Black Sabbath is set for their massive “Back To The Beginning” concert on July 5 in Birmingham, England. The show will see the band’s classic lineup — Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward — perform together for the first time in two decades. The bill also reads like a who’s who of heavy metal and features Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Alice In Chains and several others.
In a new interview with The Guardian, bassist Geezer Butler has shared his concerns with the final gig. Ozzy’s health and ability to perform remains a major question mark, and Bill Ward has had health issues in recent years as well. “I’m already having palpitations,” Butler said. “In fact, I had a nightmare last night. I dreamed everything went wrong on stage and we all turned to dust. It’s important that we leave a great impression, since it’s the final time that people will experience us live. So it has to be great on the night.”
Osbourne told The Guardian that the band isn’t performing a full set. “We’re only playing a couple of songs each,” Ozzy explained. “I don’t want people thinking, ‘We’re getting ripped off’, because it’s just going to be … what’s the word? … a sample, you’re going to get a few songs each by Ozzy and Sabbath.”
The singer continued: “I’m used to doing two hours on stage, jumping and running around,” he said. “I don’t think I’ll be doing much jumping or running around this time. I may be sitting down, but the point is I’ll be there, and I’ll do the best I can. So all I can do is turn up.”
