5 Greatest Bounceback Albums

At the start of the 1980's, Ozzy Osbourne was being labelled as somewhat of a joke in the heavy metal scene. After many less-than-stellar shows and a massive drug dependency, Osbourne was booted from Black Sabbath, who went on to great success with powerhouse vocalist Ronnie James Dio. Many people thought that was the last we'd hear from Osbourne.

Ozzy was not going to go quietly though. After putting together a solo band, Ozzy discovered the guitar titan Randy Rhoads, who was able to take Ozzy's song ideas and turn them into heavy metal gold. On Blizzard of Ozz, Osbourne showed the heavy metal community that he was going to still be kicking ass. The songs were still heavy with Osbourne's madman bellow, but they also had a certain sheen to them that wasn't on any of Sabbath's releases. Rhaods' playing on songs like "Mr Crowley" and "Crazy Train" served as a perfect counterbalance to Ozzy's vocal, with fantastic riffs and jaw-dropping solos.

While still far from sober, Ozzy proved that he had the vision to move beyond Black Sabbath and become an independent musical force to be reckoned with. Long Live the Prince of Darkness!!