Ozzy Osbourne, the frontman of Black Sabbath, has seen it all in his 50 years in the music industry. He can’t count the number of debauched activities he has seen and participated in. During his early Sabbath days, Osbourne toured with one artist who pleasantly surprised him in more ways than one.
By 1972, Black Sabbath had established itself as one of the most exciting bands on the planet. It has helped popularize heavy metal. Their shows had a reputation for being chaotic; nothing was off-limits, and fans came expecting chaos. Humble Pie was their support act this year, which heightened tensions even further.
Humble Pie wasn’t as loud as Black Sabbath, but they were a thrilling live band at their peak. Furthermore, in comparison, their extracurricular activities made Ozzy Osbourne look like Cliff Richard. Their penchant for substances, however, did not detract from their ability to perform. And Black Sabbath had a task to follow them.
Humble Pie, led by Steve Marriott, formerly of The Small Faces, allowed the English musician to branch out and express the full range of his artistry. He relished every moment of freedom after feeling creatively restrained with his previous group, and Marriott made the most of his second bite of the apple.
Marriott died in a house fire in 1991, most likely as a result of falling asleep while holding a lit cigarette. Osbourne was devastated by his death because he was a man he admired and had a voice that Osbourne considered to be among the best to have ever graced the rock music scene.
Osbourne previously named Marriott one of his all-time favorite rock vocalists, and he spoke fondly of sharing a stage with Humble Pie in 1972. “I also loved playing with Humble Pie,” the rock legend told Metal Hammer. I’m a big fan of Steve Marriott. When he died, a piece of me died with him. I recall performing with you at the Akron Rubber Bowl. It was an old open-air amphitheater. It was incredible.”
The Black Sabbath singer, who is no stranger to drugs, was taken aback by Humble Pie’s taste for cocaine, which appeared to improve their performance ability. “Humble Pie were shoveling coke up their noses like it was a fashion.” “They must have done 20 grams before going on stage,” he recalled.
“But Marriott was incredible,” the singer concluded. He was better than he had ever been. I recall searching for the fucking Revox. Marriott was so convincing that I thought he was lip-syncing.”
Even though Marriott’s life was cut short in such avoidable circumstances, Osbourne continues to fly his flag and remembers him as a rock legend.
