A few weeks ago, Ozzy Osbourne sat on his rock ‘n’ roll throne topped by, appropriately, a bat.
Feeling the tsunami of affection from 40,000 fans filling Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Osbourne basked in the spotlight July 5 as he sat on stage with his Black Sabbath bandmates Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward, the pioneering metal quartet taking a final bow in their hometown.
Osbourne, who died Tuesday, July 22, at the age of 76, had suffered from Parkinson’s disease since 2020, rendering him unable to stand or walk without assistance.
But for nine songs that included Black Sabbath classics “Paranoid” and “Iron Man” with his original band and Osbourne standards “Mr. Crowley” and “Crazy Train” with his longtime solo team, the guitars cranked and Osbourne reveled being on stage a final time during this “Back to the Beginning” sendoff.
Rock star Ozzy Osbourne dies at 76, weeks after final Black Sabbath show
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“Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he told the crowd in his recognizable accented mumble. “You’re the best, each and every one of you.”
The performance was the culmination of an 11-hour day of music that featured other hard rock heavyweights including Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool and Pantera bending the knee to the Prince of Darkness. His bat-biting antics, numerous career reincarnations and, with the assistance of wife Sharon, ability to thrust heavy metal into the mainstream, made him a legend.
Artists ranging from Elton John to Def Leppard to Dolly Parton also appeared via video to remind Osbourne of his influence and thank him for his contributions to music.
In what has since become Osbourne’s last performance, the show was filmed for a 100-minute concert film and documentary, “Back to the Beginning: Ozzy’s Final Bow,” that will be released in theaters in early 2026.
Osbourne had also recently announced a sequel to his 2010 memoir, “I’m Dr. Ozzy.” His upcoming book, “Last Rites,” due Oct. 7, spotlights his life since his Parkinson’s diagnosis and the near-paralysis he faced since.
Osbourne retained his sweet-yet-brazen humor in an excerpt from the book: “Look, if it ends tomorrow, I can’t complain. I’ve been all around the world. Seen a lot of things. I’ve done good … and I’ve done bad. But right now, I’m not ready to go anywhere.”
Ozzy Osbourne’s final Instagram post
Osbourne also shared one final post to social media before his death.
The simple post, sans caption, honored his rock roots with a promotional poster for the final Black Sabbath show. Young versions of the rockers graced the poster, hung in the doorway of a red hallway.
