(AP) – Ozzy Osbourne, the brooding and demonic-voiced frontman of the pioneering band Black Sabbath, who became heavy metal’s gravelly, guttural voice—and the drug- and alcohol-ravaged leader of the genre—died on Tuesday, just weeks after his farewell performance. He was 76.
A family statement read: “With more sadness than words can express, we have to inform you that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family’s privacy at this time.” In 2020, he revealed that he had Parkinson’s disease after suffering a fall.
Whether clad in black or with his torso bared, the singer was frequently the target of criticism by parent groups for his image and once sparked a scandal by biting the head off a bat. Later, he would emerge as a clumsy but affectionate father on the reality show “The Osbournes.”
Black Sabbath’s self-titled debut album from 1969 has been described as the Big Bang of heavy metal. It appeared at the height of the Vietnam War, puncturing the hippie party and revealing menace and omen. The album cover featured a spooky figure set against a desolate landscape. The music was loud, dense, and angry, and it signaled a shift in rock ’n’ roll.
The band’s second record, “Paranoid,”Included metal staples such as “War Pigs,” “Iron Man,” and “Fairies Wear Boots.” The track “Paranoid” only climbed to No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100, but in many respects it became the band’s emblematic song. Both albums were voted among the top ten heavy metal albums of all time by Rolling Stone readers.
Dave Navarro of Jane’s Addiction wrote in a 2010 tribute in Rolling Stone: “Black Sabbath are the Beatles of heavy metal. Whatever anyone who’s serious about metal will tell you, it all comes down to Sabbath. There’s a direct line you can trace from today’s metal, through eighties bands like Iron Maiden, back to Sabbath.”
