Ritchie Blackmore’s opinion on Ozzy Osbourne

One of the most important Hard Rock guitarists of all time, Ritchie Blackmore entered music history through the incredible albums he recorded with Deep Purple and his own band, Rainbow. The British music scene was incredibly rich in talent and gave the world many outstanding musicians that Ritchie had the chance to meet and watch perform. Over the decades, he gave his opinion on many of them, including the late legendary Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne.

Ritchie Blackmore’s opinion on Ozzy Osbourne

Ritchie Blackmore is a fan of Ozzy Osbourne music and had praised him as a singer and as a solo artist a couple times over the decades, even revealing he loved to watch The Osbournes reality show. “I think Ozzy Osbourne has the most appealing voice in Rock and Roll today,” he told VH1 in the special “100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock”. When the legendary Black Sabbath vocalist passed away in 2025 at the age of 76, Blackmore paid tribute to him, saying: “I had the good fortune to meet Ozzy a couple of times. He was a very humble man with no rock and roll attitude. I think he was very grateful to be doing what he loved.”

“He had a melodic, warm and harmonious voice over Hard Rock tracks. It worked out incredibly well without having to resort to screaming over the music. A wonderful way of singing. The late 80s was my favourite period but that is just my opinion. His home show was my favorite. It reminded me of Faulty Towers. I make it a habit of trying not to smile and laugh very much. But Ozzy made me crack up with laughter on his show every time I saw it.”

He continued:

“It was so honest. I think that’s what people loved about him. Our hearts go out to Ozzy’s family. Candice and I share your grief. We have lost a brilliant singer, a great musician and a wonderful family man. Rest in peace Ozzy,” Ritchie Blackmore said on his social media.

Ritchie Blackmore also admired Randy Rhoads, who was part of “Blizzard of Ozz” (1980) and “Diary of a Madman” (1981). Recently, during a live stream he called him brilliant.

“Oh (he was) brilliant. I met him in a place called The Ship, in Wardour street. It was a pub where all musicians used to meet. He was a small guy, very nice. When I met him, he was a fan of mine. I thought: ‘Well, that’s nice’, because he is so good. He was ahead of his time and it’s terrible that he died in that plane crash. (He was) almost like Eddie Van Halen. Very similar attitude, very humble, which I always appreciate when I talk to people. There’s no reason to be conceited about music,” he said. Like Blackmore mentioned, Randy Rhoads tragically passed away in 1982 at the age of 25 in a plane crash.

The great musicians who played with both Ozzy Osbourne and Ritchie Blackmore

It’s hard to imagine that so many incredible and groundbreaking musicians emerged in England within such a short period of time during the 1960s and 1970s. Since it is not a continental-sized country like the United States or Brazil, musicians from the scene knew each other and had the chance to see one another perform frequently. So over the decades, Ozzy Osbourne and Ritchie Blackmore, who both had many lineup changes in their bands, ended up inviting some of the best musicians around to join them, which eventually led them to work with many of the same players.

The Australian bassist Bob Daisley was a member of Rainbow from 1977 to 1978 and played on the album “Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll.” In the following year, he joined Ozzy Osbourne’s band, forming the first lineup alongside Lee Kerslake and Randy Rhoads. He would become one of the most important collaborators of Ozzy’s solo career, as he wrote most of the lyrics for his biggest hits. His first stint in the band lasted until 1981. He later returned from 1983 to 1985, 1987 to 1988, 1990 to 1991 (as a session musician), and again from 1994 to 1995.

The other musician Ozzy and Blackmore both had in their bands was Don Airey. The legendary keyboardist, who has been a member of Deep Purple for the past decades, collaborated as a session musician on Ozzy’s 1980 solo debut “Blizzard of Ozz”. Airey is especially remembered for the incredible intro to “Mr. Crowley.” He would record again with Ozzy from 1983 to 1985 and toured with him from 1981 to 1983. He was part of Rainbow from 1979 to 1981, appearing on “Down to Earth” (1979) and “Difficult To Cure” (1981).