Ozzy Osbourne may have not been the most important figure in rock n’ roll history, but the significance and impact he had on heavy metal cannot be understated. In his new two-disc compilation The Ozzman Cometh, Osbourne offers fans a chance to hear his more popular solo songs as well as some previously unreleased material on one album.
January 19, 1998
Though often dismissed as an artist simply focused on an image that was meant to deliberately shock (as if he really thought that bat he orally decapitated was rubber), it has been Osbourne’s songs, not any antics, that have made a name for the singer.
Crazy Train, Mr. Crowley, No More Tears and even the restrictive Mama, I’m Coming Home may only be classic rock radio staples to fans nowadays, but to Osbourne fans these songs represent the core of Ozzmania.
And that goes double for the live version of the Sabbath classic Paranoid with the phenomenal metal guitarist Randy Rhoads leading the onslaught. Osbourne’s vocal attack on the track shows his voice has never been manipulated by studio trickery.
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Another perk to the album is the early Sabbath basement recordings of War Pigs and Black Sabbath that sound like they were recorded with a microphone and a ghetto blaster.
Though it may be a tad self-indulgent for your average rock fan, The Ozzman Cometh is crucial for any Ozzy fan.
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