Iommi could play on your track

Queen guitarist Brian May has revealed plans to release an album consisting entirely of riffs written and played by Tony Iommi.

The aim is to allow fans to build their own songs out of the Black Sabbath axeman’s material.

The plan was uncovered via a Kerrang celebrity interview in which Iommi asked May: “When are we going to get to work on that album of riffs together? You know what I’m talking about.”

May replied: “Yes, I do know what he’s talking about and I’m very, very keen. The record was supposed to be a secret – but I guess he’s blown it now.”

He explained that, on a visit to Iommi’s studio, he discovered a huge catalogue of unused material. “I thought it would be great to make a compilation out of them. The idea was to put all these riffs out in some form so people could build their own sings of them. You could make your own music with Tony Iommi on guitar.”

It’s not been confirmed when such an album might appear. Iommi recently completed recording work on Sabbath’s first album with Ozzy Osbourne since 1978, commenting: “It’s different altogether now. We’ve got much more of a thing going than what it was in them days. The new material’s really good – we’ve got some good stuff going.”

source: classicrockmagazine.com

Dio fans force action over ignored cancer

Ronnie James Dio fans have helped bring attention to the ignored form of cancer that killed the iconic singer.

Cash raised by the Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund was instrumental in forcing the US government into action over gastric cancer, says widow Wendy Dio – and the resulting research could benefit hundreds of thousands of people.

The charity was launched soon after the singer’s death in 2010. Since then, Dio fans have contributed $600,000.

Wendy tells Blairing Out: “We gave the hospital Ronnie was at $117,000 and they put it to gastric cancers. Before that there were no government funds for gastric cancer research.


“With our seed money they were able to go to the government and say, ‘We’ve got funding for this.’ The government gave them a grant of $11 million. That was amazing.”

Wendy says she cried when she heard Dio’s bandmate Tony Iommi had also been diagnosed with cancer. She says: “We didn’t talk about it – he lives in England, I live here. But I sent him lots of encouragement, letters and things.”

Meanwhile, Sharon Osbourne has revealed she underwent a double mastectomy after her own cancer scare.

She’d fought colon cancer several years ago, and recently discovered she was carrying a gene which increased her chances of contracting the disease in her breasts. She made the decision to have them removed.

The wife and manager of Black Sabbath singer Ozzy tells Hello: “As soon as I found out I had the gene I thought, ‘The odds are not in my favour.’

“I’ve had cancer before and I didn’t want to live under that cloud. I decided to just take everything off. For me it was a no-brainer. I don’t even think of my breasts in a nostalgic way – I just wanted to be able to live my life without that fear all the time.”

source: classicrockmagazine.com

Sabbath don’t have guts for problems

Former Black Sabbath singer Tony Martin believes the band don’t have the guts to face up to internal disputes.

He’s revealed the first time he knew about Tony Iommi’s criticisms of his near ten-year stint with the metal pioneers was when he was told about comments the guitarist made in his book.

But he remains proud of his time as replacement for Ozzy Osbourne and Ronnie James Dio – and remembers how his 1987 audition came as a surprise to him.
In his biography Iron Man, Iommi slates Martin for being “unprofessional” and having “no stage presence.”
The singer tells Uber Rock: “They never said anything to me. We could have fixed it. I said to them endlessly that if there was anything they wanted changed, done differently, just to say – and we could fix it.
“They didn’t. They hadn’t got the guts to, obviously.
“Surely if you’ve got a problem, the first person you should say something to is the person in the band? You don’t wait ten years. To write it in a book afterwards seems a bit daft.
“It sounds like a really stupid thing to say as they didn’t say anything to my face. More fool them for not saying anything. We could have fixed it.”
Returned frontman Osbourne recently admitted that none of Black Sabbath had personally spoken to drummer Bill Ward about the contractual issues that led him to refuse a role in their reunion and new album. Martin has said he thinks the disagreement could be a publicity stunt.
Meanwhile, he isn’t bitter about his time with the band – and still remembers how he landed the role.
“My manager at the time was their tour manager during the seventies,” he recalls. “He gave me a call one day and said, ‘Oi, kid, I want you to meet me, we’re going to talk and drive.’
“We drove for a while and ended up at this big house. He rang the doorbell – and Iommi answered the door. I was like, ‘Bloody hell, you could have warned me!’
“But in I went, nervous as hell, played him a few things and next thing I had an audition in London. That was it. I was in.”

source: classicrockmagazine.com

Black Sabbath Pledge To Carry on Without Drummer Bill Ward

Black Sabbath have responded to drummer Bill Ward's open letter pledging to leave the band unless he is presented with a "signable contract." In a statement on Facebook, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler indicated they they will carry on with their new album and reunion tour without him. "We were saddened to hear yesterday via Facebook that Bill declined publicly to participate in our current Black Sabbath plans," they wrote. "We have no choice but to continue recording without him although our door is always open...We are still in the UK with Tony. Writing and recording the new album and on a roll...See you at Download!!!"

Tony Iommi was recently diagnosed with lymphoma, causing the band to move their recording sessions from Los Angeles to England, where the guitarist is receiving treatment. They reportedly backed out of a planned headlining slot at Coachella and their European summer tour seemed to be in jeopardy, though the above statement makes it clear they plan on performing at the Download Festival on June 10th.

Black Sabbath toured without Bill Ward when the original line-up reformed in 1997, but he joined up with the group the following year. In 2004 a contract dispute nearly caused him to not participate on that summer's Ozzfest tour, but he eventually wound up signing on. "After the last tour I vowed to never again sign on to an unreasonable contract," Ward wrote in his recent letter. "I want a contract that shows some respect to me and my family, a contract that will honor all that I've brought to Black Sabbath since its beginning."

He also addresses the possibility that the group might replace him. "If I'm replaced, I have to face you, the beloved Sabbath fans," he wrote. "I hope you will not hold me responsible for the failure of an original Black Sabbath lineup as promoted. Without fault finding, I want to assure everyone that my loyalty to Sabbath is intact."

It's unclear who the group plans to bring in to play drums on their new projects, though in the past Faith No More's Mike Bordin and Vinny Appice have played in Black Sabbath when Ward was unavailable.

source: rollingstone.com

Black Sabbath Guitarist Tony Iommi Diagnosed With Lymphoma

Tony Iommi, guitarist for pioneering British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, has been diagnosed with lymphoma, the band announced Monday.

In a statement to Fox411.com, a rep for Iommi, 63, said the guitarist was in the early stages of the disease and working with his doctors to establish a treatment plan.

He "remains upbeat" and is "determined to make a full and successful recovery," the statement said. "His bandmates would like everyone to send positive vibes to the guitarist at this time.

The news comes just weeks after the original members of Black Sabbath -- Iommi, singer Ozzy Osbourne, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward -- announced they were reuniting for a new album and tour. The original lineup last recorded an album in 1978.

The band has been writing and recording the album in Los Angeles with producer Rick Rubin, but will go to the UK to continue working with Iommi, the statement said. The album is still scheduled for release in the fall, but the status of the reunion tour was not immediately known.

source: http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2012/01/09/black-sabbath-guitarist-tony-iommi-diagnosed-with-lymphoma/