Ever since the passing of his bandmate, the great Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi has reflected on how fleeting life is.
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In an interview with The Telegraph, the guitarist is asked whether Osbourne's death caused him to consider his own mortality, and bluntly replied, "Yes, it does. A lot.
"I've had a few friends go now," Iommi said. "You think, 'Blimey, hang on, I'm 78, how much longer?' You do. [Queen guitarist] Brian May and myself have this conversation. He's more dismal than me. Bloody hell."
Iommi also discussed his final conversation with Ozzy Osbourne, which took place the day before the iconic singer passed away.
"Ozzy said, 'I'm really tired. I'm absolutely shattered,' " Iommi recalls. "I said, Well, it's been a tough few weeks. You're bound to be."
Rock Hall of Famer Recalls Last Conversation With Ozzy Osbourne
Iommi advised Osbourne to get some rest.
"He went, 'Yeah, I'll try to do that.' And that was it. Then I heard the next day that he'd gone. And that was... weird."
The guitarist added, "He was a part of my life for 60 years. I do miss him."
Black Sabbath formed in 1968 in England. Ozzy Osbourne and Iommi were among the founding members, alongside drummer Bill Ward and bassist Geezer Butler.
The legendary band released 19 studio albums across their storied career, seven of which are RIAA-certified Platinum.
Metallica inducted Black Sabbath into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 during the 21st annual induction ceremony.
In a recent interview with Classic Rock, Iommi explained why Black Sabbath never finalized plans for one more album in the 2020s with the band's original lineup.
"I'd met Andrew Watt when he was producing Ozzy," Iommi recalled to Classic Rock. "He was very keen and a bit too excited. He also didn't know what it was like working with the original Sabbath, working with Bill. Also, we'd done 13. I didn't like the idea of: 'Now here's another album.' "
Osbourne died of a heart attack in July 2025. The heavy metal and reality television star was 76.
