October 23, 1995 - Ozzmosis

Three weeks after my last release and over four years since "No More Tears", Ozzy Osbourne released his seventh solo album "Ozzmosis" on October 23, 1995. There's been a lot of turnover since his hugely succesful last album as Ozzy and guitarist Zakk Wylde are the only remaining members. Drummer Randy Castillo is replaced by new drummer Deen Castronovo. Keyboardist John Sinclair is also gone and he is not replaced. Producer Michael Beinhorn plays most of the keyboards on this album and legendary keyboardist Rick Wakeman even features on a couple songs! The biggest change is at bass where Ozzy's original bassist Bob Daisley has left the band for a second time. Daisley is a pretty good bassist, but he is replaced amazingly by Ozzy's old friend and Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler! That is an awesome addition that I'm pretty excited about! Let's listen to the latest from Ozzy!

The album kicks off with it's lead single "Perry Mason" and this is one of the songs featuring former Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman on Mellotron. Wakeman plays some epic Mellotron in the opening, but he's not in most of the song. Wylde kicks in with a sweet sounding guitar riff that drives the song and Ozzy sounds like he hasn't missed a beat, belting out just like his usual self. Wylde delivers a pretty sweet solo in the middle of the song before they predictably finish things off. A typical and solid Ozzy opener. Up next is another single titled "I Just Want You" and it's the only other song to feature Wakeman. He and Wylde combine for a lighter but solid main riff with Ozzy nicely singing overtop. Ozzy sings a new verse that sets the stage for the solo and Zakk plays an interesting sounding solo that is a little quiet but is still filled with some cool stuff. This track is decent, but it's pretty made-for-radio and the end drones on for a bit too long. Track 3 is "Ghost Behind My Eyes" and it's a sappy ballad with Wylde playing some light guitar and Butler adding some nice bass to back him. Even the solo is tepid in this song and while it's not bad, it's certainly lower grade for me. That sums up this song pretty well. The next song is "Thunder Underground" and Zakk plays a heavy and pretty catchy guitar riff to drive this one. Ozzy sounds good singing long notes overtop, and Zakk has a pretty tame solo in this one that really misses it's chance to spice things up. Track 5 is the final single off the album "See You On The Other Side" and Zakk's guitar is way lighter than the last song as he leads the way with some dreamy and slightly trippy guitars. The electric stuff returns for the loud chorus and it's a nice contrast between the verse and chorus. Zakk's solo isn't very flashy again, but it does fit the mood really well and it's fairly long. Up next is "Tomorrow" and Geezer plays a pretty cool bass riff and they build epicly around that. Ozzy sings in a solid lower voice before they snap into a nice main riff that hits pretty hard. The setup to the solo is a bit weird, but Zakk starts off the solo slow and ramps nicely into some pretty sweet shredding by the end of it. Pretty cool song.Track 7 is "Denial" and it's another slower song with some slightly trippy guitars by Zakk. The guitar solo is pretty awesome with some really fast stuff, but the rest of the song is just decent. Too many ballads on this album, one or maybe two is ok but this is too many. The next song is "My Little Man" and it's driven by an interesting light guitar riff by Wylde. Ozzy sings about his son in another lighter and slower song and once again it's not bad by any means, but it also doesn't contribute a whole lot. About half the album is slow songs! Track 9 is called "My Jekyll Doesn't Hide" and this one is more like the Ozzy I want with Zakk playing a catchy and heavy guitar riff and Ozzy belting out some nice vocals. Butler's bass is pretty cool as well and it's wasted on the slower ballads. Zakk plays a pretty cool solo that matches the heavy mood and this is easily one of the better songs on the album, even if it is a little repetitive. The album wraps up with "Old L.A. Tonight" and the producer Beinhorn plays the piano that is all over this song and it sounds good even though it sounds a bit sappy. Zakk plays some slow epic guitar overtop and this is definitely unlike most Ozzy songs, but of all the ballads I think the piano definitely helps this one out. It's a fitting ending to this album for sure.

That is the end of "Ozzmosis" and I thought it was a decent album but certainly not a great one. At least half the songs were way too slow for me and the return of Geezer Butler couldn't even salvage what was just an average Ozzy album. I don't even think it's better than "The Ultimate Sin", making this latest effort the lowest rung on the ladder. Hopefully Ozzy turns up the juice a bit his next time out!