10 songs to memorialize Ozzy Osbourne, the great Black Sabbath frontman

By MARIA SHERMAN NEW YORK AP There are pioneering music figures and then there is Ozzy Osbourne the larger-than-life frontman of Black Sabbath whose personal mythology is eclipsed only by the strength and immortality of his songs A godfather and force of heavy metal Osbourne died Tuesday at just months after his last performance The English icon s idiosyncratic throaty voice launched generations of metalheads both through his work at the reins of Black Sabbath and in his solo career Across his repertoire there are songs with total global ubiquity and lesser-known innovations with his unique spooky aesthetic quality To celebrate Osbourne s life and legacy we ve selected just a minimal songs that made the man from timeless tunes to a scant left-of-center selections FILE Ozzy Osbourne performs at the th Anniversary Rock Roll Hall of Fame concert on Oct in New York AP Photo Henny Ray Abrams File FILE Ozzy Osbourne left performs Jan at the Rock in Rio music festival in Rio de Janeiro Brazil AP Photo File FILE Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath performs at Ozzfest on Sept in San Bernardino Calif Amy Harris Invision AP File Show Caption of FILE Ozzy Osbourne performs at the th Anniversary Rock Roll Hall of Fame concert on Oct in New York AP Photo Henny Ray Abrams File Expand Read on and then listen to all of the tracks on our Spotify playlist Iron Man Black Sabbath It would be a challenge to name a more right now recognizable guitar riff than the one that launches Black Sabbath s megahit Iron Man It transcends the metal genre an all-timer heard around the world and in guitar stores everywhere War Pigs Black Sabbath One of the great Vietnam War protest songs Black Sabbath s War Pigs is a rare moment where hippies and metalheads can agree Politicians hide themselves away They only started the war Why should they go out to fight Osbourne sings in the bridge Children of the Grave Black Sabbath Osbourne s heaviest performances are at least partially indebted to Black Sabbath s bassist and lyricist Terry Geezer Butler and there is perhaps no better example than Children of the Grave the single from the band s album Master of Reality Must the world live in the shadow of atomic fear Osbourne embodies Butler s words a sonic fist lifted in the air Can they win the fight for peace or will they disappear Sabbath Bloody Sabbath Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were in a creative rut in the time period leading up to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath the opening track from their album of the same name It s almost hard to believe now the song features one of their best-known riffs and its chorus features chosen truly ascendant vocals Crazy Train Ozzy Osbourne Would the world know what a vibraslap sounds like without the directly recognizable introduction to Osbourne s first solo single Crazy Train To call it a classic is almost a disservice it is an addicting tune complete with chugging guitars and Cold War-era fears Mr Crowley Ozzy Osbourne Another classic cut from Osbourne s debut solo album Blizzard Of Ozz disclosed one year after Osbourne was fired from Black Sabbath for his legendary excesses the arena rock anthem Mr Crowley pays tribute to the famed English occultist Aleister Crowley and features Deep Purple s Don Airey on keyboard Diary of a Madman Ozzy Osbourne The title track and coda of Osbourne s second solo studio album Diary of a Madman runs over six minutes long features big strings and a choir so theatrical it sounds like they re scoring a medieval war film He desired big he desired dramatic and he nailed it Mama I m Coming Home Ozzy Osbourne It wouldn t be inaccurate to call Mama I m Coming Home a beautiful-sounding song It s unlike anything on this list a power ballad featuring lyrics written by the late Mot rhead frontman Lemmy and a welcomed deviation I Black Sabbath When Black Sabbath comes to mind the majority fans jump to an unimpeachable run of albums disclosed in the s and early s But I a cut from Black Sabbath s too often overlooked th studio album Dehumanizer is worth your ear And not only because it is the first Sabbath album to feature singer Ronnie James Dio and drummer Vinny Appice since s Mob Rules though that s an obvious plus Take What You Want Post Malone with Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott Late in life Ozzy Osbourne was generous with his time and talent often collaborating with younger performers who idolized the metal legend One such example is Post Malone s Take What You Want which also features the rapper Travis Scott Osbourne gives the song a necessary gothic edge validating the otherwise balladic song s use of a sprightly guitar solo