This album is an extremely in-depth analysis of the life of Ozzy Osbourne. Since most of these lyrics were written during or just after Ozzy's extensive court-ordered rehab session, his inner most feelings are expressed in this recording. The song "Perry Mason" was written after being the first TV show Ozzy had seen in several months. "Ghost Behind My Eyes" is a song about seeing his wife in visions every night before he went to bed at the rehab center, and "My Little Man" is a song for his son that reassures him everything will be all right. This is a fairly played-down album compared to his previous works, which indicates that Ozzy has possibly grown after his separation from his family. A few songs that will appeal to the hardcore fan are "Thunder Underground" and "My Jekyll Doesn't Hide". "My Jekyll Doesn't Hide" is about his alter persona, the stage performer. This album is a grand step from the main stream of heavy metal, especially Ozzy's recognized style. But, it's a noteworthy one, and well worth purchasing it.

Originally released in October of 1995, "Ozzmosis" is an fantastic CD. Although there is a clear lack of variety, both tonally and stylistically, it's more than made up for by the terrific craftsmanship of the material, including expert use of dynamics, plus Ozzy's uniquely sincere and expressive vocals. The end result is a gripping listen, with soaring metal ballads like "Ghost Behind My Eyes", "See You On The Other Side", and "Tomorrow"; and super-heavy kickass rockers like "Perry Mason", "Thunder Underground", and "My Jekyll Doesn't Hide". The hit power ballad "I Just Want You" is also haunting and undeniably powerful. The only real weak track on the disc is also the least characteristic--the schlocky, piano-laden album closing ballad "Old L.A. Tonight". They also mix things up with the compelling, sitar-drenched ballad "My Little Man".

I'm always skeptical as to how much Ozzy really contributes to the writing of the material on his albums, and indeed there are a ton of outside writers here, including 'hacks' like Jim Vallance, Mark Hudson, Steve Dudas, and John Purdell. Naturally, Geezer Butler (who happens to be on bass here) and guitarist Zakk Wylde also get some co-writes. In the end, I think Ozzy, Zakk, and producer Michael Beinhorn deserve a lot of credit for bringing it all together into a cohesive, sincere-sounding, and powerful disc. "Ozzmosis" is a must-have.

While many people describe Ozzmosis as a "soft" album, I would say that this is Ozzy's heaviest solo album. The songs are not the fast paced speed metal that characterized his work during the 80's and early 90's, but the overall tone and feel of the album creates a very heavy feel that none of his previous work approached. Zakk Wylde's guitar work on the album is incredible, and the improvements he made both as a guitar player and a songwriter since No More Tears are evident. This album received little radio play due to the length and complexity of the songs, something you just aren't supposed to do with heavy metal. But the fact is that Ozzmosis appeals more to musicians than to the common public because of the structure of the songs. The tracks on this album were not written to garner radio play, in my opinion they were written to showcase the musical talents of Zakk and Ozzy. If you want to hear songs that are heavy but have some musical substance, this is the album for you.

After Ozzy Osbourne's supposed retirement with 1991's No More Tears, he decided to make a comeback, enlisting the services of a host of songwriters, and thus rendering Ozzmosis his most project-like offering of his career. The songs on this album were penned by a number of musicians, all with totally different backgrounds; and therefore, they sound quite unlike Osbourne's other solo records, both musically and sonically.

Ozzmosis is a sound cosmos primarily driven by producer Michael Beinhorn, known for his diverse work with artists like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Soul Asylum, Korn, and Soundgarden. While the album still involves the skills of Ozzy's long-time axeman Zakk Wylde, a good portion of his work has been treated to a more modern-conscious sound dynamic, often culminating in effect-laden passages. From the hugely successful power ballad "I Just Want You", co-written by Jim Vallance (Bryan Adams) to the more groovy "Thunder Underground", Wylde plays through an array of distorted sound collections, making it somewhat hard to discern his easily identifiable style. Still, the solo in the latter brilliantly demonstrates his trademark pinch harmonics and minor pentatonic scales squeezed into a brief interlude. Wylde does not get to play as many solos as he did on the previous albums, with one exception being the extended lead of "Denial", characterized by a multitude of processed vocal lines forming an internal dialogue and heavy dose of guitar synths and textures.

The bass guitar work of this album was actually done by various musicians, including original bassist Todd Jensen (Hardline) and James Lomenzo (White Lion). Although neither player is credited in the booklet, some of the bass is very derivative of Lomenzo's work, particularly the stuff he dabbled with in Slash's Snakepit and Pride & Glory. It seems Geezer Butler pretty much just recorded over his work, adding in his own touch in the arrangements. The thick bass stomp of "See You on the Other Side", another power ballad whose lyrics were penned by Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister, is wrung through a dense sound structure albeit sounding a tad too 80's for this album. Also on "Perry Mason", the bass arrangement is stunning, defined by a solid low end. Arguably the best song on this album, "Perry Mason" starts off with eerie keyboards courtesy of Rick Wakeman and erupts with an equally riveting chord progression amidst slamming drum and bass battery. There is even a phenomenal bass solo on this song, and Deen Castronovo's drumming is amazing.

John Purdell has contributed lyrics to several pieces, including the already mentioned "Perry Mason" and the somewhat overlooked "Tomorrow", engaging himself in lines such as "You don't have to leave the lights on | I'm so used to being blind", aptly matching the dark theme of the song. Ozzy's vocals are highly processed and there are unusual sound layerings built around a bass-heavy arrangement. It was definitely interesting to see Ozzy pushing the form of the envelope with this song.

Before Ozzy recorded Ozzmosis, he had grouped with guitar wizard Steve Vai for a project called X-Ray. The duo had written several songs, one of which was "My Little Man". However, rumours have it that the record company wasn't keen enough on those pieces, so they parted ways under the smokescreen that the label wasn't fully behind the group. With its heavy use of exotic scales and complex nature, "My Little Man" is the only piece that made it onto Ozzmosis, albeit sounding rather out of place. Another cut from these sessions was released on Vai's Fire Garden in instrumental form by the way.

The fact that the majority of the songs are either midtempo pieces or power ballads seems to have somewhat diluted the album's diversity. What's worse is on the pieces where Ozzy tries to venture into heavier territory, he falls short, best heard on "My Jekyll Doesn't Hide", a poor attempt at rocking out. Two tracks feature Zakk Wylde's more bluesy leanings, namely the piano ballad "Old L.A. Tonight", a good piece to close the album where acoustic guitars and blues-inflected licks embrace other; and "Ghost Behind My Eyes", another ballady tune with a melodious chorus.

Despite some raving reviews, Ozzmosis is not as strong an album as Ozzy's previous Wylde-era material, but it may indeed be his last record truly worth hearing.

(Please note that this review is based on the original version of the record. I have not heard the re-release with the bonus tracks.)

Ozzmosis (1995) is one of my favorite Ozzy Osbourne albums, and the new 2002 remaster is makes it even better! First, what sets this apart from it's 1995 brethren is new liner notes, and the inclusion of two bonus tracks ("Aimee" and "Whole Worlds Fallin' Down.) This is one of Ozzy's softer albums, and he's always called it a "lazy" album, but I think the songs are emotional and feature some of Zakk's best guitar work.

1. Perry Mason - This is the hard rocking opening for a great album, and it sets an informal tone. Check out the excellent music video for this song as well. 100%

2. I Just Want You - One of the songs that turned me on to Ozzy's music was this. Some

3. Ghost Behind My Eyes - While the first two songs weren't slow or soft, this one is both. It's a great song none-the-less. 90%

4. Thunder Underground - With half of the original Black Sabbath (Ozzy, and Geezer on bass) it's no surprise we get a song that definitely has a Sabbath core to it. Thunder Underground is a great song. 95%

5. See You On The Other Side - Another single, and another softer song. This is definitely a great ballad though, about being together in death. Slow, but good! 95%

6. Tomorrow - I own the entire Ozzy catalogue and can honestly say that "Tomorrow" is my favorite song. It's a dark and heavy song with spooky lyrics, and an excellent guitar solo in the middle (and an eerie message in the middle which I believe says "I never killed anybody... it was a gun..) Anyways this song is killer. 110%

7. Denial - Softer, sort of "I'm not a bad guy" type songs ("I ain't no Black Messiah,") it's one of the better songs on Ozzmosis in my opinion. 100%

8. My Little Man - Originally this album was to be recorded with Steve Vai, and one track with him survived. "My Little Man" which is a song about his song Jack features Steven Vai on guitar.

9. My Jekyll Doesn't Hide - One can only assume this song is about his on-stage/off-stage personality, or how he changes when he drinks. It's an excellent song, though a little bit different than the other Ozzmosis tracks. 90%

10. Old L.A. Tonight - An excellent closer, features a good piano part. A slower rocker, but definitely good. 95%

11. Whole World's Fallin' Down - A great, heavy, doomsday song. 95%

12. Aimee - A slow ballad named after his oldest daughter with Sharon (he has another daughter from a previous marriage.) This song, while slow and soft, is really good. I definitely like this song. 100%

Overall, while Ozzmosis is a change of pace from previous Ozzy albums (and softer than Down to Earth) I think it is definitely a great release, even if I Ozz doesn't feel that way. Songs off of here are rarely played on live sets, but they're good. The 2002 remaster took a great album, added to songs, and managed to make it even better.