Listen: Early Ozzy Osbourne Recording Emerges After Nearly Five Decades

While Ozzy Osbourne passed away in July 2025, the rock icon continues to entertain. Since his passing, there have been numerous tributes produced in his honor. Most recently, the Grammy Awards showcased the talents of Post Malone when he covered Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs.” But aside from the covers and ceremonies, Ozzy seemed to have one last gift for fans when a rare rehearsal tape from nearly five decades ago was mysteriously discovered, which showcased the talents of a young icon. 

During the 1980s, Ozzy looked to form his own solo band. Needing some talent to share the stage with him, he befriended Randy Rhoads, Bob Daisley, and Lee Kerslake. Together, they produced Ozzy’s first solo album with Blizzard of Ozz. When hitting the airwaves, the album peaked at No. 7 on the UK Albums chart. In the US, it climbed to No. 21 on the Billboard 200. 

Although the album featured “Crazy Train” and “Mr. Crowley”, the unearthed tape was a special moment in the history of Ozzy. Offering a raw, unpolished look into the creative process of Blizzard of Oz, the tape was discovered by David Jolly. 

[RELATED: Sharon Osbourne Calls Ozzy Osbourne Grammy Tribute a Moment “Carved Into Musical History”]

Fans Push For The Lost Ozzy Osbourne Tape To Be Released

Searching through his attic, Jolly stumbled upon the lost tape that was gifted to him when he became friends with Ozzy. 

Wanting to authenticate the taping, the recording was sent to Daisley. Once hearing those songs, he insisted, “As soon as I heard it, I thought, yes, that’s us, that’s Ozzy‘s voice. … I don’t know if we were auditioning a drummer and just loosening up a bit, or we’re just clowning about… but it wasn’t a song we were working on because we had definite songs by then, we had several songs.”  

It should come as no surprise that fans quickly pushed for the recording to be released, writing, “Want to hear the whole song. Ozzy sang great Blues, his voice is perfect for that. He has ‘quejio’ as we call it down south in Spain.” Another person added, “Please release the tape on iTunes. I want to buy it.” 

With the tapes just being discovered, what will happen to them remains a mystery. Ozzy built a career on unpredictability, and somehow that hasn’t changed. Decades later, he’s still making headlines and still giving fans something new to talk about.

(Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns)