Blizzard of Ozz

Blizzard of Ozz
Studio album by Ozzy Osbourne
Released September 20, 1980
Recorded March 22 to April 19, 1980
Genre Heavy metal
Length 39:06
Label Jet
Producer Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads, Bob Daisley, Lee Kerslake
Ozzy Osbourne chronology
Blizzard of Ozz
(1980)		 Diary of a Madman
(1981)

Blizzard of Ozz is the first solo studio album by British singer/songwriter Ozzy Osbourne, recorded in Surrey, UK and released on September 20, 1980 in the UK and on March 27, 1981 in the U.S.. It is the comeback album of Osbourne following his firing from Black Sabbath the previous year. It also is the first of two studio albums he recorded with guitarist Randy Rhoads prior to Rhoads' death. Blizzard of Ozz was a commercial success and was certified 4x Platinum in the U.S., (a feat Osbourne would again achieve with the release of No More Tears).[1] The album has sold over 6,000,000 copies worldwide, making it Ozzy's best-selling album to date. In the UK, it was the first of four Osbourne albums to attain Silver certification (60,000 units sold) by the British Phonographic Industry, achieving this in August 1981. It also ranked 13th on a Guitar World readers poll.[2]

The tracks "Crazy Train", and "Mr Crowley" were released as singles. The former peaked at #9 on Billboard's Top Tracks chart and has remained a staple of pop, hard rock and classic rock radio for more than 25 years. Blizzard of Ozz was re-released in 2002 with the original bass and drum tracks, recorded by Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake, respectively, removed and replaced by new recordings by Robert Trujillo and Mike Bordin.

In 2010, Sony announced new re-releases of Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman, featuring Randy Rhoads, with the original bass and drum tracks restored. These are 2 disc Deluxe 30th Anniversary Editions with demos, rarities and previously unreleased live material. A limited Super Deluxe Edition of Blizzard of Ozz will be released in the U.K. only and features a newly designed DVD sized Digipak case with the 2 CD's, a 65 minute DVD featuring never-before-seen live concert footage & interviews with Ozzy and the band, 3 Fender guitar picks, stickers, a faux invitation to the resurrection of Aleister Crowley and an 18 cm by 12 cm glossy 58-page booklet. The release date had been delayed,[3] but was later announced to be 31 May 2011.[4] A box set featuring both re-issued albums, the Blizzard of Ozz/Diary of a Madman 30th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set, will also be released, featuring both CD re-issues, 180-gram LP Vinyl versions of both albums (original album only), the "Thirty Years After the Blizzard" DVD Documentary, over 70 minutes of additional rare live performances and interviews, a replica of Ozzy's iconic cross, and a 2 sided poster.[5]

Contents

Controversy

The song "Suicide Solution" has been criticized for its lyrics that allegedly encouraged suicide, and was alleged to be a direct cause in the October 1984 suicide of John McCollum, a nineteen 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 (McCollum et al. v. CBS, Inc., et al.). In his defense, Osbourne said that the song was really about the 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 abuse of alcohol and drugs.[6] The McCollums' complaint was dismissed on the grounds that the First Amendment protected Osbourne's right to free artistic expression.

In 1986, Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake sued Osbourne for unpaid royalties, eventually winning songwriting credits on Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman. The 2002 reissues of these albums saw the replacement of the original bass and drum tracks of Daisley and Kerslake with new ones by Osbourne's then-current drummer Mike Bordin and bassist Robert Trujillo. Osbourne's wife and manager, Sharon, explained the re-recordings in a press conference: "Because of Daisley and Kerslake's abusive and unjust behaviour, Ozzy wanted to remove them from these recordings. We turned a negative into a positive by adding a fresh sound to the original albums." Daisley and Kerslake denied the allegations of abusive behaviour and continued to battle for royalties for their work on Blizzard of Ozz, but in 2003, Daisley and Kerslake's lawsuit was dismissed by the United States District Court in Los Angeles. This dismissal was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.[7] However Ozzy states in his new autobiography that he felt sorry for removing Daisley's and Kerslake's tracks from the album and he did include he had nothing to do either with the removing or the re-recording process. Many fans have criticized the 2002 reissues and consider them to be unlistenable.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [8]
Metal Storm [9]
Rolling Stone [10]
Uncut [11]

The album reached #21 on the Billboard 200 chart, and is on the list of the top 100 best-selling albums of the 1980s. Although "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley" were released as singles, neither was commercially successful. Blizzard of Ozz is one of the very few albums amongst the 100 best selling albums of the 1980s to have achieved multi-platinum status without the benefit of a Top 40 single.

Uncut (8/02, p. 112) - 3.5 out of 5 - "Surprisingly melodic."

Kerrang! (p. 53) - "[A] work of genius....[With] some superb songs, many of which are now regarded as timeless classics."

Track listing

All songs written by Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads and Bob Daisley except noted

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "I Don't Know"   Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads, Bob Daisley 5:13
2. "Crazy Train"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 4:51
3. "Goodbye to Romance"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 5:33
4. "Dee"   Rhoads 0:49
5. "Suicide Solution"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 4:17
6. "Mr Crowley"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 5:02
7. "No Bone Movies"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley, Lee Kerslake 3:52
8. "Revelation (Mother Earth)"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 6:08
9. "Steal Away (The Night)"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 3:28
Total length:
 39:06

2002 reissue bonus track

No. Title Writer(s) Length
10. "You Lookin' at Me Lookin' at You"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 4:20

2011 'Expanded Edition' bonus tracks

No. Title Writer(s) Length
10. "You Looking at Me, Looking at You" (Non-LP B-Side)"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 4:15
11. "Goodbye to Romance" (2010 Guitar & Vocal Mix)"   Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley 5:42
12. "RR" (Outtake Guitar Solo)"   Rhoads 1:13

Personnel

2002 reissue
Production

Sales accomplishments

RIAA certification[1] (United States)

Date Designation Total Sales
July 31,
1981		 Gold 500,000
June 18,
1982		 Platinum 1,000,000
August 11,
1992		 Double Platinum 2,000,000
March 22,
1994		 Triple Platinum 3,000,000
August 15,
1997		 Quadruple Platinum 4,000,000

BPI certification (United Kingdom)

Date Designation Total Sales
August 21,
1981		 Silver[12] 60,000

CRIA certification[13] (Canada)

Date Designation Total Sales
July 1,
1981		 Gold 50,000
October 1,
1981		 Platinum 100,000

In Media

References

  1. ^ a b "RIAA Gold & Platinum database". http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=blizzard%20of%20oz&artist=&format=&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2009&sort=Artist&perPage=25. Retrieved February 15, 2009. 
  2. ^ "100 Greatest Guitar Albums". Guitar World. October 2006.  A copy can be found at "Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Albums Of All Time - Rate Your Music". rateyourmusic.com. http://rateyourmusic.com/list/Boggs1027/guitar_worlds_100_greatest_guitar_albums_of_all_time. Retrieved 12 October 2011. 
  3. ^ BLIZZARD OF OZZ and DIARY OF A MADMAN 30th Anniversary Issues Delayed. Pitriff.com, retrieved October 11, 2010
  4. ^ "OZZY OSBOURNE's Landmark 'Blizzard' And 'Diary' Solo Albums To Be Reissued In May - Mar. 18, 2011". Blabbermouth.net. http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=155499. Retrieved 2011-03-18. 
  5. ^ "Diary of a Madman/Blizzard of Ozz 30th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set". myplaydirect.com. http://www.myplaydirect.com/ozzy-osbourne/details/5779242?current_country=US. Retrieved 2011-03-23. 
  6. ^ IMDB Biography
  7. ^ "News - Federal Appeals Court: Ozzy Do". Knac.Com. http://www.knac.com/article.asp?ArticleID=2558. Retrieved 2011-10-20. 
  8. ^ Huey, Steve. "Review Blizzard of Oz". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r584559. Retrieved 23 August 2009. 
  9. ^ Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard Of Ozz - Metal Storm
  10. ^ Blizzard of Ozz Reissue | Album Reviews | Rolling Stone
  11. ^ Uncut (August 2002): 112. 
  12. ^ "BPI certified awards". http://www.bpi.co.uk/platinum/platinumright.asp?rq=search_plat&r_id=24254. Retrieved February 15, 2009. 
  13. ^ "CRIA certified awards". http://www.cria.ca/cert_db_search.php?page=1&wclause=WHERE+artist_name+like+%27%25ozzy+osbourne%25%27+ORDER+BY+cert_date%2C+cert_award+&rcnt=22&csearch=20&nextprev=1. Retrieved February 12, 2009.