The most rock and roll thing about Ozzy Osbourne was his defence of Israel

Telegraph

3 days ago

Ozzy Osbourne bit the head off a bat, table danced at the White House, spent time in jail, and took enough drugs to have killed him several times over. But perhaps the wildest thing he did was stand up for Israel at a time when fashion dictates that celebrating her enemies is the coolest thing in pop.
Bands like Kneecap and Massive Attack like to talk about 'being cancelled' for 'speaking up for Palestine'. But brandishing a Palestine flag is de rigeur on rock stages: instead of being cancelled, those who do it enjoy the publicity and self-satisfaction of appearing to be martyrs sticking it to the establishment.
In reality, it is people who are Jewish – such as the band Oi Va Voi, or the Israeli rock singer Dudu Tassa whose performances with Jonny Greenwood were cancelled after pressure from anti-Israel activists – who are the real victims here. They are just two examples of a silencing of Jewish musicians for the crime of simply existing.
The fact that barely a soul in the music industry had anything to say about the 378 young people killed at the Nova music festival on October 7 – and that the following summer acts at festivals across the world were celebrating those who had killed them – tells you everything about where the real cancellation is taking place.
Ozzy had a choice – he was not Jewish – and yet still he chose to still stick up for Jews and for Israel. Towards the end of his life this man who had never been political – he once said, 'I try to stay away from politics. They don't understand me and I don't understand them' – was the most famous name on a letter from the creative industry to the BBC demanding an open inquiry into 'systemic bias against Israel' by the corporation.
At his final concert, just a few weeks ago, he invited fellow rocker David Draiman, a Jew and a Zionist, onto stage with him. There were a few boos, but they were far outnumbered by the cheers as the man Draiman yesterday called 'my teacher…a father to all of us…a friend' gave his blessing and support to someone who has faced multiple death threats.
Yesterday the demons of social media were out and about revelling in the death of this 'ultra-Zionist' – his other crime was daring to play in Israel not just once but twice, defying the BDS-hatred orchestrated by Roger Waters and his ilk.
But he was someone who really didn't care that much what people thought other than his beloved wife Sharon. It is through Sharon that Ozzy became aware of anti-Semitism. Her father Don Arden had changed his name from Harry Levy to escape anti-Semitism. But, of course, you cannot escape it.
She said in a Jewish News interview that Ozzy was continuously asking her the question: 'Why don't people like Jews?' It is the same question every Jewish parent has to discuss with their child as they learn about our tribe's history.
'The ugliness I hear from men and women is abhorrent,' Sharon said of anti-Semitism. 'Ozzy is so confused by it all and just keeps asking me to explain why there is so much hatred of Jews. What do I say?'
Ozzy wasn't always a good husband to Sharon. He was serially unfaithful. Their rows became so violent that at one point in 1989 – after drinking four bottles of vodka – he tried to strangle her and faced an attempted murder charge. She took him back only after he went to rehab for three months.
By the time the world got to meet the eccentric pair in their groundbreaking reality show, 'The Osbournes', Ozzy was an adoring foul-mouthed puppy who seemed lost without his wife.
Ozzy Osbourne was an unlikely and deeply flawed hero. Who could have guessed that the man who some believed to be a satanist – he always laughed at this – would also have a touch of angel about him too?