Despite decades of legal acrimony and recent public exclusions from the celebration of Ozzy Osbourne‘s career, bassist and songwriter Bob Daisley has expressed a willingness to communicate with the late singer’s management and wife, Sharon Osbourne.
In a new interview with Scott Penfold of “Loaded Radio,” the 75-year-old musician—who played a pivotal role in writing and recording Osbourne‘s seminal early solo albums—discussed the complex legacy of his relationship with the Osbourne camp. When asked if he would talk to Sharon today, Daisley revealed that he carries no animosity.
“I would talk. I don’t hate her. If there was something to talk about, of course I’d talk,” Daisley stated (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “I’m not a vindictive person and I don’t hold grudges. And I felt for Ozzy‘s family that day too. Nobody likes to see people suffer. Well, I don’t like to see people suffer. And it was sad for me, with all the nice memories that came back, and it was sad for me to know what they were going through.”
Daisley noted that it has been nearly 25 years since he last spoke directly to Sharon, citing a legal deposition in New York around the time of the September 11 attacks as their last interaction.
“Oh, probably in New York in about 2001, it was. When 9/11 went down, we were there for a deposition. Because [former Ozzy drummer] Lee [Kerslake] and I had a lawsuit against them for unpaid royalties and incorrect credits on Diary and all that. But, yeah, that was probably the last time I spoke to her. The thing is, in the early days, Sharon and I got on really well, and Ozzy and I were close mates and it was very sad for me to see all that end. I got on great with both of them.”
The interview took a somber turn when Daisley reflected on receiving the news of Ozzy Osbourne‘s passing. Despite the “dirty water that went under the bridge,” Daisley admitted the loss hit him harder than expected.
“And the day that I heard that Ozzy died, I actually shed tears because there was a lot of memories that came flooding back,” he said. “There was the dirty water that went under the bridge, but there was a lot of good times as well. There was a lot of laughter and a lot of enjoyment and a lot of creativity. And for me, that day it all came flooding back and I did shed tears.”
The conversation also addressed the fact that Daisley was neither invited to nor acknowledged during Osbourne‘s final concert in Birmingham in July 2025, nor was he mentioned during the singer’s 2024 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction.
Regarding the Birmingham show, Daisley explained that health issues would have prevented his attendance regardless, but the lack of verbal recognition stung.
“I wasn’t put out [by the fact that I wasn’t asked to take part in the concert], because a couple of years ago I got COVID and it knocked the s**t out of me and I can’t fly anywhere anyway,” he explained. “I couldn’t have gone even if I’d wanted to, but a mention on the day, being that the whole audience was out there, thousands of people singing my lyrics, and I don’t even get a mention. It seems a bit, um, what’s the word? I don’t know.”
He acknowledged that fans noticed the omission as well.
“Hey, you’re not alone in thinking that [I should have been invited] and saying that. So many people did. It was me not being there and me not being asked to be there, was really the elephant in the room, wasn’t it?”
A similar sentiment applied to the Hall of Fame ceremony.
“That was another [thing]. People were speaking out about that. There were people putting messages up on their Instagram and on Facebook and saying, ‘What the f**k? He doesn’t even get a mention? He wrote all your f**king lyrics.'”
When asked to pinpoint exactly when the relationship fractured to the point of erasure, Daisley noted the history is too tangled for a simple explanation, referencing his firing after the Diary of a Madman sessions and subsequent returns to the fold.
“Well, really, for that, it’s so complicated and so interconnected with all the different facets and things that happened, it’s not a question that you can answer in one simple answer,” Daisley said. “‘Cause I went back and worked with Ozzy about — I don’t know — three or four times, when I was asked to, because it is complicated. They got rid of me right after the recording of Diary Of A Madman. Then I was asked back to do the third album, and then that didn’t materialize ’cause Randy [Rhoads] was killed. But I did do the third album with Jake E. Lee. That was Bark At The Moon.”
