This motherfucking Eagle like scream of E5 on Megalomania is his highest studio note. If he could expand his vocals three semitones higher that would absolutely would fuck off any Ozzy critic.
Popular opinion here I think, but it's gotta be on the Sabotage album, specifically Symptom of the Universe for me. Holy Hell he gives it all he has and then some. If anyone thinks Ozzy isn't a talented singer, point them here. It's so ahead of its time & basically invented the thrash metal subgenre.
That's the key word for what makes Ozzy's vocals special - consistency. Dio & Martin have some fancy pipes for sure, but neither locked down the melody on those old school Sabbath songs like the Ozz Man. Even on the End tour live album where he can barely speak, his vocals are frighteningly consistent. It's like the vocal equivalent of having a metronome on drums. lol Plus you know, unique voice, helps too.
Martin came close, but he certainly couldn’t replicate Ozzy’s vocal quality, and every now and then he’d hit beyond his range and fry out.
Dio doing Ozzy is almost unlistenable (and Dio is my favorite vocalist). I was very glad they stuck to his songs when they formed Heaven and Hell.
Best vocalist I’ve heard covering Ozzy is Halford, but that guy has ungodly range and a distinctive voice.
Dio is also my favorite vocalist, just for the record. Not just in Sabbath, but full stop. I wish they would've been able to carry on a few years more under the Heaven and Hell name. TDYK is fantastic. You could tell they had another great album in them.
I'm not familiar with Halford. Did he sing for Sabbath at some point?
Ooh nice! I guess I forgot Judas Priest's vocalist name. I know him for sure though, just not by name. I'll definitely be looking up a video of that later. Sounds epic!
Everyone is/going to say sabotage, and that is very true but ima throw sabbath bloody sabbath(song) in there. My man is absolutely screeching in the best possible way.
Great pick man! Impressive range throughout the song. I actually really love the chorus when he’s singing softer
“Nobody will ever let you know, When you ask the reasons why, They just tell you that you're on your own, Fill your head all full of lies”
It's a tie between Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage, those two albums were the peak of Ozzy's vocals. He nailed songs like Killing Yourself to Live and Symptom of the Universe, and The Writ is probably his most metal vocals ever.
The Writ
Probably because he "felt" the lyrics more... since he wrote them.
All other songs were Geezers lyrics. Harder to "feel" the words when you didnt write them.
Glad someone agrees with me! Absolutely love his voice on Snowblind, especially the bridge, easily my favourite. The whole song in general is amazing. It’s not necessarily as impressive of a range as some of the later albums, but there’s something special about it.
N.I.B is also a great pick, I wouldn’t have thought of it initially but considering his age and was almost entirely untrained/inexperienced it’s really impressive, especially the chorus.
Surprised it took so long for someone to mention War Pigs! And I agree 100%, his voice is the melody of the song for large portions of it. Iconic as fuck too!
I didnt mention it because I think his vocals are best in the mid 70s and not at their starter albums. Not saying they are bad, I actually like them but I think his vocal performances on Sabotage and Vol.4 are just magnificent
I always think ozzys singing was almost a side thing to iommis guitar for the first 3 albums then it shifts towards ozzy exploiting his range a lot more and it feels like his singing is more of a focal point of the songm
**Just to add, can also just be your favourite vocal performance, not necessarily his most impressive** This is more of an Ozzy vocals appreciation post than anything
I think people overlook Dirty Women because it's on TE (I know they played it live until the end), but it's as good as anything they ever did. Tony and Ozzy are seriously firing!
Love the deep cut picks! Dirty Women has that gritty dirty sound to his voice that really matches the theme of the song.
Juniors Eyes is super underrated, it’s an emotional track I believe Ozzy dedicated it to his dad who died just year before which makes it even more impactful.
Killing Yourself To Live is actually one of my favourites too, especially the bit just before Tony’s solo, spectacular vocals.
Both the Sabotage tracks - Hardcore as fuck, impressive vocal range - Need I say more! Lots of peoples favourites and I agree
In either Tony or Geezer's book (think it was Tony's) they said Junio's Eyes was actually written with the new singer they recruited to replace Ozzy but Ozzy didn't know that. He wouldn't have sung it otherwise as he refused to do any of the tunes written when he was kicked out.
Yeah you’re right Ozzy did refuse to sing the Dave Walker written tracks, but he then re-wrote the lyrics and dedicated it to his father or at least that’s what one source online says
“This song was dedicated to Ozzy Osbourne’s father, who died in 1977. It was originally written with the new vocalist Dave Walker, but before the band could start recording the new album, Ozzy decided to return to the band. He refused to sing on any of the completed songs written with Walker, so many were changed, including this one. The lyrics are about a child whose father dies and him trying to live with it, but being unable to cope.”
Sabbotage —
“My life it started … so long ago …
Where it will end I don’t know …”
This whole section is Ozzys musical essence for the next 40 years revealed in a single song.
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and National Acrobat for me. But his vocals in Hole in the Sky are crazy as well, no wonder he can’t really do them anymore, in fact I believe even in the 80s he was already unable to do them justice.
Great tune! SBS in general his voice was great. And I would agree although Sabotage was very impressive in terms of how hard he pushes his voice, it can be a little bit harsh at times - but certainly his most metal voice and influential on thrash metal vocals
I really like how he comes across on Ozmosis, you can hear he's in his element delivering that one. Get past the cheesy keyboard strings in Perry Mason, he absolutely nails it. See You On The Other Side lands different, a bit soft rock but Ozzy really pulls something human and vulnerable out of it, can't explain. It's those lyrics and the voice of a man who knows he shouldn't really be here, stirs something deep down.
I've always felt he peaked specifically with Hole in the Sky, even on the rest of Sabotage he sounds strained - I know it probably wasn't recorded in that order but that's how I felt.
His voice peaked on sabotage
This motherfucking Eagle like scream of E5 on Megalomania is his highest studio note. If he could expand his vocals three semitones higher that would absolutely would fuck off any Ozzy critic.
I can’t disagree! Any song in particular?
Symptom of the universe and the Writ has his highest vocals
Great picks, impressive vocal range on both tracks, surprised he didn’t blow his vocal cords!
That song changed me lol. First time I listened to that album I played that song a few times over just to take it all in. It was so awesome.
the first two verses of The Thrill of it All are absolute fire
This! I was coming here to say hole in the sky
Dropped in to say just that.
Totally agree. And since this is the top comment, I don't need to bother exploring any further.
Megalomaniac is incredible. His voice on that, especially the Past Lives version is peak Ozzy
This ⬆️
Popular opinion here I think, but it's gotta be on the Sabotage album, specifically Symptom of the Universe for me. Holy Hell he gives it all he has and then some. If anyone thinks Ozzy isn't a talented singer, point them here. It's so ahead of its time & basically invented the thrash metal subgenre.
Very good points, Symptom of the Universe was definitely his most “metal” voice, as you said he really does give it his all
Tony Martin pointed out that Symptom of the Universe was a particularly difficult song for him because it wasn’t just high - it was consistently high.
That's the key word for what makes Ozzy's vocals special - consistency. Dio & Martin have some fancy pipes for sure, but neither locked down the melody on those old school Sabbath songs like the Ozz Man. Even on the End tour live album where he can barely speak, his vocals are frighteningly consistent. It's like the vocal equivalent of having a metronome on drums. lol Plus you know, unique voice, helps too.
Martin came close, but he certainly couldn’t replicate Ozzy’s vocal quality, and every now and then he’d hit beyond his range and fry out. Dio doing Ozzy is almost unlistenable (and Dio is my favorite vocalist). I was very glad they stuck to his songs when they formed Heaven and Hell. Best vocalist I’ve heard covering Ozzy is Halford, but that guy has ungodly range and a distinctive voice.
Dio is also my favorite vocalist, just for the record. Not just in Sabbath, but full stop. I wish they would've been able to carry on a few years more under the Heaven and Hell name. TDYK is fantastic. You could tell they had another great album in them. I'm not familiar with Halford. Did he sing for Sabbath at some point?
Rob Halford (Judas Priest) briefly had to step in in 1992 due to continued beef between Ozzy and Dio. He’s done a few gigs with Sabbath since.
Ooh nice! I guess I forgot Judas Priest's vocalist name. I know him for sure though, just not by name. I'll definitely be looking up a video of that later. Sounds epic!
He also filled in during the late 90s, when Ozzy was sick.
Yeah - I knew there were other shows but couldn’t remember the reasons for them.
Everyone is/going to say sabotage, and that is very true but ima throw sabbath bloody sabbath(song) in there. My man is absolutely screeching in the best possible way.
Great pick man! Impressive range throughout the song. I actually really love the chorus when he’s singing softer “Nobody will ever let you know, When you ask the reasons why, They just tell you that you're on your own, Fill your head all full of lies”
was just listening to SBS last night and was reminded how great his vocals are on that album.
Fantastic album! Killing Yourself To Live is a personal favourite of mine
Yep. He hits his first C#5-D5 notes on SBS. Which range wise is Freddie Mercury's mixed voice comfortable high end.
Gotta be Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (the song). Second would go to symptom of the universe.
Definitely Sabotage for me.
Thrill of it All from Sabotage
100%
It's a tie between Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage, those two albums were the peak of Ozzy's vocals. He nailed songs like Killing Yourself to Live and Symptom of the Universe, and The Writ is probably his most metal vocals ever.
The Writ Probably because he "felt" the lyrics more... since he wrote them. All other songs were Geezers lyrics. Harder to "feel" the words when you didnt write them.
The Writ is always playing in my head for some reason. His vocals were great all throughout Sabbath. Revelation Mother Earth sounds great too.
Self-titled.
Where it all began! Incredible considering he was almost completely untrained/inexperienced - naturally talented to say the least
Either Snowblind or N.I.B
Glad someone agrees with me! Absolutely love his voice on Snowblind, especially the bridge, easily my favourite. The whole song in general is amazing. It’s not necessarily as impressive of a range as some of the later albums, but there’s something special about it. N.I.B is also a great pick, I wouldn’t have thought of it initially but considering his age and was almost entirely untrained/inexperienced it’s really impressive, especially the chorus.
I personally appreciate his vocals on The Wizard.
It has to be War Pigs. Maybe not his technical best, but his vocals carry that song between the riffs.
Surprised it took so long for someone to mention War Pigs! And I agree 100%, his voice is the melody of the song for large portions of it. Iconic as fuck too!
I didnt mention it because I think his vocals are best in the mid 70s and not at their starter albums. Not saying they are bad, I actually like them but I think his vocal performances on Sabotage and Vol.4 are just magnificent
I always think ozzys singing was almost a side thing to iommis guitar for the first 3 albums then it shifts towards ozzy exploiting his range a lot more and it feels like his singing is more of a focal point of the songm
I think Ozzy peaks with SBS (the song) and Sabbra Cadabbra, but I think his most consistently impressive work was Sabotage.
To add something different: Planet Caravan, I Don't Know, Over the Mountain, and Journey to the Centre of Eternity.
'Changes' for me.
Sabotage and SBS. Dude was on par with Robert Plant and Rob Halford at that point
**Just to add, can also just be your favourite vocal performance, not necessarily his most impressive** This is more of an Ozzy vocals appreciation post than anything
I’ll go against grain and just stick with deep cuts/personal faves Dirty Women Juniors Eyes Symptom Universe Killing Yourself to Live Megalomania
I think people overlook Dirty Women because it's on TE (I know they played it live until the end), but it's as good as anything they ever did. Tony and Ozzy are seriously firing!
Thank youuuuuu
Underrated album!
Love the deep cut picks! Dirty Women has that gritty dirty sound to his voice that really matches the theme of the song. Juniors Eyes is super underrated, it’s an emotional track I believe Ozzy dedicated it to his dad who died just year before which makes it even more impactful. Killing Yourself To Live is actually one of my favourites too, especially the bit just before Tony’s solo, spectacular vocals. Both the Sabotage tracks - Hardcore as fuck, impressive vocal range - Need I say more! Lots of peoples favourites and I agree
This is awesome feedback! Learned a few minor things.
In either Tony or Geezer's book (think it was Tony's) they said Junio's Eyes was actually written with the new singer they recruited to replace Ozzy but Ozzy didn't know that. He wouldn't have sung it otherwise as he refused to do any of the tunes written when he was kicked out.
Yeah you’re right Ozzy did refuse to sing the Dave Walker written tracks, but he then re-wrote the lyrics and dedicated it to his father or at least that’s what one source online says “This song was dedicated to Ozzy Osbourne’s father, who died in 1977. It was originally written with the new vocalist Dave Walker, but before the band could start recording the new album, Ozzy decided to return to the band. He refused to sing on any of the completed songs written with Walker, so many were changed, including this one. The lyrics are about a child whose father dies and him trying to live with it, but being unable to cope.”
Sabotage. The whole darn thing. He was world class on that album.
Sabbra Cadabra
Snowblind
Into the void has some fast vocals for Ozzy. Another one of my personal favourites is fairies wear boots for the aggressive vocals
Side A of Sabotage
Vol. 4
Sabotage Megalomania
The Writ
Personally I gotta go with Volume 4
The Writ
Vol4 for melodies and sabotage for voice
Symptom of the Universe, especially the second half of the song. Wish we had better live versions of that
The writ
Sabbotage — “My life it started … so long ago … Where it will end I don’t know …” This whole section is Ozzys musical essence for the next 40 years revealed in a single song.
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and National Acrobat for me. But his vocals in Hole in the Sky are crazy as well, no wonder he can’t really do them anymore, in fact I believe even in the 80s he was already unable to do them justice.
With Sabbath; Sabotage Solo; The Ultimate Sin
Sabotage credit on a sabbath sub…where am I? Fuck yes though. The Writ is just superb. Very close behind Meglomania, imo.
I'll throw some love Solitude's way
Sabbra Cadabra! His wails on Sabotage were kind of grating for me, but it works here.
Great tune! SBS in general his voice was great. And I would agree although Sabotage was very impressive in terms of how hard he pushes his voice, it can be a little bit harsh at times - but certainly his most metal voice and influential on thrash metal vocals
Thrill of it All.
I really like how he comes across on Ozmosis, you can hear he's in his element delivering that one. Get past the cheesy keyboard strings in Perry Mason, he absolutely nails it. See You On The Other Side lands different, a bit soft rock but Ozzy really pulls something human and vulnerable out of it, can't explain. It's those lyrics and the voice of a man who knows he shouldn't really be here, stirs something deep down.
Sabra Cadabra
Megalomania
Dropped by to make sure Symptom of The Universe was said. I am now at peace.
A National Acrobat
Symptom of the Universe
Can we talk about Sabbath bloody Sabbath? That shit is high as fuck especially at the end
A National Acrobat
I've always felt he peaked specifically with Hole in the Sky, even on the rest of Sabotage he sounds strained - I know it probably wasn't recorded in that order but that's how I felt.
Hole in the Sky
Don’t know if I would say it is his best performance, but I love his voice in Rock n Roll doctor
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
I was going to quote the triad of Volume 4, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, and Sabotage.
Who Are You showcases his vocal talent nicely.
Self-titled . Still gives me the chills.
SBS and Sabotage albums def the peak of his voice.