Live Review : Back To The Beginning @ Villa Park, Birmingham on July 5th 2025

Today is a celebration, it's a veneration and an ascension. Most of all it is an acknowledgement of the effect that four working class kids from Birmingham had on millions of lives. Without Black Sabbath there is no heavy metal. Yes, rock was getting heavier in the late sixties and both Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin were experimenting with monolithic riffs but it was the opening track of the self-titled first Black Sabbath that solidified the genre and gave it material form. Without it, it is arguable that none of the bands or artists here today would have existed.

Curiously ‘Black Sabbath’ (the track) is the one Black Sabbath (the band) cold stone classic conspicuous by its absence. Nearly all the gems from the Ozzy era get unearthed either in the short final set or as covers during the day. It's those covers that make the show interesting and indispensable. Most of us have heard Mastodon, Anthrax and Metallica do respectively ‘Blood and Thunder’, ‘Indians’ and ‘Master of Puppets’ before. But hearing them do ‘Supernaut’, ‘Into The Void’ and ‘Johnny Blade’ was a rare unrepeatable experience that made the night so special. 

©Ross Halfin

Add to that, a wonderful unpredictability and uniqueness of the occasion, the two supergroups and it becomes clear why tickets were changing hands for stupid money. Nuno from Extreme is the surprising hero of the hour, appearing in both illustrious collections of musicians. His play is extraordinary; clear, crisp and seminal. He even takes time to mention the passing of Diogo Jota and as a proud portuguese you can tell the hurt in his eyes and voice. Yungblud also proves to be unexpectedly brilliant. There is a collective who from those over fifty or who hail from foreign shores, but he absolutely owns the occasion. He is effortlessly cool all in black and injects changes with emotive pathos that elicits tears all over the shop.

©Kazuyo Horie

But the greatest moment of these impromptu improvised jams is when we get the return of another rock n’ roll dignitary who we thought had been struck down by the ravishes of time. Steven Tyler's inclusion felt baffling, especially as he seemingly retired last year due to irreversible damage to his vocal cords. Yet here he is sparring with Rolling Stone Ronnie wood (and son jesse) and he is revelationally astonishing. Whatever excuse for Aerosmith grounding we were sold, Mr Tyler can still get the high notes. He also injects the whole evening with a burst of show biz shabaam as he contorts across the stage in a blur of kinetic energy. A truly wonderful return of human dynamo we thought we had seen the last of and the smile on Tom morello’s face is priceless. It screams “I did this”. 

©Ross Halfin

Because today is about fan worship and wish fulfillment on a global scale. Every band here feels able to drop their egos and polished professionalism and openly declare the debt they owe to Black Sabbath and Ozzy. When you have, perhaps, the biggest band in the world, Metallica declaring that they wouldn't exist without Sabbath it becomes clear that today is more than just a performance or an event. It is a tribute, a living obituary to someone who is still with us. Even Tom Araya, who is usually private and insular, talks with great passion about the influence on them.

©Ross Halfin

Everyone in the stadium is here because Ozzy, Tony, Bill and Geezer changed their lives. This is a union of the tribes of biblical proportions and the stands are full of non-performing musician's here to stay thank you (Brian may, Amon Amarth and Arch Enemy are all spotted). We are all fans today (Jason Momoa even climbs into the pit for Pantera), we are all here because of the shared love of this music. The diversity of the crowd makes you realise Metal is a global concern. This is probably the least white audience ROCKFLESH has ever seen at a metal gig. The stands and concourses are a Tower of Babel of differing languages and cultures. Everyone is here because a single riff created a culture and genre that provided a home for the disenfranchised and devalued. 

The day sails by in a machine gun like spray of act after act. Slayer, Halestorm and Lamb of God are all exceptional. There are some bum notes (the sound is often sludgey and guitars out of tune, David Draiman gets quite impressively booed and Guns n’ Roses are unfathomably muted but everything that has come before is swept away by the final denouement.

Ozzy appears for his solo slot upon a big leather throne that ascends from the stages underbelly. It is obvious that he is ill, really ill but it is obvious that he is utterly elated to do this one more time and that he can still sing. Zakk Wylde stands loyally at his side urging him on and picking up the slack when his voice occasionally falters. ‘I don't know’, ‘Mr. Crowley’ and ‘Suicide Solution’ are all raw and emotional. We are watching a man who has shaped all our lives putting himself through the mill to perform for us for a final time. But the palpable emotive energy is ratchted up to eleven as ‘Mama, I'm Coming Home is belted out. It is quintessentially moving. It puts the whole day into context. This is Ozzy coming home and the waves of pathos resonate across the whole stadium.

©Ross Halfin

The five song solo set visibly saps him of what little energy he still has coursing through his veins and there is an elongated wait for the concluding Black Sabbath set, presumably to let Ozzy recuperate. But at a little after ten, the four men who crafted and created metal step onto the stage for one last bow. Geezer is an absolute machine, blasting out bass riffs with inhuman velocity. Bill ward is stripped to his waste and summons up every last drop of power to pound the kit. And Tony. Tony iommi is still the greatest guitarist of his generation, any generation. Simple, insightful and stunningly assured. He is the riff master that all set their stall by. 

The set is short and it is obvious that Ozzy is running out of steam during the final verses of paranoid, but it doesn't matter. They are reunited one last time to put their legacy to bed. There is no gathering of the cast or mass sing along to end because tonight is not about anyone else. It is about Bill, Ozzy, Geezer and Tony and the final bow is for them and them only to enjoy. They (especially Ozzy) have cried wolf numerous times but this felt like the ultimate false stop. Black Sabbath 1969 to 2025. You changed the world and the world thanks you.