Nearly two decades after last performing together, the members of Black Sabbath have reunited ahead of their final ever show.
Formed in Birmingham in 1968 by Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler, the heavy metal band has sold over 70 million records, won two Grammys and been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Although the line-up has faced many changes over the years, in 2005 the original members came back together. There was also a farewell tour in their home city in 2017, but Bill was absent.
However next month they will perform together for one last time. Back to the Beginning will be held at Villa Park in Birmingham on July 5, the final concert for both the band’s original line-up and Ozzy, 76, who has been battling ill health in recent years.
A week out from the anticipated event, overnight the band’s official social media pages shared a photo of Ozzy with Bill and Geezer.
‘Rehearsals are underway for Back To The Beginning: Ozzy’s Final Bow,’ the post was captioned.
Sitting on a couch, the trio smile for the camera, with Ozzy also seen holding a walking stick.
Although Tony wasn’t seen, some fans speculated he might have been the one taking the snap.
Many others were also excited to see Bill, who didn’t take part in the 2017 The End Tour.
‘Omg Bill!!! This photo makes me happy,’ user planet27 records shared.
‘Wow…killing photo…hitting my soul now!’ Juan shared.
‘This is the most Rock N Roll thing I’ve ever seen! Sabbath for life,’ cardinaleyezofapsycho added.
The upcoming show will mark the first time in almost 20 years the original band have performed all together.
Meanwhile Ozzy hasn’t played a full gig since 2018, and has faced numerous health problems since then, including being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
A few weeks ago, Tony admitted he was unsure about how the show would play out.
‘This would be a big, monumental thing if it all comes good. The worrying thing for me is the unknown,’ he told Music Week.
‘We don’t know what’s going to happen. Normally, when we’d tour, we’d rehearse and run through the thing for a while, and it’s just us. But with this event there are so many other moving parts.
‘You’re used to Ozzy running around, but he certainly won’t be doing that for this show. I don’t know if he’s going to be standing or sitting on a throne or what.’
Ozzy had also been due to play a European tour in 2019, but it was rescheduled three times before officially being cancelled in February 2023.
However, he has performed a handful of times in recent years, including at the Commonwealth Games in August 2022 and the NFL halftime show the following month.
Although he revealed earlier this year he now ‘can’t walk’, his wife Sharon said his illness ‘doesn’t affect his voice’.
He also previously reassured fans he was in ‘heavy training’ for the show but also wouldn’t be pushing his body too much. ‘I am doing what I can, where I feel comfortable,’ he told NME.
Meanwhile Sharon said the show would give him a chance to ‘say thank you to everybody’ who had supported him, and that the musician was ‘very emotional’ in the lead-up to the final Black Sabbath show.
The Back to the Beginning concert, which is already sold out, will also feature performances from Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool and Slayer.
It will be raising funds for Cure Parkinsons, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorns Children’s Hospice.
For those fans who can’t attend, it will be made available online through a livestream.
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