Many moons ago my best friend and I were discussing our favorite bands of all time, and he corrected me on the number of Ozzy Sabbath albums there were. Embarrassingly I had never heard two of them, “Technical Ecstasy” and “Never Say Die!” My friend’s advice was this, “go deeper.” So, I went and listened to “Never Say Die!” Honestly, it is a fairly mediocre album, the title track although is really great.
I may have already told this story before. I have been writing this blog for years, these things happen. What I have never talked about before however is the title track from “Never Say Die!” Also, a cold sweat just passed over me as I write this, because it dawns of me, I never got around to listening to “Technical Ecstasy;” and I call myself a Sabbath and Ozzy fan.
Obviously, there is something raw and fantastic about Ozzy Osbourne instructing his follows to never submit to death. Granted it is easy to say something like this in hindsight. In 1978 Tony Iommi and the boys had their hands full with problems. Those problems mostly being drugs and alcohol. Their hands were full of drugs and alcohol. Amazingly those drugs never killed any of them. This is the first incident of Ozzy and friends refusing to die that most of us are aware of.. When you stop to recall the tales of just how much drugs and alcohol was consumed, it is actually a very impressive feat.
As established previously on this blog, the spirit of rock and roll is revolution and rebellion. We have not yet established the best base motivator for metal, but it would be similar, but more aggressive. Maybe the spirit of metal is power and defiance. I never really think of Black Sabbath as metal, but they are not exactly classic rock, I tend to lean towards calling them hard rock. Whatever genres, who cares. The only value in this preamble is for me to point out that Black Sabbath are something of a bridge between rock and roll and metal, and as such, revolution and defiance are both present attitudes in many of their songs. When applied to “Never Say Die!” it is almost perfect.
We all know what happens after 1978. Ozzy leaves Black Sabbath and has an amazing solo career, and it would be many years later in 2013 when Ozzy would return for the album 13. However, for a long, time, thirty-five years approximately, “Never Say Die!” was the last the world would hear of Sabbath and Ozzy together. It all sorted of worked metaphorically really well; Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne continued to make music and be successful. The proclamation to never die was strong in the rock metal world which these musicians occupied. Whether together or not, they were never going to succumb to death. You know until everyone involved eventually dies, because none of us have figured out how to get past that yet.
Rock and roll will never die. Neil Young said it, and he is trustworthy in these matters. Metal and hard rock, really music in general, will never die. But perfect delivery of this message is achieved when set in a metal setting and delivered by metal gods Black Sabbath, especially, and this would never work the same or as well without him, Ozzy Osbourne. Seriously, now many times should Ozzy Osbourne have died by now, and he is still going. So maybe the answer is never. Maybe Ozzy Osbourne will never die. He said as much, and he keeps proving himself right even when it seemed like maybe he would not. It would be great if someone figured out the whole never dying thing and if it turned out to be Ozzy, I would be very happy about that.
Now the least interesting part of my rambles, how I think and or feel about the song. We all must survive some unpleasant, and frequently unexpected tribulations. This is just the human condition and none of us can escape it. However, for me, I know it is at least a little different; it is not worth talking about, just an endless series of cuts for others to misunderstand, but understand this, when Ozzy commands us to “never say die” I cannot help but take it as a personal instruction. So, you can understand why I can so easily connect to Black Sabbath’s “Never Say Die,” for I have the will to never die; like for real. Naturally I do not like my chances of managing the whole immortality thing, but even in my most private thoughts that confidence is never shaken. Like Ozzy I will not go easily, I too say to death “never.”
Black Sabbath being one of the greatest musical groups of all time, notably with Ozzy, there is nearly infinite reasons to enjoy them. “Never Say Die!” gives me a little something extra, and I suspect I am not alone in that.
When I was a kid discovering music I was drawn primarily to classic rock from the sixties and seventies, and one of my first loves was Black Sabbath. Like most young men of my time I feel in love with Black Sabbath through the songs I heard on the radio, their big hits like “Paranoid,” “Iron Man” and “War Pigs.” For the longest time my affinity for Black Sabbath resided entirely on the “Paranoid” album, the only CD of theirs I owned for a long time. Back in my youth I was very dependent on the radio and friends to introduce music to me, and without the sufficient funds it was often a gamble to buy a whole album without first knowing what was on it, I needed a hook, I needed an incentive, and for me in my dire need to expand my Black Sabbath catalogue the next step was introduced by Sabbath’s fourth big radio hit, at least where I live, “The Wizard.”
“The Wizard” is basically a perfect song for young me’s sensibilities. It had a highly unique intro that my brother and I could recognize after only the first note during a trivia contest (true story). It had blues influence which tied in with my love of the music of that time, most notably Led Zeppelin. The harmonica is a fantastic and underused music instrument. The distortion on Toni Iommi’s guitar is the exact amount necessary to create a unique sound that is catchy and fun and does not cross the line into distracting from the rhythm section. The song is about a wizard and fuck yeah wizards!
So without much hesitation the second Sabbath album young me purchased was their debut self titled album “Black Sabbath.” This was a good purchase, obviously, because the entire first half of the album is amazing with songs like “Black Sabbath,” “The Wizard” and “Behind the Wall of Sleep/N.I.B.” while the second half of the album is also really good. It was also a chronologically logical place to start discovering Black Sabbath, you know, at the beginning.
"Paranoid" and "The Wizard" that
would have been a really good single.
“The Wizard” is infinitely memorable. The way it opens with the long notes from the harmonica and allows Iommi, Ward and Butler to be introduced one at a time and then coming together in the first movement is... “magical.” It is probably the most blues inspired song by Sabbath and it gives a very unique sound even when compared to other Black Sabbath tracks. It is not a very heavy song, at least not by today’s standards but being “metal” does not by itself make a song good, style and pose; levels and variety of sound are “The Wizard’s” strong suites.
In many ways “The Wizard” is a silly song. Black Sabbath had a lot of intense songs about death, darkness, the devil and other dangerous themes beginning with a “d,” including dreams. So a song about a magic man making every one joyful with his presence is rather calm in comparison, but I like it. Not only is “The Wizard” a charming upbeat song it is very humorous when we pause to consider the lyrics.
The two immediate possible interpretations for “The Wizard” are literal and metaphorical; obviously, what other options do we have really? “The Wizard” is quite possibly, literally about a wizard spreading his magic and making everyone happy, or “The Wizard” could be, metaphorical be about a drug dealer spreading his unique form of “magic” and naturally making everyone happy. Judging from Ozzy’s attitude on both subjects I think it is fair to suggest that it is both, a wizard who is a drug dealer.
A psychedelic adventure?
It is often sited that, “The Wizard” is inspired by famous “The Lord of The Rings” sorcerer Gandalf the Grey. It is not too far of a stretch to imagine Gandalf as a drug dealer, after all he was found of the halfing’s leaf, and the whole walking by element fits well with Gandalf’s wandering ways. I think it is fun to imagine Gandalf as a haphazard drug dealer, spreading the joy of his “magic,” but truth be told I am not convinced Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard” is necessarily inspired by, or at all about, Gandalf the Grey. I think our cultural perceptions of the fantasy theme wizards are fundamentally inspired by Gandalf and Arthurian lore’s Merlin, so much so, that everything wizard related harkens back to them. So in a weird way every wizard, ever, is inspired by, or based on, Gandalf and/or Merlin, either directly or indirectly, but in this case I think the connection may be the later, indirect, and I do not know how much that really counts as being inspired by, or at all about, Gandalf, really.
Oh well, who cares? Gandalf selling pot is a great idea for a song and I am sure Ozzy would be happy if all just assumed “The Wizard” is about exactly that. That is what I like to believe anyway.
Image taken from some youtube video. I could have just as easily made my own, but I didn't.
The important thing is “The Wizard” is one of Sabbath’s most unique songs both in style and theme and in my humble one of their best. I hesitate to say “The Wizard” is my favorite Black Sabbath song, but only because Black Sabbath have so many great songs. In the end, I think “The Wizard” is my favourite, but perhaps that just my affinity for Gandalf and pot talking.
This year Black Sabbath released “13” their nineteenth studio album, you might have thought “13” was Black Sabbath’s thirteenth studio album, what being with the album being called “13” and all, but you would be wrong. This is a big deal. It is a big deal that Tony Iommi has kept the Black Sabbath spirit alive for the past forty three years and also managing to stay active the entire time. Producing nineteen albums is a testament to the longevity of Iommi’s, and to a somewhat lesser degree Geezer Butler’s, very successful careers; but that’s not what makes “13” a big deal. What makes “13” a big deal is Ozzy has returned.
“13” is the first Black Sabbath album featuring Ozzy Osbourne since “Never Say Die!” in 1978. In the thirty five years between “Never Say Die!” and “13” Tony Iommi, usually with Geezer Butler produced ten studio albums with various band members coming and going. The men who attempted to replace Ozzy include, Ronnie James Dio, Ian Gillan, Glen Hughes, Ray Gillen, and Tony Martin. Add in multiple bass players and drummers and you have Iommi’s Black Sabbath Odyssey pretty much summed up.
“Never Say Die!” was Black Sabbath eighth studio album and for the longest time presumed to be the last time the original line up of Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Ozzy Osbourne would be together as Black Sabbath. The reunion tour of Black Sabbath’s original line up, including Bill Ward on drums, in 1999 gave all of us hope, but most people, myself included, never thought we would see Ozzy record another studio album with Black Sabbath, and now that he has I believe it is accurate to declare “13” a big deal.
Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne and Geezer Butler.
These three badasses together again is a big deal.
I assume anticipation for Ozzy’s return to the Black Sabbath label would be high, atmospheric high, and “13” debuted as number one on the charts in most countries that matter (U.S., U.K., Canada, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, New Zealand etc.). Critical reviews appear to be universally positive and fans are happy. Funny thing though, no one in my social circle is talking about “13.” Also the only online news I have heard about “13” I had to actively hunt down, so maybe there is a reason for me to write something.
The first single off “13” is “God Is Dead?” Why the question mark? Dramatic rhetoric I think. “God Is Dead?” is a good song.
Black Sabbath - God is Dead?
The entire album is quite good, but no one track really jumped out and had me falling in love with it. It is a very common thing for aged musicians to get into a routine in regards to their creativity and song writing, and forty three years is a long time. I somewhat want to accuse Tony Iommi of being guilty of reproducing effectively the same handful of songs over and over again, even before Ozzy even left Black Sabbath, but I hesitate to make such a declaration because it’s freaking Black Sabbath. However “13” feels similar throughout its eight tracks and similar to classic Black Sabbath, and I have to wonder if this is why I have been hearing so little about “13.” It feels like Ozzy and Tony haven’t missed a beat since 1978’s “Never Say Die!” they have returned to the status quo and its business as usual, and that business is metal. “13” sounds and feels just like a seventies Black Sabbath album only thirty five years removed, which is exactly what a Black Sabbath fan would want, and the niche following Iommi possesses combined with the glory of the Prince of Darkness it exactly the sort of thing that would appease critics, so basically all parties are happy, but unfortunately it leaves me with little say beyond, “yeah ‘13’ was pretty good. If you like Ozzy and Sabbath you’ll enjoy it.”
And... yeah “13” was pretty good if you like Ozzy and Sabbath you’ll enjoy it.
When I write these reviews I like to pick out an individual song so for “13” I choose the first track on the album “End Of The Beginning” which is slightly my favorite song from “13.” I suspect the first track being titled “End Of The Beginning” is not a coincidence, though what that specifically entails I am not entirely certain. This eight minute hard rock song is quite the journey from beginning to end, there are multiple bridges and transitions that keep the song fresh and interesting the whole way through, and also something about the lyrics feels right, feels like a Black Sabbath song, as it should it be.
I also like the line of “You don’t want to be a robot ghost...” which always makes me laugh, because it reminds me of this guy:
A ghost trapped in a robot. He is Ghost Robot.
Venture Bros references aside let us conclude. “13” is likely to make Sabbath and Ozzy fans happy but lacking any profound innovation is likely to be largely ignored by the general populace as we are already seeing, neither of which says anything about the actual quality of the album which is about average for a Black Sabbath album, which in turn is well above average your average metal album. All eight songs are very good, none in particular stand out when compared to each other, “End Of The Beginning” is probably slightly the best one, so listen to it and then listen to the rest of the album. Iommi has always been awesome, Butler is one of the best bass players ever, and Ozzy still rules. Enough said.
Until next month keep on rocking in the free world.
The world was suppose to end in 2012. Disappointed? Here are twenty-seven songs to cheer you up.
REM – I’m Gonna DJ
According to the lyrics, REM singer Michael Stipe plans on DJing at the end of the world. An admirable goal if there ever was one.
Soundgarden – Black Hole Sun
Disjointed lyrics symbolizing the devil, sex, shame, death and according to everyone the end of the earth is mentioned somewhere in there too. I never liked Soundgarden or this song. I don’t hate Soundgarden and I don’t hate “Black Hole Sun,” but this is a very immature song and the only reason I am convinced it’s about the end of the world is it would follow from the dark themes blatantly brought up in the beginning. I may not love it, but it still counts as a song about the end of the world and it still makes the list.
Muse – Apocalypse Please
The end is coming but Muse is surprisingly hopefully about the whole ordeal. Something will “pull us through” and “change the course of history.” It’s a nice song, not Muse’s best, but a good one, and definitely one of the more optimistic songs on this list.
Josh Ritter – Temptation of Adam
“Temptation of Adam” is the first of many songs about world war three ending everything. Josh Ritter is a great guitarist and light rocker, and he can’t help himself but be romantic and sing about love even when the end of the world is coming. If you have ever heard Josh Ritter before you know what to expect here, it’s another heartfelt, well written, rock ballad, only this one is about the end of the world too.
Metallica – The Four Horsemen
“The Four Horsemen” of the apocalypse, that’s pretty straight forward. Metallica have a lot of songs about death, destruction and dismay, but this was the only song of theirs I could pinpoint as being specifically about the end of the world. Off of their first studio album “Kill ‘Em All,” like many musicians Metallica’s first album was their rawest, and I believe this was the album that focused the most around death, so how fitting their only true end of the world song be there.
Elvis Costello – Waiting for the end of the World
How do you cope with the end of the world? Understandably Elvis Costello would be somber and sad, he would also pray. There should be no surprise the biblical reference and hopeful prayers are a reoccurring theme on this list. If you believe all of that it would make sense to pray to god to save us since he would technically be the cause of the end as well as the beginning. “Dear lord I hope you coming, because you really started something,” there is a couple different ways to interpret that line.
Barry McGuire – Eve of Destruction
Barry McGuire? I thought this song was by the The Turtles, oh they covered it, McGuire wrote it, cool. There is maybe a dozen or more cold war and fear of the reds references in this song. This is the second song about the cold war or world war three ending the earth on this list. McGuire is politically topical in this song, he mentioned the reds in China, the space race, southern racism, and probably a bunch of other important events I am too young and/or ignorant to get. No wonder this song was so popular in the sixties.
Eels – End Times
The end is coming and no one realizes it, except Eels lead man Mark Oliver Everett, and now does Mark take the news? Reflections are made by drawing parallels between the “ends times” and “she is gone now,” how do most people deal with a lover gone, somber sadness and eventual acceptance; “I don’t feel nothing now, not even fear. Now that end times are here.” Very nice, arguably more of a poem then a song, if such a distinction exists.
The Thermals – Here’s Your Future
Arguably a song that is not about the end of the world, “Here’s Your Future” is more about biblical violence, but I cannot escape the feeling that god proclaiming “Here’s Your Future” after laying out the horrors of past biblical destruction wrought by him could imply anything other than the violent end of all things as describe in “Revelations.” The Thermals are a modern punk band, interpret that however you want, but “Here’s Your Future” is a fast hard hitting song that does a good job of depicting god as a bully killing us and torturing us with fear.
The Temper Trap – Soldier On
Best known of their hit song “Sweet Disposition,” not everyone knows Australia’s The Temper Trap have an entire good album in “Conditions.” The world is slowly dying and what we must do is soldier on. This song is awesome for a few reasons; first of all it is a really good song just in general, second the message to tough out the end of the world is just so badass. The Temper Trap is not a loud hard rock band so this message of incredible toughness and resolve is for some reason somewhat unexpected, it’s like stealth badassier, which is not a real word.
Pink Floyd – Two Suns in the Sunset
“Two Suns in the Sunset” is off of Pink Floyd’s twelfth studio “The Final Cut” (1983). The second sun rising in the east is meant to be the explosion of a nuclear bomb the sign of the beginning of the end. This is not the first song about nuclear war destroying everything on this list and it won’t be the last. This is Pink Floyd, the song is great, and if anything I’m surprised they don’t have more songs about the end of the world.
Tom Lehrer – We Will All go Together
Finally a funny song about the end of the world!
Tom Lehrer may have received an AB in Mathematics from Harvard where he lectured for several years but he most likely will be best remember for his witty commentaries about politics through song. Nuclear war is coming, but don’t fret we will all leave this world together like one big happy family. Sure puts things into perspective.
Nena – 99 Luftballoons
“99 Luftballons” is one of the best known popular radio songs that happen to be about the end of the world, and like any pop song with subtext most people don’t know what it’s about. What are the 99 red balloons? If you still have to ask after actually paying attention to the lyrics to this 1982 German pop song than you may be an idiot.
Credence Clearwater Revival – Bad Moon on the Rise
And all these years I thought this song was about werewolves. The appropriate inclusion of this song on the classic horror film “An American Werewolf in London” gave me and others the false impression that CCR front man John Fogerty had written “Bad Moon on the Rise” specifically for the movie, however in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine John Fogerty explained that the song was inspired by the movie “The Devil and Daniel Webster” in which a hurricane destroys a town. Fogerty thought it would be something if a storm destroyed more than just a town, how about the world. So that settles that, “Bad Moon on the Rise” is about the end of the world.
WWE – Armageddon Theme
Who could get forget promos with the Undertaker proclaiming himself the “angel of darkness and reaper of wayward souls,” or Triple H promising to stain New York City with Mick Foley’s blood? Ah the good old days of professional wrestling when the pretenses of it being real were replaced with overtop impossible characters and situations. Wrestlers have been predicting the end times since Wresltemania five when Hulk Hogan declared that when he and the Machoman Randy Savage battled the earth was going to open up and devour the audience and presumably the rest of the earth would be destroyed when the mega powers explode. As comical as wrestling has become there was something charming about the old Armageddon pay per views and how they advertised it as if the world would actually end because two strong men were going to wrestle, but what really sold those trailers was the song they used often called “The End.” I could not find any information about who wrote the song so I do not know who to credit, but whoever did write and perform this song was clearly influenced by The Doors, and their song “The End.” The voice sounds a little like Jim Morrison, the atmosphere of the song is forbidding and dark, and even the lyrics seem like something that would have fit in with the rest of The Doors end times song. Despite being created under very different circumstances the WWE Armageddon Theme has always sent chills down my spine.
Alan & Lande – Judgement Day
What happens when Symphony X guitarist Russell Alan and Gamma Ray/Masterplan lead singer Jorn Lande collaborate? We get great metal of course. To this day “Judgement Day” appears to be Alan & Lande’s biggest hit, and rightfully so, out of all the songs I have heard by the duo this is definitely my favorite. Once again we hear biblical references in this song and a sense of knowing what is to come. The message of this song seems to suggest that waking up surprised to find judgement day may be more of a consequence of misdeeds or lost spiritual awareness. All in all “Judgement Day” by Alan & Lande is a great song.
Morrisey – Everyday is like Sunday
I could argue that this song is not about the end of the world since it is set in a post apocalyptic setting, which would imply that the earth still exists and so does some remnants of humanity. However I would be probably be splitting hairs if I did that, and besides like I could resist putting this song on the list. World War Three has come and gone but here in the seaside town they forgot to bomb people linger on. Morrisey brings the severe sadness that is emo to the Armageddon in this song, and I suppose if there were ever a time to be morbidly sad it would be the end times, it is an appropriate fit and the end result is a very good song.
Perhaps the most famous end times song ever recorded. REM struck gold when they wrote “It’s the End of the World as we Know it,” a humorously fun and infections song accepting/celebrating the end of the world, as far as we know it anyway.
Black Sabbath – War Pigs
The war pigs in question are those pesky politicians that start wars and send men off to die, but when the ultimate war unfolds and we began the end of days what will god think of them? War Pigs is something of a combination of end of world themes insofar that there is a huge war destroying mankind and also the apocalypse foreseen in revelations. Just when you think the war couldn't possible get any worse the fucking four horse men show up.
Black Sabbath – Electric Funeral
Ozzy predicts if the four horsemen don’t get us first the nuclear bombs will. Like so many songs earlier on this list the end of the world comes in the form of nuclear war, but this song is the most “metal.”
The Rolling Stones – Gimmie Shelter
Not exactly a song about the end of the world since the song is about surviving in a post apocalyptic world, however as stated earlier for “Every Day is like Sunday” that’s close enough. This song would have made the top five since it maybe the best song on this list but since it is not explicitly about the end of the world it only gets sixth. On an additional side note this song always reminds me of Mad Max.
Johnny Cash – When the Man Comes Around
Revelations again. Johnny Cash is a badass and I like his method narrating, very matter of fact. I also like Cash’s word choice is referring to god as “the man,” as if god is more like some kind of badass alpha male/top hierarchy corporate political champion, and when he comes around... we’re fucked. When god comes to clean this mess up, he’s going to be pissed. It’s a fun story and a great song.
Zager and Evans – In the Year 2525
In the 2525, if man is still alive, and if woman can survive, they may find....
And so on we count the years while foretelling the strangeness of millenniums past, until everything is dead.
A song this high on the list deserves special attention, it gets a full review:
Out of all the upbeat songs about the end of world Prism’s “Armageddon” has to be the best. A unusual and truly unique song that wins the hearts of all who have ever heard it.
A song this high on the list deserves special attention, it gets a full review:
The ultimate end of the world song, The Doors “The End.” Not only is this song simply fantastic in quality and in poetry but it captures every possible interpretation and reaction to the end, not just the end of the earth, or the end of humanity, this is the end of everything.
A song this high on the list deserves special attention, it gets a full review:
This is the greatest song about the end of the world ever written, David Bowie “Five Years.” Like The Doors “The End,” Bowie’s “Five Years” means a lot to me. This is a song I have been listening to with perked interest and deep love for the better half of my life. There are so many memories attached to songs like “The End” and “Five Years” they mean more to me than just amazing songs about the end times, these songs even transcend the greatness of the historical and cultural impact on music, they are totems of our culture and species. The fear of death, the original conflict, the original antagonist, the endless battle between life and death sang to us by arguably the greatest song writer ever capturing all our fears and predictable reactions in one perfect song. “Five Years” is the greatest end of the world song.
Way back in May of 2007 I reviewed “Five Years,” and it shows just how much things have changed, in my writing, in my life and in me. That was five years ago....
A few months back that Craig Kemery told me to dig deeper into Black Sabbath. Up until a then I only possessed two Black Sabbath CDs, the self titled “Black Sabbath,” and “Paranoid,” I have since rectified that situation by purchasing “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,” and “Black Sabbath Volume 4.” It is a wonderful thing that after so many years I can still look deeper into bands I have known for years and learn so much more about them.
Songs can take on radical new meanings if they come into your life at unique times, and speaking of Black Sabbath whenever I hear “Changes,” I think about a very specific moment in time. I believe the year was 2003; I got a phone call from my friend who was looking for someone to drink with. This was the night that my friend's first love had left him, and he wanted something to distract him and someone to talk to. That something was beer, that someone was me. The night did not seem unique at the time, we treated it like any other, but there was one thing my friend said that stood out to me.
As if to sum up the evening’s purpose my friend gave me a quick synopsis of his situation. The metaphor of his choice was a song, Black Sabbath – “Changes.” He told me about how Ozzy Osbourne’s live version of the song is the much more popular version and how that live version got a lot more radio play than the original studio version. He told me about how Ozzy sang it in tribute to Randy Rhoads after he died. Ozzy lost his guitarist and best friend when Randy died, and it seemed so appropriate to sing “Changes,” since after all that was what Ozzy was going through. My friend too had lost someone close to him, and he too was going through changes.
My friend was right about everything he said. The history of the song “Changes,” was true, the song experienced a huge resurgence of popularity after the death of Randy Rhoads. It is true that for the longest time the only version of “Changes,” you heard on the radio was a live version of Ozzy performing in memory of Randy Rhoads. My friend was right about himself too, he was going through changes.
I did not want to admit it at the time, but I had never heard the song “Changes” before then. In fact my ignorance of Black Sabbath really was something to be ashamed of. That moment, as unimportant as it was for me, is permanently imprinted on my memory and whenever I hear “Changes” now, I think of that conversation, that girl, and my friend. Unlike “Sabbra Cadabra,” there is some depth in “Changes,” at least emotions more complicated than lustful/loving joy. While the song “Changes” is clearly about losing someone dear, a lover originally, and now arguably a friend in Randy Rhoads, that does not matter too much to me. “Changes” is a song about my friend’s broken heart and the person he lost.
My friend did not realize it at the time but he had brought up Black Sabbath songs to explain his feelings at both the beginning and end of this relationship of his. It never occurred to him that he had said these things, or the obvious correlation within the two statements, until years later when I pointed it out. It seemed to me to be a pretty good idea for a pair of Music In Reviews, and now here we are.
That night, all those years ago, my friend said something nice to me about how I was always there for him. Operating as best friend, I was there for him that night, but I was not the only one, so was Ozzy. It feels like a redundant thing for me to say that music is like a friend, that's always there for you, or that music stirs us and helps us understand ourselves, but it is true, and it bears repeating. If you know the man as well as I do, Black Sabbath songs could very well be used to sum up my friend’s entire youth, or at the very least, his first love from beginning to end, and it’s amazing those songs written for an entirely different purposes could so perfectly fit a mold of meaning so different from original intent. My friend’s friend Ozzy Osbourne was always there for him, just as he is there for me and all of you as well. Whatever the song means to you, that’s what the song means. Let your heart feel its way through the music and let the prince of darkness enlightened you in his own unique way.
In 2001 Ozzy Osbourne released his eighth solo studio album “Down to Earth.” The thing I remember most from that album was the song “Get’s Me Through,” and interestingly enough I am not talking about the song itself but rather the message Ozzy told the world with this song. He said that his fans “get him through” it all, and this was a song written for and dedicated too his fans.
But when you think about it, Ozzy has been writing songs for his fans for years. I suppose every artist, to some extent, creates with the intention of sharing their work with others, but I suspect Ozzy in particular has always had a deeper understanding of the relationship between artist and fan. I cannot remember the exact quote but I remember Ozzy once saying “whatever you take away from one of my songs, that’s what that song means.”
Songs can take on radical new meanings if they come into your life at unique times, and speaking of Ozzy Osbourne whenever I hear Black Sabbath’s “Sabbra Cadabra” I think about a very specific moment in time. I believe the year was 2001, when my oldest friend set out on the task of making a collection of songs he felt appropriate to sum up his relationship, which is a classic youthful love maneuver. For some reason both he and she wanted my input on what songs would be appropriate. I was not entirely comfortable with the idea of helping. How could I possibly put songs to feelings not my own, especially intimate feelings, especially since I am a loner? Regardless I clearly remember my friend talking about it. However I can only remember one song that he mentioned, Black Sabbath’s “Sabbra Cadabra.” “Feel so happy since I met that girl When we're making love It's something out of this world Feels so good to know that she's all mine Gonna love that woman till the end of time.”
I did not want to admit it at the time, but I had never heard the song “Sabbra Cadabra” before then. That moment, as unimportant as it was for me, is permanently imprinted on my memory and whenever I hear “Sabbra Cadabra” now, I think of that conversation, that girl, and my friend. If my friend remembers this moment as well as I do it should be safe to say that “Sabbra Cadabra” probably means much more to him than it does to me. The primary reason “Sabbra Cadabra” means anything special to me is simply because it holds meaning to my friend. Furthermore when you look at a song like “Sabbra Cadabra,” other than the awesome guitar riffs of Tony Iommi and the song generally rocking out, it is not a very deep song. It is a simple song about loving someone, nothing too complicated. My friend’s experience and mentioning of the song at a unique moment in our lives has given the song a greater depth than would be there if he had not.
It was just like Ozzy said, what I now take away from “Sabbra Cadabra,” is what the song is about. I could dissect the lyrics and try to place myself into Ozzy’s shoes thirty-nine years ago and make my best guess at hidden meanings and subtle suggestions, but I have never cared too, nor does it matter much. “Sabbra Cadabra” is a song about my friend’s first love.
There are times when I need to step back and walk miles in the shoes of others. I have dedicated a sizable amount of time and effort sharing with others my thoughts and feelings on music and it is wise of me to ponder the thoughts and feelings of others and what music reaches them. I like to fancy that as an amateur music critic that my musical interpretation must mean something, but I cannot forget, so does everyone else’s. Ozzy said as much.
Until later this month, keep on rocking in the free world.
