Ozzy Osbourne Finally Becomes a Rock Hall Double-Inductee
Ozzy Osbourne became the latest double-inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame after he was finally recognized for his storied solo career.
Jack Black delivered animated remarks honoring The Prince of Darkness. He talked about a record store clerk telling him to buy Blizard of Ozz as a kid, instead of Styx or Journey. The purchase was life-changing for Black.
“When the needle hit the vinyl, heaven opened above me,” said Black. “…’Blizzard of Ozz’ was the best thing I’d ever heard!”
This led to Black getting into Black Sabbath, which led to him realizing, “Unholy sh-t! This motherf—er invented heavy metal!”
Black talked glowingly of Osbourne and said, “He looked so happy, he looked insane!” That smile made Black refer to him as “The Jack Nicholson of rock!”
Jabbles then listed other Ozzy accolades, like The Osbournes, which he referred to as, “Maybe the most evil thing he ever did.” And then, of course, there was the invention of Ozzfest, which led Black to say, “Ozzy, stop creating incredibly successful, genre-defining, world-changing hits! It’s too much success for one lifetime.”
A tribute video then played and featured the likes of Rick Rubin, Rob Halford, Mike McCready, Kirk Hammett, Zakk Wylde, Paul McCartney, Joe Elliott, and Post Malone.”
Sir Paul said in the video, “Ozzy is completely nuts, and that’s very good for a frontman. He just puts it out there and doesn’t give a sh-t.” Halford added, “He’s a loose cannon. There’s a kind of danger, because rock and roll should be dangerous. Elliott noted, “Ozzy Osbourne has got a voice so distinctive it doesn’t matter what he’s singing over, you know it’s him … He’s totally unique.”
Ozzy then took to the stage and was seated in an elegant gothic chair. He was clearly touched by the honor from the Rock Hall and said, “I f—ing love you guys … I can’t believe I’m here myself.”
The Prince of Darkness thanked his legions of fans by saying, “My fans have been so loyal over the years. I can’t thank them enough.” He also thanked the many talented musicians who have backed him over the years and gave a special shoutout to his first guitarist saying, “If I hadn’t have met Randy Rhoads, I don’t think I’d be sitting here.”
He closed by thanking his family saying, “My wife Sharon saved my life, and my grandbabies…I love them all.”
Ozzy yelled “All aboard!” to help kick off an all-star jam in his honor. First, Maynard James Keenan fronted the performance of “Crazy Train,” which featured Wolfgang Van Halen and Andrew Watt on guitar, Robert Trujillo on bass, and Chad Smith on drums. Then, Jelly Roll and guitarist Zakk Wylde emerged to perform “Mama I’m Coming Home.” Closing out the set and joining the jam were Billy Idol and guitarist Steve Stevens with “No More Tears.”
