Did Ozzy write any of his own music?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Red, Dec 18, 2008.

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  1. Red

    Red Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    This question struck when I couldn't sleep (due to flu/fever, 13 days now!) last night :)

    Did Ozzy write any of his own music at all? I'd be surprised if he did, although there are so many similarities between his first batch of albums one would think it is the same writer.
     
  2. ACK!

    ACK! Senior Member

    Location:
    New Hampshire
    Although he's credited as a co-writer on many of his songs, I believe he's had little or no involvement in the songwriting process.
     
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  3. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    According to Bill Ward, Ozzy wrote "Who Are You" by himself on the synthesizer. And it shows.

    I doubt he's had very much to do with the music on his solo albums, in spite of the ridiculous credits. Bark At The Moon states, "All songs written by Ozzy Osbourne." :laugh:
     
  4. intv7

    intv7 Senior Member

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    Bob Daisley allegedly did a lot of ghost writing for Ozzy in his early solo career. I think Geezer Butler used to write Sabbath's lyrics -- Tony Iommi wrote the riffs -- not sure if Ozzy came up with the melody lines, though -- it would seem to me that whoever was writing the lyrics would also be writing the melodies, but anything's possible. I always thought that Ozzy's songwriting credits were more than likely bogus.
     
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  5. Almost Simon

    Almost Simon Forum Resident

    I think most of the Sabbath tunes were Iommi/Butler compositions with the royalties split 4 ways.

    Not sure about his solo work though.
     
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  6. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    This reminds me that both Bill Ward and Geezer Butler have stated that Geezer wrote the lyrics the overwhelming majority of the time, but that Ozzy interpreted them. I think Geezer said, "He just spits them out all Ozzy." So it's likely that Ozzy has had some after-the-fact input on polishing the lyrics and melodies.

    And Daisly said that Ozzy "wrote" on line in "Suicide Solution" - "Wine is fine but whisky's quicker." :laugh:
     
  7. musicalbeds

    musicalbeds Strange but not a stranger

    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    I remember Ozzy saying that Randy Rhoads was great at taking the stuff he hummed to him and creating muisc with it....so I do think Ozzy contributes to the musical side of things.
     
  8. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    Rhoads clearly was involved with the instrumental portions on the first two solo albums. Crazy Train is his riff and solo. The Suicide Solution riff is also his. He composed the music for the title track to Diary Of A Madman. He had a hand in the instrumental component without question.

    Now did Ozzy actually contribute to the lyrical component? That seems to be debatable. Both Sharon and Ozzy have made that claim, but enough has been written over the years to give credibility to the idea that others played a primary role with the lyrics, particularly Daisley.
     
  9. pool_of_tears

    pool_of_tears Searching For Simplicity

    Location:
    Midwest
    I'm sure Ozzy conveyed melodies he heard in his head, but I would never call him "an artist".
     
  10. Jeff Carney

    Jeff Carney Fan Of Specifics (No Koolaid)

    Location:
    SF
    I guess some people forget about vocal melodies when they think about music composition?

    This is Ozzy's greatest gift aside from the obvious (a voice that is as original as any in rock). He came up with one classic after another after another. Simply amazing. Anybody who ever wonders just how freaking astonishing he was in this department should hear the original version of "Junior's Eyes" when Sabbath briefly had ex-Savoy Brown singer Dave Walker in the band. It was a good song, but what Ozzy did with it is not to be believed.

    As regards "Who Are You" and "Am I Going Insane," yes, those were composed by Ozzy but clearly Iommi did a lot to embellish them. Particularly "Who Are You," where the entire middle section with that sort of classical piano and guitars whizzing around was surely written by Iommi, who was a pretty good pianist despite apparently only really learning it after the band had formed.

    I don't know much about Ozzy's solo career, but I doubt he ever needed much help with vocal melodies.
     
  11. zen

    zen Senior Member

    I didn't know that most of the Sabbath tunes were Iommi and Butler compositions. Can Ozzy's stock drop any more? lol
     
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  12. PhilCohen

    PhilCohen Forum Resident

    Ozzy probably has lyric input, but the idea that he wrote the "Bark at The Moon" album by himself is absurd. Jake E.Lee probably composed the music.
     
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  13. Jeff Carney

    Jeff Carney Fan Of Specifics (No Koolaid)

    Location:
    SF
    I didn't know that if you read an opinion on the internet it was best assumed to be fact.

    Check my post (#10) on the matter. I think most everyone knows that Iommi was the sonic sculpture behind Sabbath. He wrote most of the riffs, worked on the arrangements, production, etc. etc... and the band just credited all four members in the interest of teamwork and not being obsessed with inidividual accomplishsment. But Ozzy did plenty. Without him and his sense of melody, those Sabbath records wouldn't have sold the millions they did and still do. Which makes his stock higher than what you might perceive, not lower.

    Again, I'm not that familiar with his solo career, but I'm pretty sure Zakk Wylde didn't sing him "Mama I'm Comin' Home."
     
  14. My understanding is that at least in Sabbath, he did not write the songs.
     
  15. Ctiger2

    Ctiger2 Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    If you mean "write" by actually "composing music" or "composing lyrics" I think It's well known that Butler wrote Sabbath stuff and Daisley wrote Ozzy's solo lyrics. Lemmy wrote Momma I'm coming home. I'm not sure who's "writing" Ozzy's current stuff, but It would be a good guess that it's probably not him. Ozzy's talent is singing with that unique voice. ...and that's definitely worth something.
     
  16. Jeff Carney

    Jeff Carney Fan Of Specifics (No Koolaid)

    Location:
    SF

    Butler, not Ward, wrote 95% of the Sabbath lyrics.
     
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  17. Ctiger2

    Ctiger2 Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    You're correct. Doing too many things at once. Fixed my post. :D
     
  18. Max F

    Max F Member

    Ozzy adds the magic!

    Its funny that people always mention how all these other people are responsible for Ozzy's success. Yet when they go on their own, they are no longer successful (Sabbath with Dio the exception) and Ozzy still goes on and on.

    Ozzy loves his fans and we love him!
     
  19. SoundAdvice

    SoundAdvice Senior Member

    Location:
    Vancouver
    Is Ozzy still capable of "humming" in 2008?
     
  20. SoundAdvice

    SoundAdvice Senior Member

    Location:
    Vancouver
    Wasn't the Metallica bass player from Ozzy's band?
     
  21. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    Ozzy clearly has to be respected for putting his stamp on the music. A lot of it may not have gone the places it did without his involvement. The reason he takes a hit though is because of the perception that he somehow was a principle songwriter.
     
  22. hi_watt

    hi_watt The Road Warrior

    Location:
    San Diego, CA
    IMO, Sharon has helped Ozzy a lot in terms of his solo success, but at the same time she seemed to tarnish my view of him as a symbol of the genre. Now he just seems like a drug joke punchline.
     
  23. Red

    Red Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sweden
    On 'Shot in the dark' credit goes to Ozzo + Jake E Lee on all songs but one (Ozzy + Phil Soussan). Why this sudden generosity? Jake was on 'Bark at the moon' as well and there's a possibility he did much of the basic song writing on that one too although that would not make completely sense to me. What else of importance did Jake do after life with Ozzy? Badlands? Maybe Ozzy himself had some significant input on those 80s albums after all.

    Edit: I wouldn't call Bark at the moon and Shot in the dark 'important' albums though. Ah well...
     
  24. ElevatorSkyMovie

    ElevatorSkyMovie Senior Member

    Location:
    Oklahoma
    Do you REALLY think Ozzy is the one coming up with the guitar riffs to his songs? I doubt he even writes lyrics. He might b responsible for some of the melodies, but lord, the dude appears to be in a 24/7 coma now.
     
  25. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    That's as may be, but without Sharon, Ozzy would probably be parked under a gravestone today.
     
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