Tony Iommi admits Black Sabbath’s one-off reunion is “up in the air”.
Frontman Ozzy Osborune has said he’s determined to reunite with former drummer Bill Ward – who opted out of their reunion tour in 2012, with Tommy Clufetos stepping in for both those concerts and the final ‘The End Tour’ in 2016 and 2017 – one last time.
Both Bill and bassist Geezer Butler have said they would be down for a reunion, however, axe-slayer Tony admits it’s down to their health and whether they can still play as well.
Ozzy is battling ongoing health issues, including Parkinson’s, and has undergone several surgeries for his spine, and he was unable to perform when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last month, with the Prince of Darkness seated in a bat thrown as rock royalty paid tribute to him.
Speaking to Guitar World magazine, Tony said when asked if a Sabbath concert is on the cards: “Who knows? You can never say never, and we never have said never. It really depends on everybody’s health and what we’d expect from each other now. Can we still play and sound the same together? I don’t know because it’s been such a long time. It’s in the air.
“By the time it comes around, if it ever does, we’ll have to see what state everybody is in and whether we can climb on stage. If we did, it would have to be good otherwise I wouldn’t do it.
“There’s no point in just getting up, what can you prove by doing that? If it’s not right or as good as it was, then there’s no point in doing it. In my eyes, it has to be as good or better.”