Black Sabbath’s Final Reunion Show to be “The Greatest Heavy Metal Show Ever”
Black Sabbath’s “The End” Tour in 2016 and 2017 was their final outing, but the iconic metal pioneers have just announced a concert called “Back to the Beginning” on July 5th. The huge affair will see the band perform in their hometown of Birmingham with the original lineup of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and even Bill Ward, who did not participate in “The End.”
“It’s my time to go Back to the Beginning….time for me to give back to the place where I was born,” Ozzy Osbourne said. “How blessed am I to do it with the help of people whom I love. Birmingham is the true home of metal. Birmingham Forever.”
It is reported to be Osbourne’s final show ever, as he has been battling Parkinson’s disease. He will play a short solo set before Black Sabbath takes the stage. The day will also have a dizzying lineup of support acts: Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Halestorm, Alice in Chains, Lamb of God, Anthrax, and Mastodon, to name a few. There will be additional performances by Billy Corgan, David Draiman, Duff McKagan, Fred Durst, Lizzy Hale, Jake E Lee, Jonathan Davis, KK Downing, Mike Bordin, Papa V Perpetua, Rudy Sarzo, Sammy Hagar, Slash, Sleep Token ii, Tom Morello, and Wolfgang Van Halen. Morello, the music director for the event, says it will be “the greatest heavy metal show ever.”
In case you were having trouble keeping track, that means in one day, you can see the following bassists: Butler, Robert Trujillo, Tom Araya, Rex Brown, Jean-Michel Labadie, Mike Inez, John Campbell, Frank Bello, Troy Sanders, Duff McKagan, and Rudy Sarzo.
As if that isn’t cool enough, all profits from the show will be given to the charities Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, and Acorn Children’s Hospice.
The “Back to the Beginning” concert is slated for July 5th at Villa Park in Birmingham, UK. Tickets go on sale Friday, February 14th.
In his time with No Treble, Kevin has met hundreds of amazing bassists and interviewed icons like Jack Casady, Victor Wooten, Les Claypool, Marcus Miller, and more. He's a gigging bassist performing jazz in Northern Virginia and bluegrass with The Plate Scrapers up and down the East Coast. Kevin appreciates all genres of music, from R&B to metal and everything in between. Connect with Kevin on Facebook and check his performance schedule on his website.
