Legendary heavy metal rocker says farewell to live shows at packed UK performance

Around 40,000 fans and hard-rock royalty came together for an unforgettable homage to Ozzy Osbourne at what the heavy metal legend claims was his final live performance.

On Saturday, the original lineup of Osbourne’s band Black Sabbath played at Birmingham, central England’s Villa Park soccer stadium.

A black throne that raised up from beneath the stage was used by the 76-year-old singer, who has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

Let the chaos start! As he took the stage, he exhorted, and then he honored the fans.

I’ve been laid up for about six years, man, and I’m at a loss for words. Osbourne remarked, “You have no idea how I feel. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” All of you are unique. Come on, let’s get crazy.

Before Black Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi, Terence Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward joined him onstage for the first time in 20 years, Osbourne sang a number of songs alone. One of the band’s best-known tunes, “Paranoid,” closed out a brief performance.

Anthrax, Metallica, and Guns N Roses were among the bands that performed during the day-long metal festival. Elton John, Dolly Parton, and Jack Black were among the artists who extended their congratulations and best wishes.

John remarked, “You are among the most amazing vocalists of our time.” You are the legend and the king.

Birmingham, a city renowned for its heavy industries at the time and the birthplace of the British metal movement, is where Osbourne founded Black Sabbath in 1968. Black Sabbath was one of the most significant and frightening metal bands of the time because of its thunderous sound and devil imagery. Osbourne has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, as has the band.

When Osbourne joined his wife Sharon Osbourne and two of their kids on the MTV reality TV show The Osbournes in the early 2000s, his fame began to spread among the general public.

Since a near-fatal quad bike accident in 2003, he has battled health problems. In 2020, he disclosed that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and following spinal surgery in 2023, he stopped touring.

The Associated Press

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