During a conversation with VRP Rocks, drummer Vinny Appice explained why he turned down an opportunity to play with Ozzy Osbourne back in 1980.
Asked about the call Appice received to join Black Sabbath replacing drummer Bill Ward, he replied:
“Even before that, right before Sabbath, I got a call from Sharon Osborne, and they were putting Ozzy’s band together. She was trying to get him straightened out, and he’s in England and making the first record.
So they called me and said, ‘Hey, this is Sharon. We’re putting a band together. We’ll fly you to England. Hang out with Ozzy and see how it goes.”
On why he turned down the offer to join Ozzy Osbourne’s band, Appice said:
“Oh wow, I was 20 years old. I’d never been out of the country except for Canada. So I asked Carmine, my brother, and said, ‘Is Ozzy crazy? I mean, should I do this and go all the way over there?’
”He goes, ‘Yeah, he’s pretty crazy,’ so I turned it down. I just told her I couldn’t do it and then about a month later, Sabbath calls.”