The one album Ozzy Osbourne has always hated
Earning the nickname the ‘Prince of Darkness’ clearly conveys the kind of life Ozzy Osbourne has led. A metal pioneer who is no stranger to controversy, he rivals even Keith Richards with his hell-raising antics and tendency to push his body to the limit. Osbourne, it goes without saying, has blurred the line between fact and fiction more than any other musician.
As far as rock memoirs go, Osbourne’s I Am Ozzy is one of the finest. A compelling read from start to finish, characterised by the wry humour of his native Birmingham, it puts a first-hand twist on some of the Black Sabbath frontman’s most notorious exploits and brings to light many others that had been sat deep in the depths of his wild mind for decades.
While it clearly outlined his natural tendency for causing havoc, the book also humanised Osbourne, going far beyond the myth and undoing the loveable but dithering character new fans came to love in the reality TV show The Osbournes. It discusses his background, complex ideas, and regrets, of which there are many, a natural byproduct of living so hard.
While Osbourne has a long list of personal remorses, including his undying sadness about the tragic loss of young guitarist and friend Randy Rhoads, the man he credits with giving him “purpose” following his departure from Black Sabbath, he also has a few misgivings about specific releases.
There aren’t many greats who can claim to have had no misfires. The Rolling Stones, for example, produced their share while battling their own appetite for destruction. Even the world’s most influential band, The Beatles—whom Osbourne loves—released the much-maligned Beatles for Sale in 1964. Similarly, fellow metal pioneers Led Zeppelin, widely credited with establishing one of the most infallible oeuvres in guitar music, were not strangers to disdain. Their bold third album, Led Zeppelin III, was trashed upon its release for instituting stark stylistic changes.
When you consider the broadly unfeasible reality of constantly being at your A-game, mixed with drugs, alcohol, and changing listener tastes, it’s absolutely understandable that Osbourne’s career has oscillated in terms of artistic output. After releasing 13 solo albums and nine with Black Sabbath, he’s done remarkably well to produce so much lauded material, all things considered.
As with any prolific artist, there’s always a nadir that leaves them rueing. For Osbourne, this is 1986’s The Ultimate Sin, his least favourite from his solo arc. A double-platinum selling effort, producing the hit single ‘Shot in the Dark’, it was the second and final of his albums to feature guitarist Jake E. Lee and the last with bassist Phil Soussan, who co-wrote the hit. Significantly, it included the fire of drummer Randy Castillo for the first time, who performed on five records with the Black Sabbath icon.
Osbourne has stated that his problem with The Ultimate Sin is Ron Nevison’s unusual production technique. “Ron Nevison didn’t really do a great production job,” he told Rolling Stone in 2019. “The songs weren’t bad; they were just put down weird. Everything felt and sounded the fucking same. There was no imagination.”
Adding: “If there was ever an album I’d like to remix and do better, it would be The Ultimate Sin.”
It might have been dark and gothic, but the album was a lightweight version of Black Sabbath, Osbourne maintained. There’s no reason he hates it; you simply cannot replicate the style of the ‘Paranoid’ group, same vocalist or not.
