Ozzy Osbourne
Hey Hey it’s Thursday… here is a quick 80’s metal update to provide an illusory sense of being on top of stuff :).
With AC/DC’s Brian Johnson sidelined, probably forever, because of near total hearing loss, who will replace him to finish out the current tour? Some names being floated are Sammy Hagar, David Lee Roth, Dave Grohl, Vince Neil, Krokus’ Marc Storace and original AC/DC lead singer Dave Evans. Stay tuned.
Ever since MOTORHEAD’s Lemmy passed in late December, it seems one classic rocker after another has also left us. Others like Brian Johnson are still here, but their careers have been cut short. Now comes word (and confirmed by guitarist Alex Lifeson) that RUSH are officially retired from touring because drummer of Neil Peart’s physical inability to play any longer due to increasing chronic arthritis pain. Super sad.
OZZY OSBOURNE said recently, “I’m not saying I’ll never record with Tony or Geezer again,” but he will no longer tour with BLACK SABBATH, so get out and see them while you still can. ‘The End’ tour starts up again in Australia next month.
In a recent interview, MÖTLEY CRÜE’s Nikki Sixx said it was ‘really special’ seeing Vince Neil cry at the band’s final show on December 31, 2015, “cause I had seen Vince only cry a few times.”
Two great songs and a precursor to the metal sound of the 80’s were released today in 1976 (JUDAS PRIEST ‘The Ripper’) and in 1979 (MOTÖRHEAD ‘Overkill’).
Happy Birthday to Aron Culver listening to METAL SHOP in California.
Hope to see you on the radio. Love to hear your comments about things. Thanks!
Yes, it’s Friday and time to ‘March Fourth’ to the weekend… think about that one if you need to 🙂
Seems everyone today is talking about Donald Trump defending the size of his willie during last night’s Republican presidential debate. Just for the record, I have small hands, which I have been told means I am a creative person, and if something else must be small, “I guarantee you there’s no problem. I guarantee.” 🙂
According to The Pulse Of Radio, OZZY OSBOURNE’s wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne, was discussing recent scandals involving nannies on “The Talk” earlier this week when she revealed that she had caught Ozzy in bed with a couple of them in the past, saying she had caught two nannies in compromising positions with the Prince Of Darkness at “different times,” and adding that Ozzy was “out of his mind” on drugs at the time. Sharon said she finally hired a “manny” named “Big Dave.” Poor Ozzy.
METALLICA Drummer Lars Ulrich held an event, titled ‘A night with Lars Ulrich and Friends’ at UC Berkeley in California the other night. Not much to report there, but some of the comments on Facebook were a little nuts, including this one “metallica you disappointed fans long enough your keep letting fans think you are working on on new music and fail us. megadeth is miles ahead of you I bet dave mustaine is laughing to the bank,” and this one “Jassons new band Newsted is way better than Meatllica .. They get of all there good players. And keep what they have right now , that stinks.” My head is spinning, but ‘Meatllica’ sounds delicious.
Happy Birthday to former Metallica Bassist Jason Newsted. He turns 53 today. Click Here for this great video of Newsted singing ‘Seek and Destroy’ live in 1992.
ACCEPT released their 6th studio album “Metal Heart” today in 1985. Although critically panned at the time, today Metal Heart is often considered by fans as one of the band’s best records. Former singer Udo Dirkschneider remembers the Breaker through Metal Heart era as the time when the band got along best together.
Today in 1983, THIN LIZZY released their final studio album, “Thunder and Lightning.” Two years earlier, band leader Phil Lynott brought in guitarist John Sykes to give the band a heavier sound (ie, “Cold Sweat”). Lynott’s drug problems were too much though to keep Thin Lizzy going and he died three years later, but oh, what might have been.
That’s a wrap. Crank the 80’s metal with METAL SHOP and have a kick ass weekend.
Hello, you! Time to crank up METAL SHOP on a Wednesday.
IRON MAIDEN kicks off ‘The Book of Souls World Tour’ tonight in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. They are the rulers of my 80’s metal world and seem to be for many others as well… check out this great comment on the Maiden Facebook page, “Iron Maiden is everything that is right about metal. Iron Maiden was my childhood. Iron Maiden is my present. And now I can give this astounding gift to my son as we are going to the show together. \m/”
AC/DC currently tops ‘Billboard’s Hot Tours’ chart. For their last three shows in the midwestern U.S., they were seen by nearly 50,000 fans. The lads from down under will next be in Houston, Texas on Friday (2/26).
Have you heard of the ‘Hair Metal Awards’? I hadn’t either, but this is a thing and the first annual will take place May 15th in Las Vegas. SCORPIONS will make an appearance to receive the “Classic Rock Outstanding Lifetime Achievement” award and German metal queen Doro Pesch will be presented with the “Metal Goddess” award. The first part of the show will be artists from the Sunset Strip era and the second half will feature more of the metal genre of national artists. QUIET RIOT and TWISTED SISTER will perform and there will be a tribute to MOTÖRHEAD’s Lemmy Kilmister, which will include a performance by major metal stars.
LITA FORD has a new tell-all book out, where she describes an abusive relationship with BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi. In a recent interview though, she says “Tony Iommi was my idol, him and Ritchie Blackmore. When I was growing up, the first concert I ever saw was BLACK SABBATH, when I was 13, and Tony Iommi was just like a God in my eyes; he was a hero to me, and still is. Even though… You have to read the book, but he was abusive, and that almost killed me — literally. And I didn’t expect that from my superhero.”
Today in 2003, bassist Robert Trujillo joined METALLICA, replacing Jason Newsted. Trujillo first gained prominence as the bassist for California thrash band Suicidal Tendencies. He was also a member of OZZY OSBOURNE’s band for a number of years starting in the late 1990s.
Lee Aaron released the album “Metal Queen” today in 1984. Two years earlier, she posed topless for the men’s magazine OUI, but later concluded in an interview that it damaged her musical credibility; she regretted the decision and assigned blame for it to pressure from her manager.
RONNIE JAMES DIO released the album “Inferno:Last In Live” today in 1998.
That’s your morning 80’s metal menu. Off to the radio factory now; see you there, and here. Thanks for being part of this!
Hope it was a good weekend for you. Maybe you live near Dallas, Texas and got to see MEGADETH kick off off their North American ‘Dystopia’ Tour on Saturday. They opened with “Hangar 18” and the encore was “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due.” Dave Mustaine recently said about the setlist that people say, “You gotta do this, you gotta do that. I ain’t gotta do nothing. And listening to the fans, what they like, and listening to what I like. Between the two of us, one of us is going to be right. And I know that when it comes down to playing stuff that makes me feel good, I like playing the heavy stuff.”
Maybe you live near Aberdeen, Washington and got to see METAL CHURCH play their first show with singer Mike Howe in more than 20 years on Friday. Howe fronted the band from 1988 until 1994, and is featured on the new album, “XI”, which will be released on March 25. Check out fan footage – Click Here
Great read on DOKKEN this weekend and how their MTV success and the approval of Freddy Krueger couldn’t stop the most fractious band of the 80s from tearing itself apart. Despite the success the band had, singer Don Dokken and guitarist George Lynch had never much liked each other. In 1988, Dokken played on the ‘Monsters of Rock’ tour with Van Halen, Scorpions, Metallica and Kingdom Come. Don Dokken says they had to follow Metallica and “didn’t stand a chance. After Metallica went out and played ‘Master Of Puppets,’ we sounded like the fucking Partridge Family.” (Free registration required for full article).
OZZY OSBOURNE released his fourth solo album, “The Ultimate Sin” 30 years ago today after finishing a stint in rehab at the Betty Ford Clinic the year before. Ozzy considers it his worst album, calling it “The Ultimate Din” and guitarist Jake E. Lee would be unceremoniously terminated the following year after the Ultimate Sin tour ended. Of course, the fans didn’t experience this record the way Ozzy and his band did. While not his best, it stands up on it’s own and sounds better with time.
In 1989, a category for Heavy Metal was included at the Grammy Awards for the first time. Metallica performed on stage, but the award went to Jethro Tull. Fans (and even some audience members) were rightly outraged, though Tull’s record label tried to make light of the faux pas by placing a Billboard ad that read, “The flute is a heavy, metal instrument.” When Metallica later won a Grammy for 1991’s Metallica, they thanked Jethro Tull for not release a competing album.
Have a fantastic Monday and thanks for listening to METAL SHOP.
We lost some hair along the way, gained a couple of pounds, got no retirement plans because we didn’t plan on living this long, but we can still rock hard and if you look at it sideways we can still kick your ass like it ain’t no thing, so let’s toast the weekend about to start.
Happy Birthday to BLACK SABBATH Guitarist Tony Iommi. He turns 68 today. Did you know Iommi briefly played in Jethro Tull? Yes, for one performance, before returning to his bandmates (Ozzy, Geezer and Ward), who were known as ‘Earth’ back then before changing their name to Black Sabbath. Sabbath’s “The End” tour stops in Detroit, Michigan tonight.
I just don’t think TWISTED SISTER’s Dee Snider can help himself. Right or wrong, he doesn’t beat around the bush, this time saying he doesn’t ‘get’ how ‘murderer’ Vince Neil ‘didn’t do any serious jail time’ when his drunk-driving car crash killed HANOI ROCKS drummer Razzle in 1984. Snider continued: “And people are cool with that. They’re like, ‘Yeah, all right! Rock ‘n’ roll!!’ And the guy didn’t do any serious jail time. I’m, like, ‘Really? Really? He’s a murderer.’ I don’t get that at all.”
Vivian Campbell was asked if he and Ronnie James DIO ever got to mend fences prior to the singer’s 2010 death. He responded: “No. I never got to talk to Ronnie again afterwards, unfortunately. Actually, we only talked to each other through the press, which is never, ever, ever a good idea. We were both guilty of saying really stupid and hurtful things. I’d like to think that we would have made up. I think if Ronnie and I had bumped into each other on the street, I think after a couple of minutes, we might have agreed to go to the pub for a pint and we could have probably worked things out.”
From one split-up to another, Sammy Hagar explained yesterday that he reached out to Eddie Van Halen on Twitter last month on Eddie’s birthday because of the recent deaths of David Bowie and Glenn Frey, saying “It just makes you stop and think that, you know, with my relationship with Eddie Van Halen and stuff that’s always been in the toilet, it makes you say, ‘I don’t want to be buried with any regrets or bad vibes like that.’ It makes you want to be just friends with everybody and say, ‘Hey, look, forget it.’ Even if you don’t want to be in a band together, just let’s be friends. No more enemies for me. You don’t want to go to your grave with enemies. So that’s what it’s done for me. It woke me up and said, ‘no more enemies.’ And before I die, I won’t have any, if I have my way.”
Speaking of Sammy Hagar, it was yesterday in 1977 when he was booed off the stage while opening for KISS. Hagar responded to the crowd with “F— you,” and then proceeded to drop his pants and pull out his wang before smashing his ’61 Stratocaster guitar to pieces and walking offstage. Check out the whole story – Click Here
On this date in 1980, AC/DC singer Bon Scott died after a night of heavy drinking. Left to sleep it off in a friend’s car, he was found dead in the car the next morning. The official coroner’s report labeled his demise as “death by misadventure” and “acute alcohol poisoning. He was 33 years old. R.I.P.
Today in 1982, Ozzy Osbourne was arrested in San Antonio, Texas for urinating on the Alamo. He was wearing a dress at the time of his arrest (his wife Sharon had hid all his clothes so he couldn’t go outside). Ozzy apparently thought he was relieving himself on a pile of rubble and was subsequently banned from ever playing in San Antonio, Texas again, (the ban was lifted in 1992).
On this date in 1992, GUNS N’ ROSES played the first of three nights at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan as part of the ‘Use Your Illusion’ Tour and today in 1995, MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee married Baywatch actress Pamela Anderson, who was wearing a white bikini, on a beach in Cancun, Mexico. They married only four days after meeting and had videotaped their sexual activities while on vacation, which was later stolen and released on the Internet. The couple divorced in 1998.
Tomorrow (Feb. 20, 2003), marks 13 years since the Station Nightclub Fire in West Warwick, Rhode Island. GREAT WHITE was performing that night, where 99 people died in the fire sparked by pyrotechnics.
Former WHITESNAKE and DIO guitarist Doug Aldrich is celebrating a birthday today. He turns 52.
Happy Birthday to Jessica McNear listening to METAL SHOP in Tennessee and Siva Prasad listening in India.
Don’t forget METAL SHOP is on 24/7…. that means weekends too, so listen on the website, find us on TuneIn, or download the app to listen on your phone. Great thing to have. If you like more Hair in your metal, you can also check out our sister station HAIR BAND RADIO.
Here we go Monday Monday and Happy Birthday to former OZZY OSBOURNE and RATT Guitarist Jake E. Lee, who turns 59 today. Here is some wild 80’s metal history for you… Did you know Ronnie James Dio invited Lee to join his new solo band DIO in 1982 before Vivian Campbell got the job? Lee had accepted, though his time in Dio’s band was short-lived. According to drummer Vinny Appice, there were rehearsals with Lee and Dio and recordings of those rehearsals still exist. Lee claims to have written the main riff to “Don’t Talk to Strangers” (which would later appear on the Holy Diver album) and that Dio wanted him to play “simple block chords that wouldn’t trample on his vocals”.
When Ozzy sought a permanent replacement for the deceased Randy Rhoads, he came to Los Angeles to audition lead guitarists. Bassist Dana Strum, who had recommended Rhoads to Osbourne in 1979, this time recommended Lee for the job. Osbourne was torn between Lee and DOKKEN guitarist George Lynch. Though Osbourne is said to have initially chosen Lynch, he soon changed his mind and Lee became his full-time guitarist for the next five years.
LITA FORD is releasing a tell-all-book next week and opens up about her wild life on the ’80s music scene, including dalliances with Jon Bon Jovi, Eddie Van Halen and BLACK SABBATH guitar legend Tony Iommi. Her relationship with Iommi allegedly began with a failed attempt at sex as he was “too high” on cocaine. “He was impotent from his constant drug use, and he was very embarrassed. I felt bad for him and didn’t really know what to do. Eventually, I got him off.” Ford also alleges the relationship with Iommi was abusive. You can read more at this location – Click Here
Well, it’s time to put the fun back in funeral my friends and celebrate a bunch of dead presidents. Maybe you have the day off for President’s Day in the U.S. If you do, “Cheers!” If not, “Cheers!” to you too.
Powerline: “Randy was very different than other legends who have left us too soon, such as Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn. They were amazing guitar players. Randy was an exceptionally gifted musician as well. But the strong interest in Randy 30 years after his passing is attributed to several factors. For starters, he left us just after he made it big. It was a time when we couldn’t wait to hear what would be coming next. Sadly, he passed away and left us hanging and wanting so much more. There is virtually no video of him. This adds to his mystique. We, as fans, want so much more than we were given — more music, more video, more photos. We want more of all things Randy! We just can’t let him go. He was so charismatic. We just can’t get enough of him. All the information that has been released about Randy prior to our book was very on the surface. There hadn’t been anything released that explored and documented who he was. Our book is filled with stories as told by his closest friends who knew him best. They introduce us to the part of Randy that we’ve always wanted to know.”
“It was his dedication to learning and furthering himself that we find the most inspiring and remarkable. Even Ozzy was struck by this. When Randy informed Ozzy he was quitting the rock and roll lifestyle in favor of pursuing a master’s degree in classical music, Ozzy asked him to wait a little longer. Ozzy said, “One more year and you can buy your own university. You have to strike while you are hot.” Randy didn’t care about any of that. He made up his mind and nothing was going to persuade him otherwise. There again, it’s that dedication to his beliefs that we find so inspiring. Furthering himself musically was at the top of his priority list. Anyone else would have relished in what he was experiencing. Selling out the world’s biggest arenas and stadiums got old for him rather quick. He got a taste of it and desperately wanted to move on to something else. That was Randy. He had a long list of things he wanted to accomplish.”
“Randy was one in a billion. He didn’t try to be different. He was born different. I don’t think he dressed that way because his goal was to be different. He wore what he wanted to wear. He used to take his first girlfriend, Jan, with him when he shopped for shoes. He preferred the girl’s shoes, and he would have her try them on for him. Clearly, he was embarrassed to buy them for himself, and he knew he would get grief for wearing them. It didn’t matter to him. He was very committed to doing what he wanted to do. Sometimes it did get him into a lot of trouble, especially at school. He constantly had jocks wanting to beat him up. They called him names. It didn’t affect him. Randy may have been frail, but he was emotionally strong. It took more than names to rattle him. He just laughed at them.”
Ozzy Osbourne is holding several book signing events in California, Nevada, Arizona and Texas in support of the release of his new book, Trust Me, I’m Dr. Ozzy: Advice from Rock’s Ultimate Survivor, featuring memoirs of some of his most famous survival tales during his 4o-year career.
The book was released October 11th and METAL SHOP’s Ralph Cartel attended the first book signing at the Barnes & Noble on Edinger Avenue in Huntington, CA.
IRON MAIDEN and OZZY OSBOURNE lead the pack with multiple nominations at this year’s Revolver Golden Gods Awards, set to take place April 20, 2011 at Club Nokia in Los Angeles.
Ozzy and Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson are up for Best Vocalist and both band’s guitarists and drummer, respectively, are nominated.
Iron Maiden and MEGADETH are up for Best Live Band and ACCEPT for Comeback of the Year.
The 2011 “Golden God Award” will be presented to ALICE COOPER, while THE RONNIE JAMES DIO LIFETIME ACHEIVEMENT AWARD will go to MOTLEY CRUE. The original Alice Cooper Band line-up will perform for the first time in 40 years.
Here are the nominees for all categories:
Epiphone Best Guitarist(s)
• John 5 (ROB ZOMBIE)
• Dan Donegan (DISTURBED)
• Gus G. (OZZY OSBOURNE, FIREWIND)
• Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance (AVENGED SEVENFOLD)
• Janick Gers, Dave Murray, and Adrian Smith (IRON MAIDEN)
• Alexi Laiho (CHILDREN OF BODOM)
Drum Workshop Best Drummer
• Tommy Clufetos (OZZY OSBOURNE)
• Abe Cunningham (DEFTONES)
• Joey Jordison (ROB ZOMBIE)
• Roy Mayorga (STONE SOUR)
• Nicko McBrain (IRON MAIDEN)
• Mike Portnoy (Ex-DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD)
Best Vocalist
• Glenn Danzig (DANZIG)
• Bruce Dickinson (IRON MAIDEN)
• Chino Moreno (DEFTONES)
• Ozzy Osbourne (OZZY OSBOURNE)
• M. Shadows (AVENGED SEVENFOLD)
• Corey Taylor (STONE SOUR)
Affliction Album of the Year
• AVENGED SEVENFOLD, “Nightmare”
• BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, “Order of the Black”
• DEFTONES, “Diamond Eyes”
• OZZY OSBOURNE, “Scream”
• STONE SOUR, “Audio Secrecy”
• VOLBEAT, “Beyond Hell/Above Heaven”
Samson Zoom Best Live Band
• AVENGED SEVENFOLD
• GWAR
• IRON MAIDEN
• MEGADETH
• RAMMSTEIN
• SEVENDUST
Most Metal Athlete
• Chris Cole (pro skateboarding)
• Dan Hardy (MMA fighting)
• Toni Lydman (NHL)
• The Miz (WWE wrestling)
• Jeremy Shockey (NFL football)
• Mike Vallely (pro skateboarding)
Best New Band
• ASKING ALEXANDRIA
• BLACK VEIL BRIDES
• THE DAMNED THINGS
• THE PRETTY RECKLESS
• TIMES OF GRACE
• WE ARE THE FALLEN
Eagle Rock Comeback of the Year
• ACCEPT
• FAITH NO MORE
• MURDERDOLLS
• A PERFECT CIRCLE
• SOUNDGARDEN
• SYSTEM OF A DOWN
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Ozzy Osbourne and Guitar master Slash made a special appearance Monday, January 10, 2011 at the House of Blues in Hollywood, California. Both rock Icons were in attendance to sign a 10-foot Gibson Guitar and to announce they will be teaming up for an upcoming U.S. tour. The first minute was filmed sideways, but I was able to get some video from this event. Special thanks to Angela and MSOPR for making this happen for METAL SHOP. -Ralph