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Music > Albums > Ozzy Osbourne - Down to Earth (2002) Retail CD
added on April 28, 2007, at 23:10 by allcdcovers

For the first five minutes of Ozzy Osbourne's 13th solo album, Down To Earth, you feel like cracking open the champagne to celebrate a triumphant return. To a deliciously dirty blues riff that's Led Zep getting hot and sweaty with prime era Sabbath, "Gets Me Through" is a brilliant track, which sees Ozzy deconstruct his showbiz persona in a Robbie Williams-turns-rock-god style: "I'm not the kind of person you think I am... I try to entertain you the best I can." Sadly, the rest of the album isn't quite up to the opener's high standards. "Facing Hell", while fine in the foot-stomping, dandruff-shifting stakes, is stuffed with the kind of horror cliches that "Gets Me Through" rises above. Same goes for "Black Illusion" and "Can You Hear Them", although in the latter's case you suspect the "voices in my head" aren't mere poetic justice. The album really goes off the rails though with "Dreamer", where Ozzy weeps about global warming a la "Imagine", and "You Know..." in which our hero apologises to his kids. Not quite rock legend behaviour perhaps, but even at its worst Down To Earth has enough wilful eccentricity to keep you entertained, amused and still brimful with respect. --Ian Watson

back 1041 x 800 px

cd 792 x 800 px

front 819 x 800 px

inlay 903 x 689 px

inside 711 x 716 px