Description
2011 picture disc release with die-cut cover
Ozzy Osbournes first solo album ‘Blizzard Of Ozz’ was recorded in Surrey, U.K. and released on September 20, 1980 in the UK and on January 15, 1981 in the US. The tracks ‘Crazy Train’ and ‘Mr. Crowley’ were released as singles. The former peaked at #9 on the Mainstream Rock Charts and has remained a staple of pop, hard-rock, and classic-rock radio for more than 25 years; it remains easily Ozzy’s most-recognizable song. The album reached at #21 on Billboard’s Pop Albums chart, and is in the list of the top 100 best-selling albums of the 1980’s. It is somewhat unique for having achieved multi-platinum success even without the benefit of a Mainstream Top 40 single. ‘Blizzard Of Ozz’ remains Osbourne’s highest-selling album to date, shifting over 4.1 million copies in the U.S. alone. The song ‘Suicide Solution’ has been criticized for its lyrics that allegedly encouraged suicide, and was cited as a direct cause in the October 1984 suicide of John McCollum, a fourteen year-old fan who shot himself while listening to Osbourne’s records. The boy’s parents sued Osbourne and CBS Records for ‘encouraging self-destructive behavior’ in young persons who were ‘especially susceptible’ to dangerous influences. In his defence, Osbourne said that the song was really about the untimely death of AC/DC vocalist Bon Scott, who perished due to alcohol-related causes just months before ‘Blizzard Of Ozz’ was released. Bassist Bob Daisley, however, contradicts this, claiming that he wrote the song about Osbourne’s own dangerous abuse of alcohol and drugs. The McCollums’ complaint was dismissed on the grounds that the First Amendment protected Osbourne’s right to free artistic expression. Ozzy Osbourne’s 1981 solo debut Blizzard of Ozz was a masterpiece of neo-classical metal that, along with Van Halen’s first album, became a cornerstone of ’80s metal guitar. Upon its release, there was considerable doubt that Ozzy could become a viable solo attraction. Blizzard of Ozz demonstrated not only his ear for melody, but also an unfailing instinct for assembling top-notch backing bands. Onetime Quiet Riot guitarist Randy Rhoads was a startling discovery, arriving here as a unique, fully formed talent. Rhoads was just as responsible as Osbourne, perhaps even more so, for the album’s musical direction, and his application of classical guitar techniques and scales rewrote the rulebook just as radically as Eddie Van Halen had. Rhoads could hold his own as a flashy soloist, but his detailed, ambitious compositions and arrangements revealed his true depth, as well as creating a sense of doomy, sinister elegance built on Ritchie Blackmore’s minor-key innovations. All of this may seem to downplay the importance of Ozzy himself, which shouldn’t be the case at all. What’s more, the band is far more versatile and subtle than Sabbath, freeing Ozzy from his habit of singing in unison with the guitar. Nothing short of revelatory, Blizzard of Ozz deservedly made Ozzy a star, and it set new standards for musical virtuosity in the realm of heavy metal.
Track list:
1. I Don’t Know
2. Crazy Train
3. Goodbye To Romance
4. Dee
5. Suicide Solution
6. Mr. Crowley
7. No Bone Movies
8. Revelation Mother Earth
9. Steal Away (The Night)