If you’ve been following the chaotic mess surrounding the reunion of the original four Black Sabbath members, you’d already know about the issues between their management and drummer Bill Ward, whose refusal to sign a contract which would have kept him from playing fully on their shows has been explained through a number of open letters online.
Until recently, this was part of an ongoing battle between Ward and the band’s management (suspected to involve Sharon Osbourne, frontman Ozzy’s wife and manager). Fans for the most part backed up Ward, whose poignant, public statements felt more humane and honest as compared to the rather terse, clipped replies issued on the rest of Black Sabbath’s behalf over the Internet.
Of this week, it was announced that Bill Ward would not be playing on any of the reunion shows with his longtime friends and former band mates onstage; putting an end to the possibility of a complete line up of the original Black Sabbath after several years. What has especially riled fans (and much of the heavy rock and metal world) however, was the decision to have official, online photos from Black Sabbath’s earlier years… without Bill Ward.
The best way to highlight this, for anyone who has not yet seen either the original photos or their edited versions, is to compare and contrast: Read More…
