Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward will release the new album in the fall of 2012, and will embark on a tour after playing at the Download Festival in the summer.
- Nov 12, 2011
AceShowbiz - Black Sabbath are going to make a grand return next year. Singer Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi, bass player Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward announced on Friday, November 11 that they decided to reunite for a brand new album and a world tour in 2012.
The announcement was hosted by former Black Flag vocalist Henry Rollins. He said, "This day 41 yrs ago, 11-11-70, Black Sabbath played on this stage. When I heard Iron Man, High school became powerless over me after that. This is true outsider music. When I've sat with them and they've played it sounds remarkably like Black Sabbath. As long as it sounds like that."
When Rollins asked why the band decided to reunite now, Iommi said, "It's now or never. We are getting along great. Everything's really good." He added, "It's like putting on an old glove. It's fantastic." Osbourne chimed in, "It's just time ... This time, for some magical reason, we have written about seven or eight songs."
In the press conference which took place at legendary Sunset Strip club Whisky a Go Go, the four original members of the band said they would team up with producer Rick Rubin and plan to release the album next fall. Regarding the tour, they would kick it off at the Download Festival in England in June.
Next year's Download Festival will be held from June 8 to 10 at Donington Park in the East Midlands. Andy Copping of festival organizers Live Nation said, "The reunion of the original line-up of Black Sabbath has been one of the most talked-about stories of the year. I am thrilled that the band will return to Donington Park next year to help us mark 10 years of the Download Festival."
It's 33 years ago when the band released their last effort, "Never Say Die!", featuring their original line-up. The husband of Sharon Osbourne quit the group before the 1978 LP was recorded, but he returned briefly until the album was released before finally leaving to embark on a solo career.
Since being formed in 1968, Black Sabbath have released at least 18 studio albums which sold more than 70 million copies worldwide. Since Osbourner's depature, the original foursome had reunited for the 1998 release of "Reunion" and played together sporadically for shows in the early 2000s. They were inducted to the U.S. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.
