Bill Ward Discusses Latest on Ozzy Drama

I'm gonna bet that when Black Sabbath wrote "Never Say Die" they weren't talking about the drama between Ozzy and Bill Ward, but here we are! It just won't die.

Sabbath's original drummer officially left the band in 2012, and since that time, he's been pretty vocal about the fact that he and Ozzy don't have much of a relationship anymore. Bill Ward gave an update on how their relationship is now. According to Loudwire, he says...

"Ozzy has never reached out since January 26/27 2012 when he called to see when I would be arriving in the UK to join rehearsals for the 13 CD. Since that last phone call, he has never reached out to me, and I have not reached out to him.
Ozzy I’m sad that Bill never came through. Ozzy needs to look to those who stopped me from coming through. The contract was impossible to sign; the group rhetoric of 2012, 2013 and throughout, was fault-finding, condemning and full of dishonest evaluations of me as a person, including my so-called health issues.

Had I signed the contract, I suspect I wouldn’t have been labeled as having poor health or having all the other judgmental character references.
As a reminder, in September 2015, we asked a Sabbath representative if there could be an opening to play with the band again. Their representative answered “no.” It’s hard to come through when you receive a “no.”
I love all our Sabbath fans throughout the world, and to toss around ideas that I might play the Birmingham shows is both emotionally heartbreaking for me and spiteful. I think the Sabbath fans who have loved the original band have gone through enough in terms of disappointment and sadness. For me to play Birmingham only, would, I feel, be discriminating and elitist towards our other fans all over the world. I could never be discriminating or elitist to our fans. It’s been heartbreaking enough not to record and tour and it’ll be heartbreaking not to play to the Birmingham fans. Please know the prevailing circumstances are not by my design. This is not what I would have wanted or what I have chosen. Had any of you had to choose to sign a contract which undermined and devalued you, I think most of you with some dignity and self-respect would have walked away too. My absence at the current shows and the future Birmingham shows reflects an undeniable and unseen misadventure that my accusers won’t bear. It’s called selfishness and self-centeredness; dishonesty and disloyalty. These are the culprits of Sabbath’s original line-up’s demise.
–Bill"

So, we just learned a lot! Bill feels as though his playing condition was judged unfairly, and he didn't want any of this to happen. He's also pretty bummed not to play Birmingham - their hometown. Ozzy, your move...