Lars Ulrich recently sat down with Howard Stern to discuss Ozzy Osbourne‘s death, reflecting on his influence and what it meant to be a part of his mammoth final show.
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The heavy metal pioneer died last month at age 76, which came shortly after he took to the stage for his final-ever live show at Black Sabbath’s huge ‘Back To The Beginning’ event in Birmingham on July 5, where Metallica played just before Ozzy performed.
Ulrich touched on the “generational element of respect and love” he and his bandmates had for their metal predecessors, saying they defined the era “that helped shape, and ultimately dictate, what we became.”
Stern, returning to SiriusXM after a break over the summer, asked Ulrich if he had a sense Ozzy would pass so soon after the show. “No, no… we hung, we said hello, we hugged,” drummer Ulrich replied (via Billboard).
He went on to describe seeing photographer Ross Halfin taking pictures of Ozzy alongside his bandmates early on in rehearsal, and how surreal it was to be surrounded by not only a reunited Sabbath, but a host of rock royalty.
“It was such a great moment, because you walk in and it’s, ‘Oh my God, there’s Steven Tyler! Oh my God, there’s Chad Smith! Oh my God, there’s Sammy Hagar! Oh my God, there’s Yungblud!’” he recalled.
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Ulrich said that despite the various health issues Ozzy was battling at the time, he remained “eloquent and very sharp” when they spoke. “We were just sitting doing small talk, but it was so warm and he was very present, coherent. It was just his body that was not in good shape, but his mind… he was eloquent and talking and in the moment.”
Metallica were among the few who got to watch Black Sabbath’s soundcheck, and said everyone collectively lost their “fucking minds” at the sight.
“They started playing ‘War Pigs’ with the lights on and the show and air raid sirens,” he added, “and then we were obviously, as fans – and I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn here or being disrespectful – as fans, I think there was a sense from all the other musicians and friends of Black Sabbath […] we were hoping for the best. We wanted it to be the best. We wanted it to be a grand slam, but we didn’t know, because ultimately none of us knew what kind of shape they were in.”
Soon after hearing the 1970 track, Ulrich said everyone was confident Sabbath sounded better than ever. “Ozzy came in singing and sounded great, hit all the notes and the lyrics and the timings and everybody was like, ‘This is gonna be fine, they’re gonna fucking kill it.’”
That ultimately meant there were no final goodbyes, because nobody sensed it would be the last time they’d see the Sabbath frontman. “Obviously,” Ulrich explained, “it was the end of the music and the end of the live experience” but nobody walked away from the gig thinking it was the last time.
When he died two weeks later, Ulrich said the shock of the “surreal” news was “indescribable.”
“We were all just so stunned. So sad. But at the same time, he got to live, to accomplish that concert and that appearance that had been in him since before COVID.
“He got up there, he played… and I think probably if you’re going go play [a] little quarterback psychiatrist; Monday morning, maybe it was just a load off his shoulders and he got to accomplish what he wanted and maybe he just sort of let go.”
He was laid to rest in the grounds of his UK mansion during a private ceremony that was attended by Elton John, members of Metallica and more last week. Prior to that, his cortege travelled through Birmingham in a procession attended by thousands of fans, and was attended by his emotional family, including wife Sharon Osbourne, and children Jack, Kelly, and Aimee.
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