“Ozzy and I were like a pair of mischievous schoolkids,” Zakk Wylde recalled as he shared one of his favorite — and far from innocent — memories of spending time with the Prince of Darkness himself.
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Sneaking beers while on tour in Japan? Heaven forbid — but that’s exactly the kind of mischief Zakk Wylde and Ozzy Osbourne found themselves in.
When you’ve shared over three decades of friendship with someone like Ozzy Osbourne, chances are you’ve got more than a few legendary stories. For the latest People Vs feature in Metal Hammer, longtime Ozzy guitarist and metal legend Zakk Wylde opened up about one of his favorite not-so-wholesome moments with the Prince of Darkness.
“I remember when we played the Budokan in Tokyo,” Zakk recalled. “I always kept a bag of beer with me—just in case we ended up somewhere dry. After the show, Ozzy walks in and goes, ‘Zakky, Zakky… you got any beers?’ I told him, ‘Yeah, but I’m not giving you one here. You’ll get us fired! Mom’s [Sharon Osbourne] right across the hall—what if she catches us?’”
“Ozzy just goes, ‘Alright, I’ll meet you in the bathroom.’ So I head in there, and a moment later, I hear the door open. He slips into the stall next to mine, and I slide a Kirin or an Asahi under the divider. Then I hear the classic ‘psssst’ of the can, followed by ‘glug, glug, glug!’ He downs it in one go, pushes the can back under, and says, ‘Thanks, Zakk. I’ll see you at dinner.’”
Classic Ozzy.
Sure, sneaking beers on tour might not exactly fit the definition of “wholesome,” but it’s a perfect example of the close bond Ozzy and Zakk have built over the years. When Zakk was reminded of that, he couldn’t help but laugh.
“We were like a couple of naughty schoolkids! It was hilarious!” he chuckled.
This summer, Zakk will join Ozzy — along with a star-studded lineup that includes Metallica, Slayer, Alice In Chains, Jason Momoa, and many more — for a massive farewell concert in Aston, Birmingham, to bid goodbye to Ozzy and Black Sabbath.