Ozzy Osbourne to Sue Tony Iommi Over Royalty Payments
BLACK SABBATH singer Ozzy Osbourne is suing the band’s guitarist Tony Iommi over royalty payments.
The 60-year-old has accused Iommi of falsely claiming to have sole rights to the band’s name which has cost him royalties from merchandise sales.
Osbourne is seeking unspecified damages, lost profits and a declaration he is a half-owner of the trademark.
Iommi claims Osbourne legally relinquished rights to the band’s name in the 1980s. The guitarist registered the BLACK SABBATH trademark in the US in 2000.
Osbourne issued a statement on Friday asking Iommi to “do the right thing”.
“Tony, I am so sorry it’s had to get to this point by me having to take this action against you,” he said.
“We’ve all worked too hard and long in our careers to allow you to sell merchandise that features all our faces, old Black Sabbath album covers and band logos, and then you tell us that you own the copyright.”
Osbourne said he believed all four original members of the band should share Black Sabbath’s name equally adding: “I hope that by me taking this first step that it will ultimately end up that way.”
The star’s lawyer has disputed he gave up rights to the band’s name, saying that even if the singer did make such an agreement, he took a major role in the band’s direction and success after rejoining it in 1997.
BLACK SABBATH, who were formed in Birmingham in 1968, have sold more then 100 million albums.
(+91 rating, 26 votes)
ah for fuck’s sake
Complete and utter bullshit. Ozzy at the most should ONLY get 25% off of the original EIGHT albums and anything with his face on it. Fuck wanting royalties off of anything else. Ozzy was nothing more than a mere vocalist who contributed hardly anything AT ALL. What the fuck about Dio and the other vocalist?? It makes no sense at all. Ozzy left the band. Simple as that. And weren’t the last few Black Sabbath albums with Ozzy complete shit? And didn’t they get a hell of a lot better AFTER Ozzy left. His lawsuit SHOULD hold NO ground. Fuck Ozzy, he doesn’t deserve shit. He’s the laughing stock of Metal while Iommi and crew have held up credibility and continued to make kick ass music and kick ass live shows. Iommi should say “Fuck you Ozzy” and just call Heaven & Hell, Black Sabbath, because it is. Iommi IS Black Sabbath. Ozzy and especially $haron are jokes. Will Jari get anything from Ensiferum in the future now that he’s gone? What about Maniac and Mayhem. What about Liv Kristine and Theatre of Tragedy? No. It’s just now how shit works, nor would it be fair at all. Fuck you Ozzy. I’ve put off buying the new Heaven & Hell, but I’ll be purchasing it tomorrow just to spite him.
that’s such a shame. Whatever happens, the prime best Sabbath was with Ozzy.
hopefully tony wins this bullshit and counter sues ozzy into oblivion.
First off, comparing underground guys Maniac and Jari to Ozzy really doesn’t make any sense. Nothing against Mayhem or Ensiferum/Wintersun, but they simply are not on the same level as Ozzy or Black Sabbath.
Ozzy was merely a singer who contributed nothing at all? I’m pretty sure he contributed a voice that is now one of the most recognized in music – moreso than Dio.
The last few albums with Ozzy? Unless you’re talking about their late 70s material, there was only one album. It was called “Reunion” and it came out over 10 years ago. It was nearly all live tracks and included only two new songs.
Iommi may be the longest standing original member of Black Sabbath, but Ozzy more or less made the band.
SHARRRROOOOOOOON!
im with ozzy on this.
this is depressing
I completely agree 100% with what the first “Anonymous” said.
ozzy is a washed up hack and a total queer for this. wish hed quit or die already.
Ozzy finally had enough of seeing his old bandmates doing more than fine without him…
and by Ozzy I mean Sharon.
Shouldn’t the title say “Sharon Osbourne to Sue Tony Iommi…”?
I’m talking about Ozzy as in not contributing to song righting or even lyrics. What he did contribute was hardly anything. Wasn’t talking about his voice.
The shi albums I was talking about were Technical Ecstacy and Never Say Die!. Ozzy era Sabbath steadily went downhill through all 8 albums. The Dio Sabbath is hands down better than the late Ozzy Sabbath and I believe sold more than the 2 said Ozzy Sabbath albums.
I made those comparisons as an example of it just not being fair. So the fuck what if Ozzy is more famous? He doesn’t deserve SHIT for anything he didn’t work on. Simple as that. Iommi is the true heart and soul of the band. With out him, and Geezer too, you wouldn’t have had any of it.
And since I wasn’t around in the 70’s, but I’m fairly sure during his time with Black Sabbath, he wasn’t the superstar he was like he went on to be in his solo stuff and into his television show and what not. Regardless if that’s true or not, that should hold absolutely no ground.
“Ozzy left the band” he left in early 78 then came back and then was fired. Get your facts together idiot.
You act as if ozzy was the only one on the last 2 albums. The fact about those albums is that they werent as heavy as their earlier material but it showed more range such as songs with bill ward singing.
The fact is that it should be 25% each for bill tony ozzy and geezer.
so i guess north korea has some new icbm.
scary shit.
just like when the germans bombed pearl harbor
when it comes down to it this might suck but he is right. Chris barns quit cannibal corpse but dont think for a fucking second he dosnt have his name on that right to the band. Ozzy did make black sabbath or completed it at least. dio FUCK dio. he hasnt really dont anything for metal at all. he cant really sing that old and if you have seen heaven and hell with in the past 2 years you would know he looks and sounds waaaaaaaay worse than ozzy dose live. dio is a fucking 4 ft joke to the metal world. yea ozzy is old as fuck and his brain is abused it hell and back but he put the stamp on sabbath. if it would have been dio in ozzy shoes first there would be no black sabbath. PERIOD!
Add this to the fact Oz re-recorded Blizzard of Oz just to stiff Lee Kerslake and co from future royalties plus all the lame commercials Oz makes, I have lost all respect for him.
You guys argue worse than Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity put together
Iommi owns the rights to the name. He’s the only guy who never left the band. Iommi is Black Sabbath. End of story.
Harry Caray should sue Ozzy for butchering “Take Me Out To The Ballgame”.
god i love cock
calling dio nothing in metal is just stupid. its just his work with abortion sabbath that is insignificant.
seems rather silly to make a big deal out of a band that hasn’t mattered in almost 30 years…
I think 57sop or what ever is an idiot. I said he ‘deserves’ 25% off of the shit he did work on with Black Sabbath, or anything with his face I might add, but anything else, he doesn’t deserve JACK SHIT. Ozzy left, he was fired, in the end it doesn’t matter at all, he should be entitled to absolutely no rights off of anything else. I mean really dude, wtf. Is every band that changes singers, because usually a singer is who gets the most famous so it wasn’t like it was a new phenomenon with Ozzy, suppose to change band names once the fire a singer or he quits? Fuck no. If you actually agree Ozzy deserves more than 25% off of the original 8 albums, or live albums with him or Black Sabbath shirts or mugs with Ozzy’s face, then you, simply, need to step over the cliff.
And saying Dio is a joke? I’m not even much of a fan, I’m just looking at it from a metal looking point, but Ozzy is the biggest fucking joke, metal has. Mostly all due to $haron, but Ozzy goes along with this shit and now you have this law suit. Hands down Ozzy is light years above Dio on the joke-o-meter. Who the fuck cares what Dio looks like? Since when the fuck did metal become a contest of looks?? I’ve seen Ozzy in recent years and I’ve seen Dio. Dio is simply waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better in his old age. Watching Ozzy try to perform was almost embarrassing.
i said 25% and i didnt say you said anything different, learn to read idiot.
saying it doesnt matter if he was fired or quit doesnt matter is also a stupid thing to say, if it were a “real” job it would matter and it does here to.
Read the comments two or three times and maybe you will understand them.
Comment 2 was me. I’m just trying to stress Ozzy shouldn’t be entitled to shit that was after his Black Sabbath days. Do you see any other vocalist making money for shit they didn’t even lay a finger on. Do you think Chris Barnes got paid anything fro the Cannibal Corpse albums he wasn’t on? Did Matt Barlow get paid for the couple albums he wasn’t on? Did Rob Halford get a cut from the Judas Priest albums he wasn’t on (unless he already had the copyright under his name)? Is Tarja getting money for the new Nightwish album? No. Honestly, I would think Ozzy would already be getting at least quarter earning for the Sabbath albums he was on. If not, then I’d sue too, but seriously after all this time he must be compensated for them. This law suit, I believe, is just out of complete greed, and MAYBE perhaps jealousy.
jealosuy? really? since IommIs solo albums did so well.
Iommi didn’t need solo albums, he never left Sabbath. But he did them anyway, and they were great.
Can you imagine Black Sabbath without Tony? and what would it sound like?? Sure Ozzy helped define the early sabbath period, but Dio and Tony Martin had equal impact of the Sabbath. Should they cut the cake for everyone who’s been in the band (I can’t even remember how many line up changes there were in the 80’s), the point is that it has always been Iommi who has carried on. Tony Iommi _is_ Black Sabbath! If we’re be technical I think the real magic was with Iommi and Gzr. I don’t know what the lawyers will make of it, but I think that morally Tony Iommi should have the right to the name “Black Sabbath”.