Ozzy Osbourne’s Black Sabbath bandmates are remembering the late rock legend following his death.
“Where will I find you now? In the memories, our unspoken embraces, our missed phone calls, no, you’re forever in my heart,” drummer Bill Ward wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, July 22, alongside a throwback photo of him and Osbourne.
“Deepest condolences to Sharon and all family members. RIP Sincere regrets to all the fans. Never goodbye. Thank you forever,” Ward, 77, continued.
Guitarist Tony Iommi said the surviving members of Black Sabbath had “lost our brother” in an emotional statement via his Instagram account.
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“I just can’t believe it! My dear dear friend Ozzy has passed away only weeks after our show at Villa Park,” he wrote alongside a carousel of images of Osbourne. “It’s just such heartbreaking news that I can’t really find the words, there won’t ever be another like him. Geezer, Bill and myself have lost our brother.
Iommi, 77, concluded, “My thoughts go out to Sharon and all the Osbourne family. Rest in peace Oz.”
Finally, Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler, 76, also shared some throwback snaps of his late friend. “Goodbye dear friend- thanks for all those years- we had some great fun. 4 kids from Aston- who’d have thought, eh?” he wrote. “So glad we got to do it one last time, back in Aston. Love you.”
Osbourne died at age 76 following a battle with Parkinson’s disease, his family, including wife Sharon Osbourne, confirmed in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday.
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“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning,” the star’s family said. “He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”
Osbourne reunited with his Black Sabbath bandmates for one final concert at the Back to the Beginning festival in Birmingham, England, just weeks before his death.
On July 5, Osbourne, Ward, Iommi and Butler performed some of their biggest hits before a crowd of over 40,000 people at Villa Park stadium, including “War Pigs” and “Iron Man.”
“It’s so good to be on this f**king stage, you have no idea,” Osbourne told the crowd. “Let the madness begin!”
In May, Osbourne told The Guardian that the show was his wife Sharon’s idea, saying it was “something to give me a reason to get up in the morning.”
