Source: loudwire.com
Earlier this year, Black Sabbath were among the acts chosen for recognition by the Recording Academy for a Grammys Lifetime Achievement Award. Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and estranged drummer Bill Ward all showed for the ceremony, but Ozzy Osbourne was conspicuously absent. In a new interview with Celebrity Access, Osbourne’s wife and manager Sharon Osbourne explains why.
Ozzy Osbourne: Bill Ward ‘should have’ been part of Black Sabba...
When the subject of the band’s legacy came up, Osbourne spoke about being “pissed off” over the Grammy Lifetime Achievement honor.
“I was just so pissed off at the Grammys this year because they gave them a Lifetime Achievement Award, but wouldn’t give it to them on the TV show that we all know as the Grammy Awards,” said Sharon of the annual CBS-televised event. “They did it at a separate ceremony which goes out on another network later on. I wouldn’t let Ozzy go because I just thought it was shocking what they did to them. So I wouldn’t let Ozzy go.”
She continued, “They wanted to give it to them in some pissy fucking ceremony that they had. Listen there were artists there that got awards that deserved it too. But I just thought because Sabbath -- their career spanned 50 years and they are still selling records today, their catalog still sells and their last record that was out six years ago was No. 1 in many countries worldwide -- so the other artists they were honoring had great careers and deserved to be honored but they still didn’t have the careers that Sabbath had. So not to put them on the proper show, it was like, ‘How dare you?’ I was so angry. I just thought, ‘Fuck you. I am not going to give you the honor of having Ozzy at your shitty ceremony.’”
That said, Sharon is incredibly proud of what Black Sabbath accomplished and their legacy. “You tell me albums that were made 50 years ago that still sell,” she stated. “There are a handful of artists that are blessed with that. It’s an incredible feat for any artist whose album still sells 50 years later. It’s a gift. It should be celebrated.”
The May ceremony, titled Grammy Salute To Music Legends, aired on PBS. Rival Sons, who supported Black Sabbath during their final tour, performed a medley of Sabbath tracks for the event.
