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Ozzy Osbourne has died

(www.bbc.co.uk)
610 points fantunes | 2 comments | 22 Jul 25 18:20 UTC | HN request time: 0.436s | source
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sillysaurusx ◴[22 Jul 25 19:36 UTC] No.44652018[source]▶
I’m coming in from a position of ignorance here, so I was hoping the community would help me understand: the only thing I know about Ozzy is that he’s bitten the heads off of various animals, including doves and bats. That happened before I was even born. But, looking over the comments, no one seems to be talking about it.

My question is, is it just not a big deal? If someone did that today, they’d be crucified in the courts of public opinion.

One could argue that it’s disrespectful to bring this up on his death thread, but, two points: one, I hope that people will bring up my mistakes when I pass, so that others can learn from it; and two, this is the only opportunity to talk about it, since Ozzy has rarely been a topic on HN.

Ozzy fans, can you help me understand why few people seem to care? It’s hard to wrap my head around the idea that someone can decapitate some animals with their own teeth and then still build a loyal following. Was he just that good at music?

I’m posting this from a place of curiosity, not malice, for what it’s worth.

EDIT: Even if the bat was a mistake, what about the doves? https://kiisfm.iheart.com/content/2022-01-24-theres-another-...

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1. thomashabets2 ◴[22 Jul 25 19:41 UTC] No.44652067[source]▶
He bit the head of what he thought was a rubber bat that someone threw on stage.

Turns out it was not rubber.

As for the rest. He was an icon. It's hard to see after the fact why something is revolutionary. Retrospectively it all seems obvious.

Like Newton and gravity, or calculus.

It doesn't look mind-blowing because everything that comes after it is influenced by it, and being first to start a new sound is only obvious if you look at the timeline.

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2. sillysaurusx ◴[22 Jul 25 20:12 UTC] No.44652434[source]▶
It’s understandable that he thought the bat was fake. But he bit the head off two doves too: https://kiisfm.iheart.com/content/2022-01-24-theres-another-...

The rest is more interesting though. Which new sound did he create? Again, asking in earnest.