This is not so much an editorial or live review as a reflection, for this was something of a unique experience in the history of our genre, not to mention rock as a whole. We've been unlucky with the passing of previous greats such as Dio and Lemmy (both of whom were very influential and deserved a tribute like this) and although we've known of Ozzy's health issues for a long time the expectation of a final tour from him has been around awhile, not least since the No More Tours II cancellation due to health and the pandemic. So finally getting to see the Prince of Darkness himself for one last time made sense to many, not least the impressive line-up of bands supporting and in tribute to an act who are undeniably one of if not the most important metal bands ever, and all for charity? Hard to argue against, even with an operator as canny as Sharon Osbourne behind it all...

And whatever your view of Mrs Darkness, this event turned out to be truly spectacular. As a send-off to Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne's solo career it could have gone wrong in any number of ways and yet proved to be something of a heartwarming exclamation mark. Of course, you can argue that it should have had more Birmingham-rooted bands on the line-up (Diamond Head and Napalm Death come to mind) as well as the various complaints that have been made from certain quarters about a lack of female representation. Yet even the livestream itself seemed to work without issue, with no noticeable lag or issues despite the over 5 million or so people watching live and on repeat. And of the bands that played, there seems to be very few opportunities for a nitpicker to criticise – each performed some of their songs with a Black Sabbath or (in a couple of cases) Ozzy cover.

From the heavier side of proceedings, Mastodon and Gojira did exceedingly well, both seeming a little shy but performing wonderfully, the former indulging in a drum circle, the latter bringing out opera singer Marina Viotti for their Olympics-written tune Mea Culpa. Slayer were possibly the act of the night aside from the headliners, looking like they were having a blast as they built up with God Hates Us All and Disciple before cleverly weaving their Sabbath cover of Wicked World through War Ensemble and South of Heaven and caused much intense devastation with multiple circle pits during a closing one-two of Raining Blood and Angel of Death. Tool and Anthrax both showed off the sort of intensity and passion that you'd expect from them, and Metallica were, well, themselves, a little sloppy at points and dragged down by Lars' simplicity but more than doing justice to the songs.

Sure, we could have had a few more heavy acts but even the more mainstream ones did extraordinarily well. Halestorm weren't a band I'd paid much attention to previously yet Lzzy's voice is undeniably powerful and the band did a solid Perry Mason. The same for Rival Sons, who opened for Black Sabbath on the 2016 The Tour previously and rocked hard and well here. Mainstream neo-goth crooner Yungblud gave a charismatic and effective rendition of Changes in something of a star-making performance! The lowest points were a helium-voiced and struggling Axl Rose dragging down an otherwise solid Guns N' Roses set and a mixed reaction to Disturbed's David Draiman thanks to the inescapable Israel/Gaza conflict.

Yet the common thread was the love and respect shown by everyone for Black Sabbath as godfathers of the genre, down to the likes of Jason Momoa who was clearly having a blast as a compère and even got in the pit for a single Pantera song, which is far more than most of Hollywood would risk doing. There was really too much to cover - Steven Tyler from Aerosmith coming out of retirement (and sounding great) alongside The Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood, Billy Corgan enthusiastically belting out Snowblind while dressed as a cult leader, an obviously inebriated Sammy Hagar harassing Tom Morello, the various celebrity videos from the likes of Def Leppard, Judas Priest, Dolly Parton, Elton John, and even Ricky Gervais.

And all for charity, of course! Which made it all the more bittersweet to see how enthusiastic Ozzy was, waving along, giving far more of a performance even seated on a black throne than we were expecting with knowledge of his various ailments. Alongside a loyal Zakk Wylde Ozzy pounded out a short but fun setlist that began with I Don't Know and Mr Crowley, a surprising Suicide Solution, an emotion-drenched Mama I'm Coming Home and, of course, a closing Crazy Train. Black Sabbath themselves were as solid and powerful as ever, particularly Geezer Butler having the chance to show off on bass a little and drummer Bill Ward, stripped to the chest and showing off his uniqueness and skills despite giving something of a simplified performance at his age of 77. And the songs were superb, War Pigs and NIB, Iron Man and Paranoid; even if you're sick of hearing them you had to admit there was a real sadness and poignancy to the final time they were being played live by the original band. This wasn't just an ode to Black Sabbath but an ode to metal itself, a beautiful and moving event, and the biggest cultural moment for our genre in a while. Yet we must give kudos, praise, and thanks to the band, and hope they enjoy retirement; they've given us so much, and it was fitting to have them appreciated in public by so many. Hail Sabbath!