BOB DAISLEY Reacts To OZZY Court Ruling: 'It's Still Not Over!'

October 25, 2003

Former OZZY OSBOURNE bandmembers Bob Daisley (bass) and Lee Kerslake (drums) have vowed to continue their 20-year battle regarding royalties and proper credits on the early OZZY albums "Blizzard Of Ozz" (1980) and "Diary Of A Madman" (1981),despite a court ruling earlier this week that upheld the dismissal of their lawsuit against Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne.

The lawsuit, filed against the Osbournes in 1998, was dismissed last year by the United States District Court in Los Angeles, and this week the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal, ruling that Ozzy does not owe any royalties or credit to the musicians, who were let go in 1981.

According to Daisley, however, not all hope is lost. "It's early days regarding this bogus ruling but it's STILL not over yet," he said in an online posting. "We will be seeking further legal advice from our tenacious lawyers."

In a 2002 interview with Launch, Daisley explained how things got to this point. "Lee Kerslake and myself were fired after recording the 'Diary Of A Madman' album. During 1980 and the beginning of 1981, contracts were drawn up and went backwards and forwards from our lawyers to their lawyers. We were told to keep working, that it would be eventually all sorted out. The contracts were actually physical, but not actually signed. And then when we got fired, we brought up the situation of royalties, and they just said, 'Oh, well. End of story — you're out of the band. Off you go.'"

The Osbournes removed the playing of Daisley and Kerslake from the 2002 reissues of "Blizzard Of Ozz" and "Diary Of A Madman", replacing the original recordings with tracks from Robert Trujillo and Mike Bordin, Ozzy's bassist and drummer at the time.

Since their initial release 23 years ago, "Blizzard Of Ozz" and "Diary Of A Madman" have sold over 10 million copies worldwide.

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