THE CLASSIC MISSOURI BROADCAST

At the time of this stunning show in 1986, Osbourne was experiencing a resurgence in his career with the release of 1983's "Bark at the Moon" and 1986's "The Ultimate Sin". The former record had been co-written with Bob Daisley and featured Don Airey of Rainbow and famed metal drummer Tommy Aldridge, but it was on the heels of "The Ultimate Sin" release that Osbourne took the stage in Kansas City, Missouri, with new drummer Randy Castillo and bassist Phil Soussan.

Unlike most lead singers who go solo in order to distance themselves artistically from the band they just left, Ozzy remained faithful to the type of music he created with Sabbath: deep, heavy, slow moving rock with lyrical themes cantered around Satan, the Occult, the presence of evil in the world, and drug use (just listen to the track here, ‘Flying High Again’). Although it must be noted that many of Ozzy’s lyrics, both now and then, should be taken with tongue firmly embedded in cheek.

After a long intro, Ozzy launches into ‘Bark At The Moon’, followed by the controversial ‘Suicide Solution’. The set-list balances lesser-known Osbourne songs such as ‘Never Know Why’, ‘I Don't Know’, ‘Thank God For The Bomb’ and ‘Killer Of Giants’, with his bigger radio hits, among them ‘Mr. Crowley’, ‘Shot In The Dark’ and ‘Crazy Train’. He closes with a couple of Sabbath classics: ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Paranoid’. Osbourne would continue with a number of solo albums and tours before finally reuniting the original Black Sabbath in 1997. 

Previously unreleased on vinyl, this dynamic and powerful recording was broadcast live at the time of the performance, but only now is it available on vinyl for the first time.