announcing the band were back together, back up by quotes from Tony Iommi. A day later, Iommi claimed these quotes were from an off-the-record conversation and taken out of context.

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