Black Sabbath Bassist Recalls Final Gig and 57-Year Friendship with Ozzy Osbourne: ‘I Wasn't Prepared to See How Frail He Was'
While the world mourns the Prince of Darkness Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath's Terence 'Geezer' Butler is mourning the 'Prince of Laughter' — his friend and bandmate of nearly six decades.
Just weeks after the curtains closed on the pioneering rock band's final gig together, frontman Osbourne died at age 76 on July 22. Now, in an essay for The Sunday Times, the bassist, 76, pulled back the curtain on his '57 incredible years of friendship' with Osbourne — from the band's formation to its farewell concert.
The Birmingham native, who formed Black Sabbath in 1968 alongside Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward, began the tribute by detailing his and Osbourne's long history with Villa Park.
Butler and Osbourne both grew up near the Birmingham soccer stadium. In 2024, the stadium's team, Aston Villa, reunited the rockers for an ad. (Prior to the spot, Butler 'hadn't seen or spoken to Ozzy since Black Sabbath's The End tour in 2017,' he said.)
'So it was quite fitting, for Ozzy and Black Sabbath to end the long journey from our beginning in 1968 to our final show back in Aston at Villa Park, on July 5," he wrote.
Still, Butler added, 'I didn't realize then that I would never see Ozzy again after that night.'
Rehearsals for the final gig, Butler said, began a month out, with just himself, Iommi and Ward to start — and they were a bit rough at first. 'Then it was time for Ozzy to join us,' he explained.
'I knew he wasn't in good health, but I wasn't prepared to see how frail he was,' the bassist recalled in the essay. 'He was helped into the rehearsal room by two helpers and a nurse and was using a cane — being Ozzy, the cane was black and studded with gold and precious stones.'
'He didn't really say much beyond the usual greetings, and when he sang, he sat in a chair,' Butler continued. 'We ran through the songs, but we could see it was exhausting him after six or seven songs. We had a bit of a chat, but he was really quiet compared with the Ozzy of old.'
But 'the strangest part of that show,' the bassist revealed, 'was the end.'
'Normally, we would all hug each other and take a bow to the audience,' Butler said. 'But Ozzy was on his throne and we hadn't thought that out. What do we do? Tony shook his hand, I presented him with a cake, but it was such a strange feeling to end our story like that. I wish I'd had more time backstage with Ozzy, but wishes are redundant now. As Ozzy used to say: 'Wish in one hand and shit in the other and see which comes first.' '
Butler also shared more insight into his relationship with the 'Crazy Train' singer, including their first time meeting, which doubles as the beginning of Black Sabbath's formation.
The band, originally called Earth, was 'the most incredible journey of our lives,' the bassist said. And it all began with Osbourne arriving barefoot on his doorstep, and Butler almost immediately declaring, 'Okay, you're in the band.'
Along with Iommi, 77, and Ward, 77, the foursome 'became inseparable brothers in arms,' Butler said, 'always looking out for each other.' There 'was always an invisible link between Ozzy, Tony, Bill and me,' he added in the emotional essay. 'We had gone through the best of times and the worst of times; the bond was unbreakable.'
'To me, Ozzy wasn't the Prince of Darkness — if anything, he was the Prince of Laughter. He'd do anything for a laugh, a born entertainer,' Butler wrote of Osbourne.
The rock legend's reputation as a 'feral wild man,' he added in the essay, did not detract from the fact that he 'had a heart of pure gold.'
'Most of his infamous antics — the bat saga, biting the head off a dove, pissing on the Alamo, snorting lines of ants, and the rest — came in his solo years, away from the restraints of the Sabbath crew,' Butler said. 'But if you were a friend in need, Ozzy was always there for you.'
When Butler's son 'was born with a heart defect,' he offered as an example, 'Ozzy called me every day to see how I was coping, even though we hadn't spoken for a year.'
'Nobody knew he'd be gone from us little more than two weeks after the final show. But I am so grateful we got to play one last time together in front of his beloved fans,' the bassist wrote. 'The love from the fans and all the bands, musicians, singers and solo artists that night was incredible. Everyone had come to pay homage to the Prince.'
'I am so privileged to have spent most of my life with him,' he continued. 'Of course, there are millions of things I will think of that I should have written, but how can I sum up 57 incredible years of friendship in a few paragraphs? God bless, Oz, it has been one hell of a ride! Love you!'
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All three of Osbourne's Black Sabbath bandmates shared heartfelt tributes to the beloved rocker following his death, with Iommi writing, 'It's just such heartbreaking news that I can't really find the words, there won't ever be another like him.'
Meanwhile, Ward wrote, in part: 'Where will I find you now? In the memories, our unspoken embraces, our missed phone calls, no, you're forever in my heart.'
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