Machine Head paid tribute to the sadly departed godfather of heavy metal, Ozzy Osbourne, last night, July 22nd. The Bay Area band opened their set at the Posthof in Linz, Austria with a pair of Black Sabbath covers in “War Pigs” and “Children Of The Grave“. Machine Head vocalist/guitarist Robb Flynn commented of the gesture:
“We found out that Ozzy had passed away from Sky news 20 minutes before we walked on stage to the opening night of our European tour. In a state of sadness and shock we made the decision to forgo our usual opening setlist. Following our intro of Ozzy‘s “Diary of a Madman” (that we’ve opened every Machine Head show with for the last 30+ years) we started the show with two Black Sabbath songs. “War pigs” and “Children of the grave“, everyone sang, everyone knew tonight meant something, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house
There’s so much more to say about the power of the Ozzy‘s songs, but for now, we’ll let his music do the talking
Our deepest condolences to Black Sabbath, Ozzy‘s band, and the Osbournes
–Robb“
Machine Head‘s ties to Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne extend back decades, with the group also being one of the participants on the 2000 Black Sabbath tribute album, “Nativity In Black II: A Tribute To Black Sabbath“.
