The original Black Sabbath – Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward – will perform together for the first time in 20 years when they take to the stage to headline the sold-out Back To The Beginning event on July 5 at Villa Park in Birmingham, England.
The all-star event will celebrate the true creators of heavy metal and will see Ozzy – who is battling Parkinson’s Disease – play his own short set before joining with Black Sabbath for his final bow. All profits will go to the following charities: Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice, a Children’s Hospice supported by Aston Villa.
Back To The Beginning will feature sets from Slayer, Metallica, Pantera, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Gojira, Halestorm, Alice In Chains, Lamb Of God, Anthrax, Mastodon and Rival Sons.
The all-day event will also feature a supergroup of musicians. Artists include Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), David Draiman (Disturbed), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit), Jake E Lee, Jonathan Davis (Korn), K.K. Downing, Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), Mike Bordin (Faith No More), Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot), Sammy Hagar, Scott Ian (Anthrax), Sleep Token II (Sleep Token), Papa V Perpetua (Ghost), Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine), Wolfgang Van Halen, Zakk Wylde, Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), David Ellefson (Megadeth), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Whitfield Crane (Ugly Kid Joe), and Andrew Watt.
During a recent interview with Terrie Carr of New Jersey based rock radio station WDHA 105.5 FM, bassist Rudy Sarzo – who played for Ozzy Osbourne from 1981 to 1982 – revealed how he was first approached to take part in Back To The Beginning.
Rudy Sarzo: “I happened to be on the road with Quiet Riot, playing some casino in the west — in Idaho, I believe — and I just finished having lunch with our guitar player Alex (Grossi). And I got a text from Tom Morello. This was around October, November (of 2024). It’s been in the works quietly behind (the scenes) for a year and a half by the time that it got confirmed last month. But going back to me getting that text, I’m reading it and it’s basically, ‘Hi, Rudy. Tom (here). Sharon and Ozzy asked me to see if you were available and wanted to participate in this event.’ And at that moment, for so many reasons, it was like time stood still and brought me back, like, 40 years. So after I got out that trance, I immediately said, ‘Yes. Of course.’ And then he answers, ‘Okay, great. I’ll let Sharon and Ozzy know.’ So that was back in November, October. And I didn’t tell anybody except I told Alex, because not only is he our guitar player, he also works with the booking agency that books Quiet Riot. And he understood that this had to be kept quiet. ‘Don’t tell anybody, but this is going on. And the reason why mainly I’m telling you, Alex, is because I need to block that date.’ So I told him far in advance in 2024 about this 2025, July 5th event that I was asked to participate. And then I told my wife. And that’s it. I didn’t tell anybody else. I just kept going on with everything that I was doing. Then I ran into Tom Morello at the Ronnie James Dio bowling event (in November 2024). And I said, ‘Is everything still on?’ And he said, ‘Yeah. It’s still on. And then fast forward to when the announcement happened. About a week before the announcement, I got a call from the person who’s organizing it through Live Nation in the U.K. to confirm me participating. And I, of course, said, ‘Yes. I’m there.’ So that’s when it became confirmed, official that this was gonna happen. And he told me, ‘Okay, don’t say anything until this day at this time that Sharon (Osbourne) and Tony (Iommi) are gonna make the announcement on social media.’ And I said, ‘Yep. You got it.’ And that’s how it happened.”
“I’ve had time to really digest it, internalize it. The honor that it is to be a part of this and the true meaning of the event. For me, I’m doing it to be able to show my gratitude, but in reality it’s also a celebration of the tribes. It’s the union of all the heavy metal tribes gathering to pay homage to Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne, because a lot of those bands actually opened up for Ozzy when they were just an opening band, the ones that are going to participate, from Metallica to Alice In Chains, maybe even Slayer, because they were part of Ozzfest — all these bands that were part of Ozzfest and all of that, not just opening up for Ozzy as a solo artist, but also from Ozzfest. And in addition to that, they are the architects of the music that we play, of our genre of music, heavy metal. And I got to play not only Ozzy’s music with Ozzy, I also got to play Black Sabbath music with Ozzy when I recorded Speak Of The Devil. So I am very versed, very educated in all things Geezer Butler.”
The post RUDY SARZO Has Known About Final BLACK SABBATH / OZZY OSBOURNE Concert Since Last October appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
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The all-star event will celebrate the true creators of heavy metal and will see Ozzy – who is battling Parkinson’s Disease – play his own short set before joining with Black Sabbath for his final bow. All profits will go to the following charities: Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice, a Children’s Hospice supported by Aston Villa.
Back To The Beginning will feature sets from Slayer, Metallica, Pantera, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Gojira, Halestorm, Alice In Chains, Lamb Of God, Anthrax, Mastodon and Rival Sons.
The all-day event will also feature a supergroup of musicians. Artists include Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), David Draiman (Disturbed), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit), Jake E Lee, Jonathan Davis (Korn), K.K. Downing, Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), Mike Bordin (Faith No More), Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot), Sammy Hagar, Scott Ian (Anthrax), Sleep Token II (Sleep Token), Papa V Perpetua (Ghost), Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine), Wolfgang Van Halen, Zakk Wylde, Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), David Ellefson (Megadeth), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Whitfield Crane (Ugly Kid Joe), and Andrew Watt.
During a recent interview with Terrie Carr of New Jersey based rock radio station WDHA 105.5 FM, bassist Rudy Sarzo – who played for Ozzy Osbourne from 1981 to 1982 – revealed how he was first approached to take part in Back To The Beginning.
Rudy Sarzo: “I happened to be on the road with Quiet Riot, playing some casino in the west — in Idaho, I believe — and I just finished having lunch with our guitar player Alex (Grossi). And I got a text from Tom Morello. This was around October, November (of 2024). It’s been in the works quietly behind (the scenes) for a year and a half by the time that it got confirmed last month. But going back to me getting that text, I’m reading it and it’s basically, ‘Hi, Rudy. Tom (here). Sharon and Ozzy asked me to see if you were available and wanted to participate in this event.’ And at that moment, for so many reasons, it was like time stood still and brought me back, like, 40 years. So after I got out that trance, I immediately said, ‘Yes. Of course.’ And then he answers, ‘Okay, great. I’ll let Sharon and Ozzy know.’ So that was back in November, October. And I didn’t tell anybody except I told Alex, because not only is he our guitar player, he also works with the booking agency that books Quiet Riot. And he understood that this had to be kept quiet. ‘Don’t tell anybody, but this is going on. And the reason why mainly I’m telling you, Alex, is because I need to block that date.’ So I told him far in advance in 2024 about this 2025, July 5th event that I was asked to participate. And then I told my wife. And that’s it. I didn’t tell anybody else. I just kept going on with everything that I was doing. Then I ran into Tom Morello at the Ronnie James Dio bowling event (in November 2024). And I said, ‘Is everything still on?’ And he said, ‘Yeah. It’s still on. And then fast forward to when the announcement happened. About a week before the announcement, I got a call from the person who’s organizing it through Live Nation in the U.K. to confirm me participating. And I, of course, said, ‘Yes. I’m there.’ So that’s when it became confirmed, official that this was gonna happen. And he told me, ‘Okay, don’t say anything until this day at this time that Sharon (Osbourne) and Tony (Iommi) are gonna make the announcement on social media.’ And I said, ‘Yep. You got it.’ And that’s how it happened.”
“I’ve had time to really digest it, internalize it. The honor that it is to be a part of this and the true meaning of the event. For me, I’m doing it to be able to show my gratitude, but in reality it’s also a celebration of the tribes. It’s the union of all the heavy metal tribes gathering to pay homage to Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne, because a lot of those bands actually opened up for Ozzy when they were just an opening band, the ones that are going to participate, from Metallica to Alice In Chains, maybe even Slayer, because they were part of Ozzfest — all these bands that were part of Ozzfest and all of that, not just opening up for Ozzy as a solo artist, but also from Ozzfest. And in addition to that, they are the architects of the music that we play, of our genre of music, heavy metal. And I got to play not only Ozzy’s music with Ozzy, I also got to play Black Sabbath music with Ozzy when I recorded Speak Of The Devil. So I am very versed, very educated in all things Geezer Butler.”
The post RUDY SARZO Has Known About Final BLACK SABBATH / OZZY OSBOURNE Concert Since Last October appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
Continue reading...
