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What those wacky Osbournes are up to next | 19224__osbournes_l
BAT TIME The Osbournes announce a CD release of Ozzy's favorite songs

All About

The Osbournes
By Brian Hiatt
Brian Hiatt
Brian Hiatt
Brian Hiatt is a staff writer for EW.com

The Osbournes brought their smash-hit reality sitcom to the stage on Wednesday with a New York City press conference hyping ''The Osbourne Family Album'' -- an oddball collection of music that includes three old Ozzy performances, Pat Boone's ''Crazy Train'' cover, and Kelly's version of Madonna's ''Papa Don't Preach.''

With Kelly, Jack, and Sharon hanging out onstage at Sony Studios (and Ozzy chiming in via videoconference from Europe), the atmosphere was a lot like their MTV show, except that the plentiful curse words weren't bleeped out. ''What the f--- is going on?'' a characteristically confused Ozzy called out from his screen at the beginning of the conference. ''They're taking pictures, Daddy,'' Sharon informed him.

Ozzy then attempted to explain his eclectic -- and decidedly un-metal -- song choices for the ''Osbourne Family Album.'' John Lennon's ''Imagine'' is ''one of the all-time greatest songs,'' he said, while the Kinks' ''You Really Got Me'' is ''the first heavy-metal record'' he ever heard.

Fair enough. But Ozzy went on to say he picked Eric Clapton's ''Wonderful Tonight'' because it's a ''beautiful, lovely song'' that he happened to hear on VH1 recently. And why include the Cars ballad ''Drive''? Well, Ozzy mumbled that he was once in France in the '80s, and ''the French hate the English and the English hate the French... that was the only record that kept us going.'' Hmmm.

Sharon, meanwhile delivered her usual mix of loving words for her kids (''F-- you,'' she told Jack, after he disagreed with her assessment of the drum parts on Ozzy's early albums) and fury at the family's enemies (though no hams were tossed). Asked to respond to Ted Nugent's recent insults (he suggested Ozzy is a burn-out), Sharon was typically restrained. 'I'm gonna cut his dick off,'' she growled ''He probably doesn't have one.'' Too bad the ''Osbourne Family Album'' won't include any of Sharon's spoken-word tracks.


Posted May 16, 2002 | Order Article Reprints