Ozzy Osbourne's relationship with original Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward has been tumultuous at best. By now, everybody knows the story: In 2011, Black Sabbath announced they would be reuniting for a new album and tour. Not too long after, Bill Ward bowed out of the reunion citing financial reasons. The band went on without him, recording a new album and hitting the road for a final tour.
With Ozzy having a bit of a health scare earlier this year, he said he would hear from guitarist Tony Iommi every day, but according to a new interview with The Sun, other founding members Ward and bassist Geezer Butler have yet to reach out.
The comment started when Ozzy talked about how Elton John helped motivate him to get out of bed, and then Ozzy moved on to discussing all the fellow musicians that have since reached out, finally adding he was surprised his own bandmates didn't:
“Elton told me to get off the couch and start walking, which was what I needed, as I couldn’t move off it for months.
“He was right. Elton is a sweetheart. He has phoned me throughout all this. He was at the house the other day with his two boys. They are great kids. They are such a good family. You would be surprised, when you are feeling miserable you find out who is a friend and who doesn’t give a shit.
“Slash, Jonathan Davis (Korn frontman) and Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath guitarist) have all called.
“Tony has called daily to ask how I’m feeling. That means so much when you can’t fucking move. I’ve not heard a thing from Geezer Butler or Bill Ward though, which is OK because you don’t have to call. But if it was any of them I’d be on the phone all the time.”
Ozzy has thankfully recovered and has since finished recording his new solo album. He worked with pop producer Andrew Watt – who Ozzy met while recording his guest spot on the new Post Malone album.
