Ozzy Osbourne is officially retired. The aging rocker, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, performed his final concert with Black Sabbath Saturday, where the band broke out their greatest hits and were joined by guests Metallica, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and more.
The performance took place at Villa Park, and Osbourne sang while sitting atop a bat throne — a nod to his January 1982 decision to bite off the head of a bat during a show in Des Moines, Iowa.
The rock idol, clad in his signature all black wardrobe, led the band through several of their hits, including “War Pigs,” “Iron Man,” and “Paranoid.” He also sang several of his popular solo songs, such as “Crazy Train” and “Mr. Crawley.”
The concert was the band’s first since their The End Tour wrapped in 2017, and the first to feature the original Black Sabbath line-up — Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward — in 20 years.
The group announced the concert in February. At the time, Osbourne’s wife Sharon Osbourne told BBC News of her husband, “He’s doing great. He’s doing really great. He’s so excited about this, about being with the guys again and all his friends. It’s exciting for everyone.”
“Ozzy didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to his friends, to his fans, and he feels there’s no been no full stop,” she explained. “This is his full stop.”
In addition to Parkinson’s, Osbourne was forced to stop touring due to several spinal injuries. Other guests joining Black Sabbath onstage included Billy Corgan, Slash, Fred Durst, Wolfgang Van Halen and Tom Morello.
Proceeds from the concert benefitted Cure Parkinson’s, the Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice, a Children’s Hospice supported by Aston Villa.
