So awhile back I went and reviewed Black Sabbath’s albums so for this review I am reviewing Ozzy Osbourne’s albums. I’m pretty sure I’ve heard Ozzy’s solo songs before Sabbath and aside from the first couple albums, I hadn’t heard much else back in the day. So let’s take a look…….
Blizzard Of Ozz- well what can I say that hasn’t been said about Ozzy’s first solo album? I mean there are so many classics on here. This is the album that gave us Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley and this is before Sharon got involved. This is also the first album with Randy Rhoads. I don’t know there isn’t much else to say Its a classic album that everyone should listen to (not just the hits). I have no choice but to give this 10/10
Standouts: No Bone Movies, You Looking At Me Looking At You, Steal Away (The Night)
Diary Of A Madman- again, another classic. I mean should anyone be surprised by that? Anyone who is a fan of rock or metal should know that both this one and Blizzard are classics. Again what can be said about this that hasn’t already? I will say that I actually prefer Blizzard to this one but this is definitely on par. Sadly this is the last album with Randy Rhoads which makes you wonder if he didn’t die in that plane crash, would he still be playing with Ozzy or would he be doing something else? Who knows but anyway I give this album 10/10
Standouts: Believer, S.A.T.O., Little Dolls
Bark At The Moon- you could say that if Ozzy had hung it up after the death of Randy Rhoads and ended on those two albums alone it would’ve been fine. However, I’m glad he moved on and put out this album. If you asked me awhile ago which Ozzy album was my favorite, I would’ve probably said this one. I think out of the last three albums, this one is probably the most overlooked and I can see why. It’s the first without Randy Rhoads but the first with Jake E. Lee who is also underrated and does a great job. I mean he had some big shoes to fill. As a whole though, this album has too many “ballady” type songs on it and I give it 9/10
Standouts: Spiders, Rock ‘n’ Roll Rebel, Slow Down
The Ultimate Sin- I feel like this is one of those albums that I had heard of but never really listened to. I’m not sure why because this is actually a really good album. This is also the last album to have Jake E. Lee on guitar. This album to me feels the most 80’s. Like if you listen to it all the way through, you definitely get and 80’s vibe (which is not a bad thing). Anyway, I give this one 9/10
Standouts: Shot In The Dark, Thank God For The Bomb, Fool Like You
No Rest For The Wicked- Ozzy’s last album in the 80’s also has that same feel to it like the last one. I don’t know but when I listen to both this and the last album back to back, for some reason they sound like a product of their time. This is also the first of many albums to have Zakk Wylde on guitar and you definitely can tell it’s him (just listen to all those pinch harmonics). I hadn’t really heard this album but I actually think it’s a really good album and it’s an overlooked album. I know everyone raves about Randy Rhoads but it’s easy to see why Ozzy picked Zakk to be his longtime guitarist. I give this album 9.5/10
Standouts: Breakin’ All The Rules, Devil’s Daughter (Holy War), Bloodbath In Paradise
No More Tears- ah yes the 90’s. I find that with most albums that came out in the early 90’s, they are either hit or miss. This one is definitely a hit. It has everything that a fan of Ozzy could like. This album also has my favorite Ozzy song which is also the title track. A fun fact about this album is that Lemmy wrote lyrics for 6 of the songs on here which if you watch the movie Hellraiser 3, Motörhead also plays the song Hellraiser during the end credits. Definitely another classic Ozzy album and it gets 10/10
Standouts: Hellraiser, Zombie Stomp, Mr. Tinkertrain
Ozzmosis- this is another album that I had only heard of so I was excited to hear it for the first time and when I heard the first song I was excited for the rest of the album. Sadly, after the first song, it goes downhill. It’s not a bad album but it’s not as good as the others. I kept waiting for it to pick up but it’s too slow especially for an Ozzy album. I give this album 7/10
Standouts: Ghost Behind My Eyes, Perry Mason, Whole World’s Fallin’ Down
Down To Earth- seriously with this one? I mean seriously? Ok so I had never even heard of this album until this review. But seriously what is this? And what’s with the goofy ass album cover? It looks like a screen shot of a bad CGI image. The problem with this album is that it’s just too slow. There are moments of brilliance on here but not enough to make it a standout album as a whole. I just wasn’t expecting this from an artist like Ozzy Osbourne. At the end of the day, it’s a very boring album. I have no choice but to give this 2/10
Standouts: Junkie (if I’m being generous)
Under Cover- if you go and read or listen to discography discussions then you will see that some will not count cover albums as part of a discography. I am not one of those people. I feel like if a band releases any album in stores, then it counts. Like I’ll count Undisputed Attitude as part of Slayer’s discography. In some cases, the covers are better than the originals. This album however is not which is too bad because I like a lot of albums that came out in 2005. Now I can appreciate Ozzy for covering classic songs but there’s way too many vocal effects on here. His voice sounds kind of robotic which is too bad. I also find it interesting that this is the first and only album to have Jerry Cantrell on guitar. I was kind of hoping the cover of Purple Haze would be on here but sadly it is not. Overall, check it out if you want but I’m giving this album 0/10
Standouts: nothing really the vocals kind of ruin it
Black Rain- if you wanted to know what it would be like if Zakk Wylde lost his voice and had Ozzy replace him on vocals in Black Label Society, then definitely listen to this album. Like seriously it sounds like Black Label Society but with Ozzy on vocals. I remember going to my first Ozzfest when this album came out and that was a lot of fun but seriously this album just sounds like BLS which explains why this is the last album with Zakk Wylde. And seriously what’s with the damn vocal effects? Like I said, he sounds like a damn robot. I give this 1/10
Standouts: 11 Silver
Scream- so another album seemed inevitable and who would replace Zakk Wylde? I mean say what you will about BLS but Zakk can shred. Would it be Slash? How about Ace Frehley? Jake E. Lee coming back? Nope, it’s Gus G. Now who is Gus G? Well he is the guitarist of a power metal band from Greece called Firewind and he also played in Arch Enemy during their 2005 Ozzfest dates. Not sure why Ozzy chose him but here we are. And yes Gus is a badass guitar player. Anyway as far as the album goes, it doesn’t sound like BLS which makes it a step up from the previous album. However, I just couldn’t really get into this one. A big part of that is those damn vocals. They sound auto tuned at this point and overall, this album is just ok. It’s nothing special and it’s just kind of generic. I give this 1/10
Standouts: Diggin’ Me Down
Ordinary Man- ok so this one is an interesting one. No Zakk doesn’t return and neither does Gus G. Instead we get some songs with Slash and Duff from GNR, Tom Morello, Chad Smith, and we even get a song with Elton John. So I guess you could say it’s a hodgepodge of great musicians. I actually think this is a lot better than the last 3 or 4 albums however, this album is just ok. It doesn’t blow me away but it’s a lot better than what was released prior. A lot of it sounds stock. I will also say that after hearing the Post Malone songs, I must ask why the hell were these even made? Like seriously they are not good and is all the more reason for Ozzy to just retire and stay retired. I thought after hearing the first one the second one would be better but it was worse. I give this album 2/10
Standouts: Nothing really stands out. Appreciate the musicians on here but overall just a meh album
Well that was an interesting deep dive and it’s too bad that someone who is 1/4 of Black Sabbath put out not so great albums in recent years. However, the albums that are great really are classics and you cannot deny what he has brought to the table. Will we get another album after this one? Who knows. I will also say that Ozzy is probably one of the few vocalists who has played with some of the best guitarists.
Final Grade: A
Album Rankings:
- No More Tears
- Blizzard Of Ozz
- Diary Of A Madman
- No Rest For The Wicked
- The Ultimate Sin
- Bark At The Moon
- Ozzmosis
- Ordinary Man
- Down To Earth
- Scream
- Black Rain
- Under Cover
Sinister Reviews 