Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz (1980)Release ID: 1186
Yeah I don't know what's going on that album featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Randy Rhoads is sitting at 3.5. Bob Daisely on the bass is also very excellent and underespected.
This album has "Crazy Train" that alone is worth high merit, but it also contains "I Don't Know", "Suicide Solution", and "Mr. Crowley". All songs you've probably heard as they are classic rock radio staples and live concert mainstays. They've all also been covered several times by several people, "but Zero, what about the tracks that weren't hits?"
Fair question, let's take a look. "Goodbye to Romance" is a pretty good ballad. "Dee" is a short and sweet instrumental noodle. "No Bone Movies' is admittedly pretty mediocre but it's still got Rhoads playing some cool stuff. "Revelation/Mother Earth" is kind of a Sabbath throwback with it's slower tempo and apocalyptic warnings. "Steal Away the Night" is "No Bone Movies Again"-mediocre song slightly elevated because of what Rhoads is doing.
So yeah there are some less than legendary entries, but even those are solid enough, and the big hitters on this album are VERY BIG. This is an important album and every metalhead should have it in their collection.
I haven't listened to this album all the way through in so long, and now I remember why. Starts off solid with I Don't Know and Crazy Train that I can and will listen to any time and even Goodbye to Romance is still solid but then the rest (besides classic Mr. Crowley) is really rough to listen to nowadays. The rest comes off as bland to bad. Randy Rhodes' guitar work while impeccable feels disconnected to the songs and Ozzy's delivery. Anyone else get a heavy Aerosmith vibe in Steal Away and You Looking At Me? Like these are not the worst songs, but they don't feel like they are fit for the Prince of Darkness. Even after all these years Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley are still amazing songs, but the rest here doesn't fit the same vibe. I do give full respect to this album and Ozzy's efforts for leaving Black Sabbath and still come out with the most memorable songs that will be sung in stadiums for years (or at least the intro of Crazy Train)
And so it came to pass that, after their Tenth Anniversary World Tour, Black Sabbath and their charismatic frontman John "Ozzy" Osbourne parted ways. Although it was a huge disappointment at the time, in hindsight it was the only real way forward for all parties involved. I had seen Sabbath on that tour and if I was being brutally honest I would have to say that Ozzy was fucked-up big time. He was obviously shit-faced on stage and at times not far from incoherent. To make matters worse the band were supported by an up-and-coming US outfit called Van Halen who had an energy and vitality that the Sabs sadly seemed to have lost. So in a way, it was obvious even then that time was running out for the original lineup.
Anyway, 1980 saw the release of albums from both the revamped Sabbath, who had recruited diminutive ex-Rainbow singer Ronnie James Dio, and Ozzy's new band who were going by the name Blizzard of Ozz. Sabbath dropped their new album, Heaven and Hell, in April to much acclaim from fans and critics alike so the pressure was on for the Oz to produce. Ozzy had also procured the help of an ex-Rainbow alumni in bassist Bob Daisley and veteran Uriah Heep drummer Lee Kerslake completed the solid rhythm section of Ozzy's new crew. However it was in the recruiting of electrifying and hugely talented guitarist Randy Rhoads from Quiet Riot that Ozzy revealed his masterstroke. Rhoads was a classically trained guitarist who's technical ability allowed him to push the limits of what metal guitarists were doing at that time - he is often cited as one of the leading influences of neoclassical metal guitar playing - and his energy seemed to have revitalised Ozzy and given him back his edge.
September of 1980 saw the release of the Blizzard of Ozz album and a new dawn called for the former Sabbath singer. The album featured eight tracks and a short instrumental, ran for almost forty minutes, had a nice variety of pacing and some killer hooks. I Don't Know is a solid opener and is a bit more uptempo than we are used to hearing from the Ozz. Randy Rhoads' more flamboyant style contrasts really well with the solidity of the rhythm section and pushes Ozzy himself to a new level. With the now overfamiliar yell of "All aboard" the band launch into the riff that launched a thousand sporting events and a song that may be even more famous than Paranoid - Crazy Train. It's an energetic celebration of a track that is very difficult to listen to objectively any more due to overexposure, but at first it sounded awesome. Next up is the balladic Goodbye to Romance which really should be a bit too cheesy and overly sentimental for my usual taste but, mainly because of Ozzy's charismatic vocals, I really like it. Dee is a short instrumental piece where RR gets to show off some of his classical training and leads us into one of my album highlights, Suicide Solution, a real belter of an early eighties' metal track and the closer of side one.
The second side begins with Mr. Crowley which both tonally and thematically is the most Sabbath-like track on the album. This is followed by most people's least favourite, No Bone Movies, which is no classic, but doesn't, in my opinion, stick out like a sore thumb as being especially terrible either. Then we come to my favourite part of the album. For me, the last two tracks are where it's at with this album. Revelation is a classic Ozzy track and is the most heartfelt song on the album with a brilliant build and a triumphant ending that leads straight into the sledgehammer riff of Steal Away (the Night) which brings proceedings to a close in thunderous style.
The album isn't perfect, some of the lyrics are a bit painful, but there are some brilliant songs on here, Ozzy sounds rejuvenated and Randy Rhoads' riffing and solos are worth the entry fee alone. I don't know if this is a controversial opinion, but I prefer this to Sabbath's Heaven and Hell album (although it's not quite as good as Mob Rules). Personally I feel this was the last great album Ozzy was involved in - Diary of a Madman is good, but inferior to this and anything after that is forgettable at best, utter shite at worst.
Ozzy's debut solo effort packs a fair punch in terms of tunes. Immediately recognisable tracks like Crazy Train, Mr Cowley, Goodbye to Romance and Suicide Solution all drop enough hooks in you to leave you feeling like a cow carcass in the abattoir. There are tracks listed here in this review that have prevalent on playlists galore throughout over 30 years of listening to metal that have no sign of being lifted anytime soon.
The more commercial sound is a change from what we had come to expect from Ozzy's Sabbath days and when compared to most of what BS had done until this point you can't help but feel the record is inferior. As a standalone hard rock album with more than a fair share of big riffs of its own it was a fine start to furthering his long career and whilst not perfect it was certainly more than able to stand up in the shadow of his work with his more infamous other band.
Of course the bringing of former Quiet Riot guitarist , Randy Rhoads into the fray was a master stroke. His studious and assured performance here being one of the highlights of the album as whole. Literally setting tracks alight with his fret work he is most certainly the perfect accompaniment to Osbourne's unique and familiar vocal style in that he forces you to listen beyond the vocals.
Even on the weaker tracks that close out the record, his influence is obvious and saves the tracks from descent into becoming completely forgettable. As a debut release it does lack the finesse you would perhaps expect from an established artist such as Ozzy but the album set off a trajectory of future releases that showed consistent improvements.
The Ozzy-fronted Black Sabbath was of pivotal importance in the emergence of heavy metal music, but after a decade with the band he was fired from it. All the drama and potential reasons for it aren't to be discussed here, but it did pave the way for Ozzy to embark on his solo career, which kicked off in 1980 with Blizzard of Ozz.
Sabbath themselves had been suffering a little, with the last couple of Ozzy-fronted albums being poorly received, but earlier in 1980 they released the universally acclaimed Heaven and Hell with Dio at the helm. Now it was Ozzy's time to establish himself, and it's clear he intended to go in a somewhat different direction. Where Heaven and Hell saw a resurgence of the heavy metal at the core of Sabbath, Blizzard of Ozz opts for something a bit more accessible and light, leaning a little more towards hard rock than outright heavy metal.
This isn't to say it's bad of course, and there are some absolute bangers on here. "Crazy Train" is regarded as a classic for very good reason. It bounds along with so much momentum, and is all put together so well, rising into that catchy chorus with perfect timing and knowing just when to shift gears. Both "Goodbye to Romance" and "Revelation [Mother Earth]" show just how good the gentler parts of the album can be. Ozzy's vocals work surprisingly well as melodic, mournful crooning, and "Revelation" gives way to some absolutely glorious work from Randy Rhoads, the whole song climbing and ascending before suddenly crashing into silence.
The other big number here, "Mr. Crowley" is...okay. Honestly, I find it pretty dull for the most part, leaving me cold until Randy's molten guitar solos kick in. They're the obvious highlight, and vastly outshine the rest of the track.
The other songs on here are generally good, but don't stand out so much. "Steal Away" is a decent toe-tapper that calls to mind some of Rainbow's more melodic numbers, while "Suicide Solution" makes good use of Ozzy sounding like a demon waiting for you to seal a pact.
Overall, this is a much brighter offering than the sort of proto-doom Sabbath were known for, at least in their early days. It maybe doesn't mesh quite so well with the whole "Prince of Darkness" title Ozzy had, and the metalhead in me has a taste for darker or heavier things, but it's still a decent time. There aren't really any bad tracks, but there are really only a handful of truly good ones, and the rest are just sort of there.
Choice cuts: Crazy Train, Goodbye to Romance, Revelation [Mother Earth]
