Ozzy Osbourne says original drummer Bill Ward was not in shape for the band’s reunion album (“13”) or tour, despite the fact that he declined to participate over a contractual dispute.
“Here’s the bottom line: being a drummer is the most physical part of any band,” Ozzy tells Classic Rock in their new summer issue. “And when Bill turned up, he looked like an old guy. I don’t think he had the stamina to play for an hour or so on stage. If I’d had a heart attack like Bill had, I’d go, ‘Fuck, I’m going to lose some weight.’ I train — I work my arse off. So you can’t expect someone who’s been sitting on their fucking arse, eating shit, to come along and go, ‘Equal split.’ It’s insane. I honestly don’t know what went down with that deal, but I suppose it’s something along those lines. There wasn’t any other reason. We didn’t gang up on him. And it wasn’t like, ‘Bill’s just the drummer.’ I didn’t go, ‘Oh, if Bill’s not here, I get more money.’ I don’t fucking need any more money, man.”
“I’d be a fucking liar if I said I’m glad Bill never made the [new Sabbath] album [’13’],” he continued. “It’s kind of a Sabbath album to a point, but it would have been great if Bill could have worked on it. But if we’d had Bill, I honestly don’t think we’d have been this far up the road. It was time to shit or get off the pot. Are we going to do this fucking album, or are we going to sit with our thumbs up our arses forever? It was time to stop fucking around and get on with it. I’m 65 this year, Tony’s [Iommi] already 65, Geezer’s [Butler] coming up to 64. We all realized that if we keep hanging on any longer we’re going to be fucking dead! I mean, fuck me, Tony could have croaked.”
While all the members of Black Sabbath have a shared history, it’s Ozzy and Bill who were the closest in the band.
As a result of Ward’s decision, the remaining members of Black Sabbath recorded “13” with Brad Wilk of Rage Against The Machine, while Ozzy’s solo drummer, Tommy Clufetos, began handling live dates, including the current North American tour.
