I photographed Black Sabbath a number of occasions earlier than I met Ozzy, together with in 1979 when Van Halen opened for them. Everybody says that Van Halen blew Sabbath off stage, however that isn’t true. I assumed Van Halen had been hysterically humorous. I noticed them at Lewisham Odeon on the night time that David Lee Roth stated: “Lewisham, you’re the rock’n’roll capital of the world.” However as for blowing Sabbath off… that didn’t occur. It’s a bit like Iron Maiden; nearly as good as a help act could be, folks pay their cash to see the headliners.
It was on the primary Blizzard Of Ozz tour in 1980 that I started to get to know Ozzy. I went with [former Classic Rock editor] Geoff Barton to cowl him for Sounds and we frolicked for fairly some time. He was extremely humorous. In a while I went to America with Ozzy, and that’s after I began to understand his sense of humour.
A lady with lengthy black hair got here as much as us, carrying a black costume and with black make-up. She stated: “Hiya Ozzy”. He checked out her, then at me, and retorted: “Fuck me, the place’d she park her broom?” Ozzy at all times had the best one-liners.
Serious about it now, again then I don’t assume he had many male buddies round. He’d left Sabbath, and he was being managed by Don Arden, although Sharon would take over, and naturally they went on to have a relationship. Ozzy had moved on from a number of issues in his life and was beginning afresh.
Then, after all, Sharon turned his new supervisor, took him to America and he actually turned Ozzy Osbourne – not simply Ozzy from Black Sabbath. He turned an establishment.
These first two albums, Blizzard Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman, had been nice and, once more, I beloved the humour within the background. Within the present, throughout Goodbye To Romance he would introduce just a little particular person dressed up as Ronnie Dio. They’d come on with a drink and Ozzy would throw it in his face. It feels like a very horrible factor to do now, however on the time it was very, very humorous.
Ozzy and Sharon made a fantastic crew. Sharon had realized so many issues from her father, and he or she would stroll by means of brick partitions on Ozzy’s behalf. Alongside the way in which some powerful and unpopular selections had been made, and former bandmates have bitched about being sacked or no matter, however though these selections might not have come from Ozzy, you knew damned nicely that he would have been in on them. Sharon would have needed to give Ozzy a purpose, it wasn’t simply: “I’m going to eliminate this particular person”.
I believe that Ozzy had the perspective that he was the singer within the band and Sharon was the supervisor. After what had occurred with Sabbath, he most likely didn’t wish to contain himself greater than was essential.
There’s this notion of Ozzy as being a little bit of a buffoon. That’s utterly unfaithful. He actually wasn’t. I discovered him very switched on. He allowed that view to persist, I believe, to maintain folks away. He simply didn’t like folks bothering him.
For instance, final 12 months I used to be with him at his home in LA and we had been speaking about Sabbath’s first tour of America in 1970, and though it was greater than 50 years in the past he might nonetheless bear in mind all of it – who was within the help band, their wives’ names, what occurred to them… every part. I used to be shocked that his information of such issues was nearly encyclopaedic. Consider me, whereas he was comfortable to play up that picture for The Osbournes, Ozzy was no person’s idiot. He actually wasn’t a silly man.
On the entire I believe he was a contented man. I spent a number of time with him and I consider that to be true. However he was at all times moaning, that was simply Ozzy’s means.
It went like this: you’d go to do a photoshoot with him, and also you’d need to heat him up. You’d joke round with him for a bit. He’d inform some jokes and tales – principally unrepeatable ones – and also you’d have a great snigger. However the course of was vital. Attempt to do photos of Ozzy from a standing begin and so they’d be horrible.
Just a few years in the past when Judas Priest had been particular friends for Sabbath, I wished to do a shot of Ozzy and Rob Halford collectively. He was adamant: “I’m not doing it.” Then Rob walked in and Ozzy was like: “Okay, the place are we doing this?” as a result of he felt responsible for having been troublesome. He placed on some eyeliner, did his hair and we had been in enterprise. That was Ozzy.
Which jogs my memory of one among my favorite Ozzy tales. We had been within the desert in White Sands, New Mexico, for his son Jack’s TV present. I wished to shoot Ozzy in the course of these sand dunes, some of the lovely locations on earth. He was drained and issues had been operating very late. Ozzy arrived in his RV at nearly 7pm, simply as the sunshine was starting to fade.
After I informed him in regards to the shot I had in thoughts, he immediately replied: “I’m not fucking doing it.” I informed him: “Sure, you’re”, and marched him up this dune. It was a very massive one, and I discovered it laborious to stand up there. He nonetheless didn’t wish to do the image. I insisted: “You’re fucking doing it.” As I produced the sunshine meter, out of Ozzy’s pocket got here a harmonica, and he proceeded to play Black Sabbath’s The Wizard for me. There was simply Ozzy and me, it was my very own non-public present – in the course of a desert.
Even when he’d completed taking part in, he stated: “I’m not doing the image”, and walked off, again to his driver. Ultimately I stated: “YOU ARE FUCKING DOING IT!” He gave in and let me shoot simply 5 frames – however they had been 5 implausible frames.
If Ozzy wanted to wind himself up for pictures, gigs had been simply the identical. He’d sit in his dressing room imagining the entire issues that would go mistaken. A whole lot of singers are like that.
We had been at Madison Sq. Backyard in New York and Ozzy was a bundle of nerves. After I stated that the present was the identical each night time and there was little room for errors, he went by means of each risk. However as soon as Ozzy acquired on the market on that stage there was no person fairly like him – he owned it. He turned from John into Ozzy. And I can let you know that when he was on the market beneath the lights, with the followers screaming his identify, he had a good time.
And naturally, with Again To The Starting he acquired precisely what he wished. He performed with Sabbath – and Invoice – once more and stated goodbye to the followers that beloved him a lot. On the day of the present, I purposely avoided Ozzy. We did a photoshoot with the entire bands on soundcheck day, however on the day he was because of carry out I knew he didn’t need me in his face.
Like everybody else, I had been fairly sceptical over the way it would possibly go. However he actually did ship. Was it the best Black Sabbath present ever? No, after all it wasn’t. Nevertheless it was the right means for them – and for Ozzy – to exit.
The viewers beloved him and the bands on the invoice confirmed him a lot love and respect. Each band however one – I received’t reveal which – parked their egos on the door. After I noticed him afterwards to indicate him some photos, he was in a implausible temper. I’d by no means seen him that contented earlier than. With the entire build-up and preparation, he was thrilled that he had been capable of do the present, and he went out on an actual excessive.
There was a stunning second throughout the present. I used to be taking pictures it with my son Oliver, and at one level Ozzy noticed us each, pulled this good facial features together with his arms within the air and burst out laughing. Proper in entrance of our eyes he became the Ozzy that you simply wished him to be. As soon as I had that shot, I actually didn’t want anything. It was used all around the world. However extra importantly it was an exquisite private second for Oliver and myself.
Ozzy was in such a fantastic temper at Villa Park, there was an aftershow drinks reception and he went alongside. These are the sort of issues that Ozzy would usually keep away from just like the plague, he’s straight again to the resort. However there he was, speaking to folks and entering into the spirit of issues. Him doing that was little in need of superb, and it stated so much.
It’s been a few days since Ozzy died and whereas it was apparent that he was fairly unwell, I’m nonetheless shocked. I assumed he’d outlive all of us.
Ozzy knew that he was beloved, however he was surprised by the viewers in Birmingham and would have been utterly surprised by the response to his passing. I imply, they gave him the primary 10 minutes on the ten o’clock information. Not only a transient point out, however 10 entire minutes. And it was a world factor, proper the world over – there have been candles on his star on Hollywood Boulevard and tons and tons of flowers on the Black Sabbath Bridge in Brum.
Had he recognized about all of it, Ozzy would have felt as particular as one among his beloved Beatles. And that’s an exquisite factor
