\n<\/p>\n
In a book he completed just before his death,\u00a0Ozzy Osbourne<\/a>\u00a0looked back on his struggle to sing the most emotional song at his farewell show<\/a>.<\/p>\n In an excerpt from the upcoming\u00a0Last Rites<\/em>, via The Times<\/em><\/a>, the late\u00a0Black Sabbath<\/a> icon said he became overwhelmed as he delivered \u201cMama, I\u2019m Coming Home\u201d in Birmingham, England, three weeks before his death<\/a>.<\/p>\n And he reflected that, having conquered decades of addiction issues before his passing at 76, being on stage surrounded by friends and fans had been the best drug of his life.<\/p>\n READ MORE: <\/strong>Watch Zakk Wylde Help Ozzy Osbourne at Final Show<\/a><\/p>\n Osbourne described his reunion with the other original members of Sabbath as a family experience, made more so by the fact that their old crew had gathered to work the show.<\/p>\n His inability to stand due to a series of medical issues meant Osbourne performed on a custom-made throne. \u201cIt was a necessary evil and they made the best of it,\u201d he said. \u201cAt one point there was talk of making it fly over the stage and shoot water at the crowd \u2013 but thank fuck that didn\u2019t happen, \u2019cos knowing my luck it would have crashed!\u201d<\/p>\n He admitted to having doubts about his voice as he went on stage to perform his solo band set. \u201cBut as soon as the curtain went up I forgot about my nerves. Suddenly I was looking out over 42,000 faces, with another 5.8 million watching online.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was when the emotion really hit me. I\u2019d never really taken it on board that so many people liked me \u2013 or even knew who I was.\u201d<\/p>\n Osbourne said he\u2019d handled the first three songs without issue. \u201cBut I choked up when I started \u2018Mama, I\u2019m Coming Home.\u2019 I mean, it\u2019s Sharon\u2019s song, y\u2019know? One of her favourites. Lemmy<\/a>\u00a0[Kilmister] wrote it with the two of us in mind.<\/p>\n \u201cBut the feeling I had was about more than that. It was my last hurrah. I\u2019d made it to the stage after six traumatic years, after losing the ability to walk or do anything on my own. It was just the whole thing, all of it coming together.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cThere was so much love in that stadium, coming at me in waves\u2026 The crowd noticed I was struggling, and they started singing back the words. I\u2019ve been so lucky to have had so many wonderful fans. God bless you all.\u201d<\/p>\n That last concert, Osbourne said, was \u201cthe best medicine I\u2019ve had since all my medical shit started back in 2019. It was a magical night. It couldn\u2019t have been better.\u201d He continued: \u201cWhat I\u2019ve realized is that the one place where I\u2019m free of all my demons is on a stage\u2026 I spent my whole life trying to get high from every substance known to man. \u2026 I was just trying to get back the feeling of when I was up there on stage, doing my job.<\/p>\n \u201cThe packed arena; The thump of the bass drum you can feel in your stomach. Forty or fifty thousand voices singing back your words. All along, that\u2019s what I was chasing. It was the best drug I ever took.\u201d<\/p>\nOzzy Osbourne\u2019s Farewell Show Was His Best Medicine in Six Years<\/h3>\n