Album Review: Ozzy Osbourne's Ordinary Man (Revised)

We’re nearing the end fellow Otaku & Metalheads.

I’m starting my look at the other musical honorable mentions of 2020 today. Ironically, I did a review for this one back in 2021, but it wouldn’t be right to leave it off the table during this look back at the most plague-ridden year of this decade so far. A triumphant return in the early parts of 2020, Ozzy Osbourne came back after almost a decade from his last album, and after touring with his old bandmates from Black Sabbath for their final tour towards the end of last decade. Coupled with the fact that he was diagnosed with mild Parkinson’s, it seemed like the Blizzard Of Ozz would never make his own music again.....until he did.  So with that out of the way, here is my revised review of Ordinary Man. Let’s begin.

Background
The 2010s was an interesting time for the Blizzard Of Ozz. 2010 saw the release of Scream (Which wasn’t a bad album at all), and a few short years later he regrouped with his old bandmates in Black Sabbath to release the album 13 in 2013, and go on for a farewell tour that lasted until early February of 2017. For a brief time after that, Ozzy went quiet, until a weird encounter by the end of that decade. In September of 2019, he would be featured alongside rapper Travis Scott on the Post Malone track “Take What You Want” (From Post’s 3rd album Hollywood's Bleeding). The song would go onto be Ozzy’s first Billboard Hot 100 top 10 in over 30 years, marking the occasion as the longest gap between top 10 appearances in the chart's history. However, rumblings from the shadows of a new Ozzy Osbourne album was in the works, and on the 9th of November of 2019, it was shown that such a record was coming. In an interview on that day, the Blizzard Of Ozz revealed that he worked with Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan, and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith on the album, and when it came to the recording of it he said that the entire process was done "in just a short time", adding ""Duff and Chad came in and we would go in and jam during the day and I would go work out the songs in the evenings. I previously had said to Sharon I should be doing an album, but in the back of my mind I was going, 'I haven't got the fucking strength.' But Andrew pulled it out of me. I really hope people listen to it and enjoy it, because I put my heart and soul into this album."”. Then on the 21st of February in 2020, the release known as Ordinary Man would be put out for the public.

Ordinary Man would go on to chart pretty highly on the Billboard 200 & UK Albums Chart. The number 3 spot on both of those lists, to be exact, and was Ozzy’s 8th top ten album as a solo artist. The record would also be met with mostly high praise upon it’s release, with Allmusic critic Fred Thomas giving it an almost positive rating, writing “The production is huge but the energy is spontaneous, sounding like it was as fun to make as it is to listen to. 71 years old at the time Ordinary Man was released, Osbourne's voice is in great shape, sounding more or less like he always has. How he's making music this strong after riding the crazy train for more than half-a-century is anyone's guess, but the better songs here rank among his best.”, and Josh Gray of Clash magazine saying that “Ordinary Man is far from perfect, but all Ozzy Osbourne's solo releases tend to reflect their creator's flaws to one degree or another. It does, however, absolutely succeed on its own terms, serving its purpose by reminding the world just what we'll miss when this titan among titans finally departs us for good.”

Basic Description
Ozzy’s supposed final goodbye.

Now, we all know that Ordinary Man wasn’t a goodbye mostly due to Patient Number 9 in 2022, but at the time in early 2020 it felt it. Similarly to Rammstein’s retrun in 2019, the whole mood surrounding the record came across like the end of something incredible. That’s not to say that it’s a perfect experience, cause there are issues for sure. However, what we get outside of those faults is one of the most emotional releases that Ozzy has ever put onto a CD. As old as he was at the time & with the health issues he was facing, he none the less managed to get onto his feet, and delivered a pretty introspective album. I’ll be repeating this at the end of the review, but if he was to have ended his time in the spotlight with Ordinary Man, it would have been a nice way to go. Flawed, but nice.

Best Track
Like I said in my original review & in part 3 of my overview, it is so hard to not like the title track. On an album that’s seemingly introspective, this song is the most in that regard. Opting for a slow pace, Ozzy is singing like an old crooner that’s at the end of career, looking back at how expansive it was, and not wanting to go away like an average joe. The instrumentation is equally soulful, with Slash on the guitar, Duff McKagan on bass, and Chad Smith on drums pouring their hearts out. Perhaps the most important guest on the song is Sir Elton John, who provides some beautiful piano playing & singing himself, and even feels like he’s just as much of a part of the song as Ozzy himself. It’s really hard to not get misty-eyed when you listen to this, as it really feels like he could go away at any point. Never.....skip.....this.....song.

Ordinary Man

Over on the energetic side of things, It’s A Raid is one of the funniest songs I’ve ever heard! Based on a highly humorous story of his time in Black Sabbath, the track is incredibly fast and energetic, with the instrumentation and vocal work matching the pace. Post Malone manages to get in some singing as well, and he actually sounds pretty good when you can hear him. It’s genuinely hard to not laugh when you know the story, and even if you don’t know it, you’ll get a really big smile when you listen to this from beginning to end. There was no other way to conclude Ordinary Man than with this track.

It’s A Raid *

Worst Track
Like I said in my original review & part 3 of my overview, there were no bad songs per se, but a bunch of issues that definitely weighed the album down. Ozzy had issues with his voice, and thus a bunch of auto-tune was put in. There was also the 54 additional musicians brought onto the record, which was way too many, but Chad Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Slash from Guns & Roses, Tom Morello from Rage Against The Machine, and rapper Post Malone were perhaps the best and didn’t feel like they were taking up space (Post Malone especially). Finally, you had up to 26 people working on the engineering, mixing, production, and recording, which is way too many individuals if you ask me. All of this ultimately felt like too many cooks at the soup pot.....even if the end result was still tasty to a degree.

That being said, Darkside Blues is the lone bad track. Available only on the Japanese edition of the album, it’s a minute & 47 second long, but it’s oddly forgettable. It’s basically Ozzy & the crew trying way too hard to sound like an old-school blues song, complete with effects that try so hard to sound dated. Another version would appear on Patient Number 9, and while I still don’t think it’s a great song there, it’s faaaaar better on that record than on this one.

Darkside Blues (Ordinary Man Version)

Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, then click on the link below: 

Ordinary Man

Overall Impression & Rating
Ordinary Man was far better than what many of it’s critics said at the time. Yes, it’s got some problems. Major problems in some cases. However, if you are able to get past it faults, you will find one of the best Ozzy Osbourne albums that has ever been released. Though the record to come after would be improved to an extent, there’s just something about the raw emotion on this release that grabs you a little faster. I can understand why some wouldn’t like Ordinary Man, but it’s managed to gain a big following of fans.....myself included.

Ordinary Man gets an 8 out of 10.

And that was my revised review on Ozzy’s first release of this decade. Faulty for sure, but there’s a lovely diamond underneath that’s worth seeking out. If Ozzy would have ended his career on this record (As many thought was going to happen), then it wouldn’t have been a bad way to go. So, join me at the end of the month for a look at my other 2nd honorable mention of 2020.....and the musician in question is one that I’m surprised took me this long to finally look at here. See you soon!


***
If you’d like to read my original review of this album, click on the link below:

Album Review: Ozzy Osbourne’s Ordinary Man


*
The story in question, taken from a comment on Youtube:

“The song is based on the time when Ozzy was in Black Sabbath, and he wanted to turn the A/C down. But, he got the thermostat confused with the emergency police call button. So, when everybody saw the incoming squad cars, they thought it was because of the massive amounts of cocaine and marijuana that they had. So, Ozzy was hiding in a bathroom with a toilet backed up from pot, and trying to snort a buttload of Coke with one of his roadies when the maid answered the door, and he heard a cop say "Yeah, there's this button next to the air conditioning that you can use to call us in the case of an emergency. You'd be surprised how often this shit happens. Have a nice day." So, Ozzy turned to his roadie and said, "Y'know, we really need to teach Bill how to use the fucking air conditioning."”

MTG Set Review: Ikoria (Lair Of Behemoths)

Halfway through 2025 fellow Otaku & Metalheads.

Halfway through what is so far the worst year of this decade. Maybe even more so than the plague ridden hellscape that was 2020, this year so far has been nothing short of protracted misery for us here in the United States, and in so many other places in the world it seems. But, I will continue to do the best to avoid that negativity, and so the look back at 2020 will continue. My other musical honorable mentions of 2020 will continue later this June, but beforehand I’ve got another look at the Magic The Gathering landscape of that year. This time around, we travel to a brand new plane! One in which nature explodes so many forms of life, and the forces of humanity do the best they can to live their lives & defend themselves from whatever creature assaults the town! So, get on your most protective armor, sharpen up your sword, and take a look at my review for Ikoria: Lair Of Behemoths. Let’s begin!

Story & Setting
Taken from the fandom wiki: 

“The setting is Ikoria, a plane of beasts and monsters. As the world of Ikoria developed, humans quickly realized what types of defenses were needed to stave off monsters. The humans were quick to become both militaristic and ingenious. Unfortunately for the humans, the monsters of Ikoria have begun to mutate and the fortresses that were previously successful at protecting humans have now become fodder for the monsters to annihilate.”

Now, despite the incredibly short blurb I put up above, I will say that the story for Ikoria was one of the better ones in 2020. While Theros Beyond Death felt rushed with it’s lore, here it is far more fleshed out in a lot of ways, and there’s more time given to creating more believable characters & the “Civilization vs Monsters” theme of what the plane is going for. So much so, that a few of them were still around during the Phyrexian Invasion, and after in some cases.

Art
Art is different this time around for Ikoria. Whereas Theros’s visuals were heavily inspired by Greco-Roman mythology, Ikoria is of two worlds. Among the forces of humanity, everything (Outside of the Bonders & the more rough towns) is organized, clean, and most of the people look like they’re ready to defend themselves whenever their home is threatened. When it comes to the wilds of Ikoria, things are very different. Outside of the various human settlements, nature is practically wild & untamed. The landscapes come in a variety of locales, and each one is brimming with details, with the wildlife being especially on top in that regard. All of the various beasts & creatures come in so many different shapes and forms, with the ones with Mutate having the most extreme forms of them all. It really feels like Yin-Yang on Ikoria because of that artistic duality, and that made for some of the best MTG art of 2020.....though not the best.

Mechanics
Ikoria had an interesting set of mechanics upon it’s release, and still kinda does to this day. We had the return of Cycling, which was pretty surprising since we had it come back in 2017 (And waaaay back during Shards Of Alara) with a lot more support, and the same is true here. For those few who don’t know, Cycling is paying a small mana cost to draw a card, or search for a land or creature in some circumstances. It’s not deep by any means, but if you need to draw a card for something, it works great in a pinch.

What really stood out in Ikoria mechanically was Mutate, and the quasi-partners known as the Companions. Mutate reflected the incredibly unique & bizarre nature of the plane’s wildlife: if you target a non-human creature with a creature that has the mechanic, one of two things will happen. If you put the creature with Mutate on top of the target, then the creature will become that creature & gain it’s ability. If it’s mutated underneath that creature, then that creature will get a boost to it’s power & toughness equal to the creature that was put under it. Flavorwise it absolutely fits Ikoria’s world, and gameplay wise it led to some interesting stuff.....both good & bad.

You also had the Companions, and that’s where things get intriguing. Like I said above, they’re basically quasi-partners for your deck, but with a twist. For starters, you had your companion in it’s own zone, and it came into play when you payed it’s mana cost (Don’t think it went back to that zone when it died). Each & every single one had it’s own weird quirk to it that kinda had EDH shape any potential deck they were making around it. If you just put it in the deck like a normal card, then it’s fine, but if used EXCLUSIVELY in it’s companion role, then you must abide by the rules it has. Some are easy to work with, others are a little more frustrating, and a few more than that are irritating to follow......except for the example I used, which is adorable. 

Finally, Ikoria marked the first time that keywords could be given to creatures as counters. It’s happened on & off since then, but it was in this set that it came from, and it’s exactly as it sounds. Various cards from various card types can give out Lifelink counters, Trample counters, Fear counters, and so on. It really added to the gimmick of the whole “Make Your Own Kaiju” thing the creators were going for, and much like the various other kinds of counters, they don’t go away unless an effects says so.

Negative Aspects
Unfortunately for Ikoria, there are some issues that did hamper it’s success. First, and perhaps a more minor fault, would be the complete lack of other fantasy races. Outside of the various creatures & other beasts that the plane generates, the only other significant group on Ikoria are the humans. It’s weird just to see humanity, as while the various groups are all interesting in their own right, it does make for a somewhat plain setting. I don’t know if anyone else had issues with this back in 2020, and while I didn’t at the time, in the years since it has bugged me....but only mildly.

Next fault, and this was a bigger issue, were the companions. Conceptually, they were a cool idea, but in practice they has faults. Like I said above, the older version of the companions limited how a EDH deck could be made, and while this did present an interesting challenge, more often than not it was a pain to plan around. Some companions were easier to work with most definitely, but others were just frustrating. One companion in particular was so infamously (and unintentionally) overpowered, that it was banned before the set came out! You know the one.....

Finally, there was Mutate. Kinda like the companions it was a neat idea in theory, but ended up frustrating a lot of players. Also like I said above, Mutate on top of the creature you’re targeting and it gains the abilities of said creature it was put on top of, but if you mutated it underneath the creature it would gain a boost to it’s power & toughness equal to what was put under it. Simplistic, but it made a lot of gamers back then scratch their heads, and because of that I don’t think we’ll be seeing the mechanic make a comeback anytime during the rest of this decade. 

And though I don’t think it was a problem 5 years ago, I should make a quick mention of the pre-built decks. For the first time in MTG’s history, the commander decks released that year were tied to a specific setting, and that proved to have a lasting impact on the product. All of the pre-built decks since then have been tied to a plane to show off more of what that area of Magic’s universe is like. It will be interesting to see how Edge Of Eternities will be like come this late July, as that set takes place in Outer Space, but regardless the pre-builts are now just as much the face of the set as the main set itself.

Overall Impression & Rating
Ikoria was the oddball set in 2020 in my view. Make no mistake: it was absolutely fun to collect & play with, and the plane itself was cool and quirky! But the frustrations with Mutate & the Companions, not to mention the complete lack of fantasy races, makes this one a bit lower on totem pole that what came out at the start of this decade, but it was still a neat experience to feel. Definitely pick up a pack or two if you can. 

Ikoria gets a out 7.5 of 10.

And that was my look at Ikoria. Maybe not as good as Theros Beyond Death, but it still managed to provide something special to the MTG landscape back in 2020. It can still be found in various hobby stores, so grab it before it’s gone for good! So with that, we now move onto the other musical honorable mentions of 2020, and join me around the middle of the month for a revised look at Ozzy’s return after nearly 10 years. See you then.