RICK WAKEMAN On OZZY OSBOURNE: He Was 'An Absolute Character, An Absolute Personality'

Keyboard legend Rick Wakeman has released a video message in honor of Ozzy Osbourne, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 76. In the message, which can be seen below, Rick, who himself turned 76 in May, states (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "This is a message for Ozzy, who's now on a very special journey, having passed away. And we all miss him something terrible, but what a legacy he's left. [He was] an absolute character, an absolute personality, both music-wise, where he was actually much cleverer than a lot of people gave him credit for, and also his madness, which I loved. I miss him an awful lot even now."

He continued: "I wish [Ozzy's wife and manager] Sharon all the best. I think it was Sharon who made Ozzy in later years after she met him, and in a strange way he made Sharon; the pair of them were inseparable. But now they have been separated. But there are the memories that will always live on.

"So, Ozzy, wherever you are on the astral plane where you are traveling, I wish you all the very best and hope you meet a lot of interesting people on the way," Rick added. "Miss you, mate. Bye."

Rick's son Adam Wakeman had long been the touring keyboardist for BLACK SABBATH and Ozzy Osbourne's band.

Ozzy died Tuesday morning (July 22),his family announced in a statement.

"It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time," the family said.

No cause of death was given, but Osbourne had battled a number of health issues over the past several years, including Parkinson's disease and injuries he sustained from a late-night fall in 2019.

Ozzy's death came a little more than two weeks after he took the stage for his final performance with BLACK SABBATH at Villa Park in the band's original hometown of Birmingham, United Kingdom. They performed four songs for more than 40,000 people in the stadium and 5.8 million more on a livestream. Ozzy also played a five-song solo set while seated in a bat-adorned throne.

The legendary BLACK SABBATH frontman was diagnosed in 2003 with Parkin 2 — a very rare genetic form of Parkinson's. During a TV appearance in January 2020, the singer disclosed that he was 'stricken" with the disease which occurs when the nerve cells of the body degenerate and levels of dopamine are reduced. Dopamine is an essential chemical that is produced by these nerve cells which send signals to different parts of the brain to control movements of the body.

Ozzy's health issues, including suffering a nasty fall and dislodging metal rods placed in his spine following a quad-bike accident in 2003, as well as catching COVID-19 three years ago, forced him to cancel some of his previously announced tours.

Despite his health problems, Osbourne had performed a couple of times in the last three years, including at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in August 2022 and at the NFL halftime show at the season opener Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills game in September 2022.