Two of Birmingham’s finest, Judas Priest and the late Ozzy Osbourne, have joined forces for a new rendition of “War Pigs”, the classic Black Sabbath anthem.
This version of the 1970 Paranoid track features co-lead vocals from Ozzy alongside Priest frontman Rob Halford. It follows Priest’s own cover of the song, released on July 2. Shortly after that release, Ozzy’s wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne, reached out to offer newly recorded vocals from her husband.
Halford told Full Metal Jackie earlier this month: “She approached me with this idea, she said, ‘I love your version of War Pigs. Is there a way we can get Ozzy?’ I was [like], ‘You’re asking me? This is gonna happen!’
“So, you get Ozzy singing a line and then I’m singing a line and Ozzy’s singing a line and I’m singing a line. It’s the first ever time in my entire life that I’ve been able to do a duet with Ozzy and I’m so eternally grateful and blessed that I was able to do that”.
All proceeds from the new War Pigs collaboration will benefit Cure Parkinson’s and The Glenn Tipton Parkinson’s Foundation. Ozzy Osbourne was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2019, while Judas Priest guitarist Glenn Tipton revealed his own diagnosis back in 2008. In 2018, the band established The Glenn Tipton Parkinson’s Foundation in his honor. Although Tipton stepped back from full-time touring due to his condition, he continues to make special guest appearances during encores at select shows.
Priest originally released their first War Pigs cover as a tribute to Ozzy in the lead-up to his farewell concert, Back To The Beginning, held July 5 at Villa Park, near his childhood home in Aston, Birmingham. Notably, Priest did not perform at the star-studded event. Rob Halford later explained to Hammer that the absence was due to a scheduling conflict, as the band was already booked to appear at the Scorpions’ 60th-anniversary celebrations on the same day.
Ozzy Osbourne passed away on July 22 at the age of 76, just 17 days after his Back To The Beginning farewell concert, following a heart attack. In a heartfelt message shared on social media, Judas Priest paid tribute, writing: “Sharon, may God surround you and your beautiful family with love, peace, and light. Ozzy, you will never leave us.”
