Ozzy Osbourne vows to keep playing shows even if someone has to “wheel him out there.” The Black Sabbath legend – who has quit touring the world – has doubled down on his desire to still play the occasional gig after a spending the last five decades on stage.
“I mean, doing a live show is what I live for. I’ve had to cancel my [2023] European tour but I’m determined. I’ve gotta do more gigs if I have to get someone to wheel me out there,” he said to Tenacious D duo Jack Black and Kyle Gass for Metal Hammer magazine.
“I mean, you can’t retire from this game. It’s not a job, it’s a f****** passion. I don’t know how to do anything else. The thought of sitting in my house all day… I’m a road dog, you know? I’ve been doing it f****** 55 years. It’s the best thing to have ever happened to me.”
The “Paranoid” hitmaker admitted he has “some good gigs” and his “fair share of f****** bad gigs” over the years. He added, “A guitar player can change his guitar. A drummer can change the drum. If my voice goes, I’m f*****.”
“One time I was at a gig at Nassau Coliseum in New York. On the way to the gig, my voice went out. The kids were already there and I thought, ‘What the f*** am I gonna do now?’ I went out and tried to sing and they gave me a standing ovation. The kids would rather see you being bad than go home.”
The 74-year-old star was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2020 while other health woes have seen him forced to use a walking stick.
Ozzy recently insisted he has been working his “guts out” to get back on his feet after he was forced to axe all of his shows for 2023, but admitted he can’t guarantee when he will be back on the road. He said on an episode of SiriusXM’s “Ozzy Speaks”, “Well, I’ve been working my guts out to try and get back on my feet.”
“I’ve come to the point where Sharon (Osbourne – who is still his manager) says to me, ‘You know what? The truth of the matter is you can’t keep booking tours and failing, cancelling.’ So, if I can ever get back to where I can tour again, fine. But right now, if you said to me, ‘Can you go on the road in a month?’ I couldn’t say yes.”
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