Farewell, Ozzy

Today, Ozzy announced what we've all known for several years: because of his advancing age, declining health and lifetime of unhealthy lifestyle, he has cancelled all of his future tour dates and finally admitted that his touring days are over. While this doesn't come as a shock, it is still the end of an era.

We were lucky to have been able to see him several times, and although he was already past his prime he always put on a great show, despite his obvious shortcomings. His voice wasn't always in pitch, his timing was sometimes off, and his stage presence was goofy at best. But this is why we love him: he might be known as the Prince of Darkness, but in fact he's just a bloke from Birmingham who just happened to make it big.

His biggest talent has always been knowing how to surround himself. And perhaps that was more Sharon's talent. But the music he recorded, whether it be with Black Sabbath or his solo career, will always be some of the greatest, most exhilarating stuff to come out of the Metal scene.

Will he be able to play sporadic dates here and there? His press release seems to imply that this is the plan but I find that hard to believe. Will he be recording more music? Possibly, and his latest album was a great return to form. But for all intents and purposes, this is the end of Ozzy's musical career, and rock fans the world over will be shedding a tear as that realization sets in. He's more than earned his retirement, and he now deserves to live the rest of his life as comfortably as he can, without being paraded on a stage he no longer belongs on like a Heavy Metal version of Weekend At Bernie's.

This is probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to share with my loyal fans… pic.twitter.com/aXGw3fjImo
— Ozzy Osbourne (@OzzyOsbourne) February 1, 2023