Ozzy Osbourne has asked for Black Sabbath to be taken off the list of nominees for the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
In a statement issued yesterday, Ozzy said: “Just take our name off the list. Save the ink. Forget about us. The nomination is meaningless, because it’s not voted on by the fans. It’s voted on by the ‘supposed’ elite of the Industry and the media, who’ve never bought an album or concert ticket in their lives, so their vote is totally irrelevant to me. Let’s face it, Black Sabbath have never been media darlings. We’re a people’s band and that suits us just fine.”
Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, is a sort of glorified museum based on the Baseball Hall Of Fame. Artists who are inducted into its ranks have exhibits there alongside other items of rock memorabilia.
The foundation that elects people to the ranks of inductees was set up in 1983, though the museum itself was not opened in Cleveland – where DJ Alan Freed first popularised the term “rock and roll” on his radio show there in the 50s – until 1995. To be eligible for inclusion, an artist has to have released their debut album over 25 years ago. Black Sabbath‘s eponymous debut was released in 1970 and they have been nominated three times for inclusion.
A committee selects artists for inclusion – this year’s list includes Aerosmith, Lou Reed, Steely Dan and Earth Wind & Fire – before being voted on by a membership of 800 music industry professionals.
Meanwhile, as reported last week, Black Sabbath have announced a warm up show in London prior to their final appearances in Birmingham in December.
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