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Tool are one of the bands that will play the upcoming all-star “Back to the Beginning” concert featuring the final performances of Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne. However, singer Maynard James Keenan says it may take “modern miracles” to get Ozzy onstage given the metal icon’s physical limitations.
The day-long concert at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, will also feature mini-sets from Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Alice in Chains, Halestorm, Mastodon, Lamb of God, Anthrax, and more, leading up to the final performances from Ozzy and Sabbath.
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In a new interview with Loudwire Nights (as transcribed by ThePRP), Keenan discussed how Tool became involved in the concert, as well as his concerns for Ozzy’s physical condition at the show.
Keenan performed as part of a tribute to Ozzy during the latter’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction last year. He says that’s when the rumors started swirling of the final Black Sabbath show.
“The conversation first came up when I was at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, hanging out with Wolfgang [Van Halen] and some of the guys, I think even Robert Trujillo,” recalled the Tool singer. “We were on the travel over there, just going, ‘Okay, well, there’s a rumor about the Black Sabbath show.’ I was like, ‘Well, let’s do something.’ So I kinda had planned a song to do and all of a sudden I’m at home and I get the call, ‘Hey, Tool‘s been asked to do a song,’ and I’m like ‘Fuck.’ Now I have to call back Wolfgang and those guys and go, ‘I’m going to do it with Tool, sorry.’”
He added, “That’s kinda how it came up, but I think for me, seeing Ozzy moving around at [the Rock Hall ceremony], the idea of him playing a show at all, if we’re being honest, the conversation about going to do the song was like, ‘We’ll have this conversation, but, ahh… I don’t know that this [concert] gonna happen.’
Keenan went on to say, “And even now, I’m cautious about saying, ‘Yeah! All in, he’s gonna do it.’ Because man, I don’t know what kind of modern miracles we’ll come up with to get him on stage to do the songs, but this is gonna be a challenge for them. So, I’m honored to be a part of it, but I’m kinda preparing for the worst — but hoping for the best, as they say.”
The Tool frontman also acknowledged the impact that Ozzy and Sabbath have had on him, declaring, “The reason I’m on a stage at all is because of Black Sabbath‘s first album.”
Ozzy, who has experienced a series of health issues in recent years, including an ongoing battle with Parkinson’s disease, recently said on his SiriusXM show that he was in “heavy training” for the final concert.
“I haven’t done anything for — this will be seven years [since I played a full concert],” Ozzy said, “and so I’ve been through all this surgery. It really is like starting from scratch. … The first thing to go when you’re laid up is your stamina, so believe it or not, I’m doing two sets of three-minute walks a day and weight training. I’ve gotta get going.”
It is expected that Ozzy will perform while seated in a throne. He also said he won’t be doing a full set with Black Sabbath.
Meanwhile, Maynard James Keenan recently kicked off the “Sessanta V2.0” tour, featuring his bands A Perfect Circle and Puscifer, along with Primus. The North American outing is scheduled to run through a June 7th show in Auburn, Washington, with tickets available here.
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