British rock writer Mick Wall has penned a shelf full of rock bios including a handful on his current focus Black Sabbath and their erstwhile front man Ozzy Osbourne. Like many books in the genre Black Sabbath – Symptoms of the Universe focuses on the band’s colorful history; all of the ups and more often than not the downs.
Much of the trials and tribulations have centered on
Ozzy’s departure from the band, fired by his mates and the seemingly endless
revolving door of singers, bassists, drummers and keyboardists that have come
and gone. At times it seems like Wall spends pages and pages trying to recount
the endless lineup changes; it’s truly a case of you can’t tell the players
without a score card.
One of the most striking things about Black Sabbath – Symptoms of the Universe is
the staggering egos of not only the individual members of the band, but so many
of the folks in the band’s universe like Ozzy’s wife/manager and master
manipulator Sharon (Arden) Osbourne. Wall’s own seemingly
Titanic ego also plays a featured role throughout the book. While admittedly
not a huge Sabbath fan, I think I would have difficulty picking drummer Bill
Ward out of a lineup, yet he regularly positions himself as an integral
commodity due an exorbitant payday in any of the many failed reunion attempts.
Wall weaves a tale of depravity and desperation. These
guys were so wrapped up in being famous that they are indifferent to their own
well being and so desperate to cling tightly to fame that they truly sold their
souls for rock ‘n’ roll.
No comments:
Post a Comment