We all know about Ozzy's TV shenanigans , his wife and kids and bat heads nonsense but can we squint past the embarrassing side of all that and have a discussion about Ozzy's albums.
For me his first two are metal classics yet its Bark at the moon I return to the most now. I've also a soft spot for the Ultimate Sin. Tribute is fantastic.
The first two are 100% classics, without question. I think the Jake albums are patchy. Some bangers but some duds too. I've a lot of time for No Rest... I think it's really good. No More Tears misses Daisley's lyrics. Ozzmosis is where me and Ozz part ways. It's ok every few years. Everything after is utter shite.
First 2, Ultimate Sin and No More Tears with a few tracks from Ozzmosis.
Seeing just how flat Maynard Keenan was at the recent rock hall thjng while doing Crazy Train shows just how charismatic Ozzys voice is/was.
Sure the music has been just as laughable as the TV shows for around three decades now.
First two are obvious classics, but that's got fuck all to do with Ozzy Osbourne.
Bar the odd song here and there I never thought much of his solo stuff. I could probably go through his discography and put together a CD's worth of listenable tracks.
Love the Bark At The Moon to No More Tears run of albums.
Ozzmosis has a few decent songs but it was truly a case of his missus flogging the dead horse (and fucking over the classic lineups) for the last 30 years.
Blizzard of Ozz is definitely one of my all time favourite albums. I do like Dairy and No Rest plus a few songs of Ozzmosis. Tribute is great as well. Anything I have owned I have sold one as it did nothing for me.
Quote from: Anvil on January 10, 2025, 01:14:09 PMBlizzard of Ozz is definitely one of my all time favourite albums. I do like Dairy and No Rest plus a few songs of Ozzmosis. Tribute is great as well. Anything else I have owned I have sold on as they did nothing for me.
50/50
Up to and including "No More Tears" = Some really good stuff across the board
Everything after "No More Tears" = Fairly shite
The only album of his I fully and totally connected with was Bark at the Moon, which was the first I heard. I love them American string sections in particular, e.g. on Spiders. Everything else, which I'm not super familiar with, I found patchy enough that I never went back. I think the problem with his solo work, especially as it went on, was that it always felt like a manufactured band, which, of course, it was.
Saw a recent interview with Alex Scolnick that he lost a spot in Ozzys band because he played his guitar up too high. Sharon didn't like that he didn't look like Zakk!
Just remembered: Rob Halford did a cool little homage to Ozzy on Invincible Shield. He even had the rhyming really shitty n' all.
What do you mean shitty rhyming? Nothing on this earth rhymes as closely with "Masses" as "Masses" does :laugh:
The 1st Ozzy album I taped off a buddy was the Randy Rhoads Tribute
I had heard a handful of Sabbath songs by that stage – Paranoid, Iron Man, something else
Tribute was incredible
Then got hold of Speak of the Devil
That was my 1st intro to Sabbath (besides the early hits)
2 completely different styles
I couldn't get over how a singer, even though in 2 different bands, could sound so different! (oh the innocence. I was 15)
I was drawn to both of them naturally enough!
My favourite Ozzy would be, in no order:
Blizzard / Diary / Bark (atm Bark would edge the other 2, slightly; it was Diary for a good few years; I've overplayed Blizzard - need a break!)
Then No More / Ultimate / No Rest (Ultimate might edge the other 2)
Never bothered with the rest of it
I will eventually 😊
The ultimate sin is my favourite Izzy solo album.
Jake E Lee Ozzy > Rhodes Ozzy
Same here, first one I heard and also nearly got banished from the house for having a laminated poster of it on the wall as a kid, well, a close up of Ozzy's serpent tongued face.
Jake once said "the only difference between me and Randy Rhoads is that I can play all of his solos but he can't play mine"
Not a classic by any stretch. but Down to Earth is a half decent late-=career album. Realistically it's just a BLS album with Ozzy singing, but there's a few satisfying riffs and leads on there. Though it did have that one terrible ballad-y single that I forget the name of...
But yeah, first two are by far the best. You can hear where Dimebag lifted a lot of his tricks from on Diary of a Madman.
Quote from: Mooncat on January 10, 2025, 07:49:22 PMBut yeah, first two are by far the best. You can hear where Dimebag lifted a lot of his tricks from on Diary of a Madman.
There's a few traces of Rhodes bits in some of the really early Dime stuff, but he lifted way more off Warren DeMartini Martini & George Lynch.
Another vote for The ULTIMATE SIN album #1, Bark at the Moon #2.
First two are superb, and two of my favourite albums ever. Such a great band. I like lots of what followed, but the consistency was never as strong.
Everything up to No More Tears is great, in my opinion. Gets fair patchy after that.
Quote from: leatherface on January 11, 2025, 02:07:46 PMAnother vote for The ULTIMATE SIN album #1
I'll always have a soft spot for that one due to the Boris Vallejo cover art.
I think No Rest For The Wicked is probably the top one for me at the moment.
Tribute was the first Ozzy album I heard, then Blizzard and Diary. Seeing Miracle Man on Super channel with Zakk(who reminded me of John Sykies at the time) and then buying Wicked in HMV and Ozzy on the Moscow Peace festival was a huge impact on me as a teen. I skipped over the Jake years at first but I managed to pick up the albums and appreciate them as much as the others. I met Ozzy twice once back stage and once in a private signing room. Me Ozzy and two others which was a bit mental.
No more tears was okay but at the time I was getting into heavier sounds . He's had a few good songs after 92 but a lot of fillers.it will be a sad day when he goes for a hop.
I remember when Ultimate Sin came out in 86, Smash Hits featured his tour in Japan mad stuff Ted he was really almost mainstream for a while.
Quote from: Don Gately on January 13, 2025, 11:31:07 AMI remember when Ultimate Sin came out in 86, Smash Hits featured his tour in Japan mad stuff Ted he was really almost mainstream for a while.
I vaguely recall there was a poster too as one of the cousins had it.
Almost? He's been mainstream for about 40 years.
Quote from: The Great Cull on January 10, 2025, 06:33:00 PMJake once said "the only difference between me and Randy Rhoads is that I can play all of his solos but he can't play mine"
Not sure I'd agree that's the only difference :laugh:
I like Jake E. Lee, and he's right that he's more technical than Randy, but I'd take Randy Rhoads any day. He just has that 'it' thing to his playing. Incredible solos.