Wow, what a show! Legends from rock and metal, lined up to perform in honour of one man and one band… Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. A sea of metal t-shirts descended onto the streets of Birmingham, to see Ozzy’s final ever live performance, and the last ever performance of the 4 original members of Birmingham’s own, Black Sabbath. The inventers of heavy metal gave us the genre we love, and the send off they got could not have been better for them, the bands who took part, the 45,000 people watching in the stadium and the millions watching at home.

Hosted by Jason Momoa, the all day event featured a who’s who of metal and rock icons. You could see from very early on, that he was thrilled to be hosting this event and be part of metal history. He is a genuine fan, and even joined the mosh pit for Pantera’s set! The day was also broken up with music from a DJ; Slipknots Sid Wilson, plus video packages from music stars who wanted to send a message to Ozzy and Black Sabbath in support of their legacy and friendship. Iconic names from Elton John to Marilyn Manson gave messages of love and support. We also had some very funny bits where Ozzy had been digitally placed into famous scenes from films.

Tom Morello and Steven Tyler

The show ran incredibly tightly. Bands were given time to perform around 3 songs which featured at least 1 Black Sabbath or Ozzy Osbourne cover. As the show went on, the final acts were given a bit more time and more songs to perform. The turn around times too were very slick, and it was barely a 10 minute wait between sets. There was very minimal production beyond the bands logo and some lighting being programmed, so bands were able to come on, show their respect, play their hearts out and move on for the next act. There were also two supergroups made up of a rotating gallery of rock and metal musicians, including some absolute icons, and surprise performers.

Everyone will have walked away from the show, with favourite acts they saw throughout the day. Genuinely every act put on a fantastic set, but for me, Pantera, Tool and Lamb of God gave earth shattering performances that were my favourite from the day time performances. For the supergroup’s, I thought nothing would top a surprise number from Ronnie Wood on guitar, but then out came Steven Tyler, performing incredible renditions of ‘The Train Kept A-Rollin’ and ‘Walk This Way’ before moving effortlessly into a cover of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Whole Lotta Love.’ Tyler sounded phenomenal, and was clearly enjoying every moment. I hope that if he continues to feel well in his singing, he may just consider the occasional performance in the future.

James Hetfield and Robert Trujillo

My favourite act of the night (barring Ozzy and Black Sabbath of course) was Metallica. They have never sounded better, and proved that while Ozzy and Sabbath, are metal Gods, they are metal Kings. But make no mistake, this wasn’t about them. This was a very relaxed Metallica, in a support slot for the first time in a very long time. And rightly so!… As frontman James Hetfield pointed out, “Look at all this love! Without Black Sabbath there would be no Metallica. Thank you boys for giving us our purpose in life.” The set was fantastic and really Metallica were the only choice for the band that would lead into Ozzy Himself.

And so we come to Ozzy’s set. Starting with a video package of his career, he rose up out of the stage on his black throne to join his bandmates. Notable that axe man Zakk Wild checked on him numerous times throughout to make sure he was ok. Physically Ozzy looked a fraction of his former self – confined to his throne as he was, however it was clear the fire, the passion and the will was there. Ozzy gave his final performance everything he had, and it was more than enough. He was emotional, he was thankful and he was still our Prince of Darkness. It was one of those moments that is remembered forever as he gave us some of his greatest solo hits. We were moved, and so was he.

Ozzy Osbourne

Finally after a 20 minute break, the moment everyone was waiting for. Black Sabbath took to the stage. Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Ozzy Osbourne, and for the first time in 20 years, Bill Ward were together again. They gave us only 4 songs, but it was everything we could have asked for. The four founding fathers of heavy metal, here back to the beginning where it all started, not just for them but for countless bands and music fans. Here to play for us one last time. Here to play for each other one last time. To say thank you… because the whole day was us and the bands, thanking Ozzy and Black Sabbath, but here they turned the tables and thanked us for the decades of love and support. ‘War Pigs,’ ‘N.I.B,’ ‘Iron Man’ and finally show stopping end ‘Paranoid’ (to which Ozzy said, last song ever) were incredible, and it was pure joy to witness them together again performing for us.

Earlier this year, musical director of Back to the Beginning and Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello, said “We have a very, very simple goal, to make this the greatest day in the history of heavy metal.” From all of us Tom, goal achieved! Back to the Beginning was the greatest day in the history of metal. Thank you Tom and all the artists and crew involved. Thank you Ozzy. And thank you Black Sabbath.

Chris \m/

Twitter/Instagram @cw_stagg
Bluesky @cwstagg.bsky.social
Email chris@phoenixfm.com

All images copywrite Ross Halfin, used with permission of Live Nation

Back to the Beginning all star line up shot:

Top Left to Right: Rex Brown Pantera -Tobias Forge -Ghost -David Draiman Disturbed -James Hetfield Metallica -Tony Iommi Black Sabbath -Robert T Metallica – Phil Anselmo Pantera – Geezer Butler Black Sabbath -Sammy Hagar -Kirk Hamnett Metallica, Steven Tyler Aerosmith – Ozzy Osbourne –

Bottom Mike Inez -Alice In Chains – Zakk Wylde Ozzy/Pantera – Bill Ward Black Sabbath – Lars Ulrich Metallica – Billy Corgan Smashing Pumpkins