As I was writing this week’s Concert Watch, it was announced that Ozzy Osbourne had died at the age of 76. As mentioned here a couple of weeks ago, Osbourne recently gave what was billed as his final performance during a daylong concert highlighted by a Black Sabbath reunion in his hometown of Birmingham, England.
Osbourne’s passing was not a huge surprise, as the veteran rocker had been dealing with Parkinson’s disease and other health issues for several years. Still, the crazy old bastard will be missed. Biting the head off a dove during a record company meeting. Biting the head off a bat while onstage. Drunkenly whizzing on the Alamo while wearing his wife Sharon’s dress. Snorting a line of live ants while lounging poolside with Mötley Crüe. Yes, Osbourne actually did all those things and, in all probability, some other stuff that was even more outrageous.
At times, Osbourne’s persona became a bit cartoonish, but he knew the value of maintaining his image. In an episode of the reality television show “The Osbournes,” he was shown at a tech rehearsal for an upcoming performance, and Sharon had arranged to have thousands of bubbles wafting in the air above the stage. Once he saw them, Osbourne shouted, “Bubbles? Oh, come on, Sharon! I’m fucking Ozzy Osbourne, the prince of fucking darkness!”
Ticket Alert
One of the great prog-metal bands, Queensryche (Operation: Mindcrime) is booked at the House of Blues for a show on Thursday, December 11. Interestingly enough, a couple of months later, former Queensryche vocalist Geoff Tate will also play the HOB, on Sunday, February 8. Tate was fired by the band in 2012 after a Spinal Tap-esque situation got out of hand. Tate’s wife had been managing the band for a few years at that point, and several members felt that she and Tate were wielding a disproportionate influence over Queensryche’s affairs. Though not confirmed, there were rumors that Mrs. Tate was insisting that the band’s next album be recorded in Dobly. Tickets for both shows are on sale, so pick your side, and may the best fans win.
Tickets are on sale now for The English Beat on Friday, August 15, at the House of Blues. Though the band broke up for a while after its single, “Save It for Later” was one of the standout songs in the early days of MTV, the lads are now once again treading the boards. In compiling my research on the band, I learned that the tune’s title is actually a naughty pun (say it fast and don’t articulate the “r” in “for”). The vulgar teenager who still lives within me is embarrassed that he had never figured that out.
Latter-day glam rockers The Darkness will perform on Saturday, November 7, at Warehouse Midtown Live. And speaking of over the top, Buckcherry, featuring spectacularly tattooed vocalist Josh Todd, will play Warehouse Midtown on Sunday, September 28. Tickets for both shows are currently on sale.
Concerts This Week
As the daughter of blues legend Johnny Copeland, vocalist Shemekia Copeland comes by it honestly. Her first public performance was at Harlem’s Cotton Club, and since then she has distinguished herself as one of the preeminent blues artists of the 21st century, releasing 12 albums, winning nine Blues Music Awards, and garnering multiple Grammy nominations. But the real proof of her genius is on the stage, as you can hear on Thursday at Main Street Crossing.
Keyshia Cole – known as the “Princess of Hip-Hop Soul” – will perform at Toyota Center on Friday, celebrating the 20th anniversary of her debut album The Way It Is. Tink, Keri Hilson and Elijah Blake are set to open. Tickets are still available (some as part of special offers!), but they won’t last long.
While Larry Gatlin isn’t exactly a homeboy — he was born in Seminole, TX and went to high school in Odessa — but we can claim him, as Gatlin attended the University of Houston and played on the school’s football team during the late ‘60s. Gatlin doesn’t do a lot of touring these days, but he is playing a few dates around Texas this summer, and one of them is on Sunday at Main Street Crossing.
Also on Sunday, The Fray will perform at the Bayou Music Center, celebrating the 20th anniversary of their album How to Save a Life. The band started out as a Christian rock outfit before – according to Isaac Slade, the group’s original vocalist – God called them into more secular (and profitable) pastures. Hmm. Didn’t know that God had a side hustle as a record company A and R man.
Chris Isaak began his career as a rockabilly revivalist, and that influence still permeates his music. Over the years, he has racked up a number of hit songs that have been featured in films, including “Wicked Game” (Wild at Heart), “Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing” (Eyes Wide Shut) and “Two Hearts” (True Romance). You can catch his act on Tuesday at the House of Blues. And if you are looking for a chuckle, check out Tenacious D’s take on “Wicked Game,” but before you do, bear in mind that you can’t bleach your brain.
What do you get when you cross heavy metal with psychobilly? You get Volbeat, a hard-rocking Danish band that will play the 713 Music Hall on Tuesday, with Halestorm opening. Volbeat is touring in support of its recently released album God of Angels Trust, whose cover features Baphomet (the scary-looking goat with the big horns) and whose songs deal with topics like serial killers and Satanic rituals. If you are wondering what attire would be suitable for this show, anything in black should do the trick.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.
