“To start and end in the place we all grew up in and forged our future in, against all odds, is the ideal way to finish. Not many bands can say that”.
The above quote is from Black Sabbath bass player Geezer Butler, whom I interviewed earlier this year ahead of the band’s final show at Villa Park. Just weeks later, Ozzy’s death despite ill health came as a shock to fans around the globe.
I was fortunate enough to attend Ozzy and Sabbath’s final show with my son, to witness history being created right before our eyes. Next month, there is a chance for Ozzy and Sabbath fans to attend Black Sabbath the Ballet in Edinburgh. While many rock and metal fans might be unsure about the idea of a Sabbath ballet, I spoke to Lead Composer, Project Music Supervisor and Conductor Christopher Austin, who has joined forces with Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, and his passion for the project was tangible to say the least. He won plaudits from fans for his work on a list of tracks that includes Paranoid, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Ironman, War Pigs, Black Sabbath, Solitude, Orchid, and Laguna Sunrise.
The latter track provided an opportunity to introduce Austin’s orchestral arrangements to the legendary guitarist. “I played it to Tony early on; he has been the most tremendous support to all of us, and he’s been the ‘yes sayer’ if you see what I mean? When I put on the arrangement of Laguna Sunrise that I had been working on, he started playing along; that was an experience. I put some new chords on it and Tony said: “I like what you’ve done with that”. He basically gave us permission to be ourselves and was happy and excited that his music would go on a new journey; that’s the mark of the man’s graciousness towards us while having confidence in his own legacy. He gave us his trust, and that was liberating.”
Black Sabbath – The Ballet, ,
Birmingham Royal Ballet, 2023
Credit: Johan Persson/
What was essential about Sabbath was that it was a working class band from the industrial north. Growing up in Edinburgh, my uncle introduced me to the musicality of Sabbath at an early age, songs such as Orchid and Solitude, both featured in the Black Sabbath Ballet, draw upon the folk and melodic elements often overlooked. “When you listen to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, that acoustic section was a real gift to us” explains Christopher. “There’s a lot that’s raw and intense, but it’s also very lyrical music.” Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters recently snubbed Ozzy’s legacy in the media. It’s typical of the snobbish attitude often directed at Sabbath and Ozzy, who broke out of the class system during the late 1960s to become one of the most influential and much loved bands of all time. Christopher Austin suggests that it was the band’s working class background in Birmingham that drew Carlos Acosta to turning’s band’s music into a ballet. Acosta developed and commissioned the work as Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet. “Yes, there’s a quote from Carlos where he said: ‘I’m working class-I am Black Sabbath’. These were four working-class young men against the world. There’s a sense of necessity; it needs to exist. These first four or five Sabbath albums have become part of our culture, and for me it’s been the most amazing voyage of discovery, every kind of Sabbath song is compelling to listen to”. Perhaps it was the fact that each member brought something essential? “Yes, Geezer’s bass lines and lyrics, Tony’s riffs, Bill Ward’s swing, and the top line of Ozzy’s melodic vocal”.
The recent death of Ozzy will undoubtedly compound the performance; it’s unclear if Tony Iommi will perform on any of the current run, but he has appeared alongside the production’s guitarist, Marc Hayward, at previous shows. “Tony appeared at the back of the stage, during Paranoid, behind Mark. I couldn’t hear the orchestra because of the roar coming from behind me in the pit. Tony was the most gracious person to Mark when they were both on stage. He brought an ecstatic high and a stage presence while being an understated person, but the power is in the playing; he has a sound like no-one else. Marc has been a real gift to this production, he has such great charisma, but he’s also so open, and the dancers were very aware of that right from his first audition”.
Undoubtedly, there will be a range of emotions for both the performers and the audience since the death of Ozzy just months ago. Unfortunately, the Sabbath frontman never got the opportunity to see the final production. “Ozzy wasn’t able to see it as he had health issues for quite some time and wasn’t able to fly. Sharon (Osbourne) saw it, and Geezer has seen it, but I don’t think Bill Ward has yet. The whole band provide voiceovers, they tell the story of the band and it deals with Tony’s industrial accident and Ozzy leaving the band as well as all the things they achieved together, it’s been a complex relationship between them for sure but they really are a band of brothers, some of it is scurrilous, other parts are very moving; it gives a sense of what they have all been through.”
Black Sabbath the Ballet 30 Oct – 1 Nov Edinburgh Festival Theatre
Black Sabbath The Ballet Carlos Acosta and Sofia Liñares Photo credit Perou.
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