Bill has sent along a few words about next week’s induction of Black Sabbath into the UK Music Hall of Fame..

‘Wow, I¹m shocked,’ was my first reaction. Then, ‘This feels pretty good. What a nice surprise, Black Sabbath being honoured in the U.K.’

Yes, I think that¹s a really cool thing to happen for us. Thanks U.K. Hall of Fame. –Bill Ward/Black Sabbath

Bill has more online to say about the Hall of Fame next week in his latest edition of his online diary. Make sure to check that out.

A special thanks go out to Richard Johnson, who provided Bill with several behind the scenes pictures he took during several Ozzfest 2005 gigs. There’s plenty to check out, so click on the thumbnail below to view the photo gallery.

Sabbath will be touring during the spring and summer, and Bill Ward will be back out on the road again playing the drums for Black Sabbath. A list of tourdates is now available for both the European tour, and the US Ozzfest tour. They are:

Black Sabbath European Dates:

Jun 09 Dortmund, Germany
Jun 11 Derbyshire, UK
Jun 14 Leipzig, Germany
Jun 16 Munich, Germany
Jun 18 Nijmegen, Netherlands
Jun 20 Vienna, Austria
Jun 23 Sofia, Bulgaria
Jun 25 Athens, Greece
Jun 29 Prague, Czech Republic
July 1 Roskilde, Denmark
July 3 Stockholm, Sweden
July 5 Helsinki, Finland
July 7 Oslo, Norway
July 9 Bergen, Norway

Ozzfest 2005 Dates:

Jul 15 Boston, MA
Jul 17 Hartford, CT
Jul 19 Camden, NJ
Jul 21 Buffalo, NY
Jul 23 Pittsburgh, PA
Jul 24 Washington, DC
Jul 26 New York, NY
Jul 30 Chicago, IL
Aug 02 Columbus, OH
Aug 04 Detroit, MI
Aug 07 Minneapolis, MN
Aug 11 Seattle, WA
Aug 13 Sancisco, CA
Aug 14 Sacramento, CA
Aug 16 Salt Lake City, UT
Aug 18 Phoenix, AZ
Aug 20 Los Angeles, CA
Aug 23 Albuquerque, NM
Aug 25 Dallas, TX
Aug 27 Houston, TX
Aug 28 San Antonio, TX
Aug 31 Nashville, TN
Sep 02 Charlotte, NC
Sep 04 West Palm Beach, FL

For further information and for tickets, please visit http://www.ozzfest.com.

Bill released this statement today regarding Ozzfest 2004 and his participation. Here it is.

June 3, 2004

Dear Sabbath People,

My very best respect to you.

I have read the new Ozzfest statement that it’s going to be an original member line-up for Ozzfest ’04.

In the immortal words of Buddy Holly, “Well alright.”

And while maintaining some disagreement with the Ozzfest statement verbiage, all I can say is “God Bless Black Sabbath. Let’s Fxxx-in’ Rock.”

Rock & Shine,
Bill Ward

In the wee hours of the morning, I received another statement from Bill Ward regarding the Ozzfest 2004 situation. Without further ado, here it is. If there are any further developments, they will definitely be posted here.

Dear Sabbath People,

I have communicated to Sharon that I will accept the proposal of 5/11/04 regarding me playing Ozzfest, and today I received a very positive response from her. At this time, I am taking this response as a move forward. This announcement is for the benefit of all those who these past few days have been so outspoken favouring and supporting me as a member of Sabbath. I personally thank all of you. To All Sabbath People On Earth – Rock & Shine.

-Bill Ward
5/20/04

UPDATE: After having posted this statement from Bill, several sites are reporting that Bill is back in Black Sabbath for Ozzfest 2004. Please be aware that this has not happened yet. This statement just means there are discussions, and while said discussions might lead to Bill being on the Ozzfest tour, it has not happened yet. Any further developments will be covered here.

Earlier today, the news broke that Black Sabbath was to headline Ozzfest 2004, with a lineup of Ozzy Osbourne/Tony Iommi/Geezer Butler/Mike Bordin – without Bill Ward on drums. Here is a statement from Bill Ward about Ozzfest 2004.

“Dear Sabbath People,

This morning I received the very sad news that Mike Bordin is to play drums with Black Sabbath on Ozzfest ’04.

Black Sabbath is, and always will be an important priority in my life. I support Geezer’s, Tony’s and Ozzy’s decisions to move ahead into Ozzfest ’04 without me. I can appreciate they may not be overjoyed with the decision, and I’d really like to be with them. Nothing would please me more than to be a part of the show.

Last week I did receive a proposal which allowed no room for negotiation. It was a cul-de-sac proposal in my opinion, where the only answer was yes or no. I was asked to respond by Friday. May 14th. I wrote a brief letter of decline on Thursday, May 13th. I answered directly at the proposal, and left out any personal comments, other than I was sad to have to decline. What I did not put in my response was this:

I’m willing to be flexible
I’m willing to compromise
I’m willing to negotiate
I’m willing to play.

I understand and believe in a united front when it comes to Sabbath. I can appreciate the fallout from such a decision will upset some people, and I am so sorry. I’m more than willing to support Ozzfest in any way I can.

I’ve walked down this street before when Sabbath did the first reunion without me and had Mike Bordin play instead. I want you to know, I’m not being the bad guy here. I’m not trying to hold anyone to ransom. And I’m not trying to reverse my decision to decline in hope of a positive managerial response to this letter.

I’m ready, willing and able to rock. There are some details on the proposal that don’t work for me. I guess it’s a case of the importance of things on both sides and I think that’s all I can say for now.”

Yesterday afternoon, it was announced that Black Sabbath (Tony, Ozzy, Geezer, & Bill) will be recording their first album of new material since 1978’s Never Say Die.

This is very exciting news for fans of Black Sabbath – the original Sabbath will put out a new album of music! The band is currently rehearsing and writing in the UK, and after the Ozzfest 2001 dates will go back into the studio to record and finish the album. It is hoped that the new Sabbath album will be out before Christmas 2001, but no firm date is available.

For more details, check out http://www.black-sabbath.com.

No word as of yet as to how this will delay Bill’s third album, “Beyond Aston”.

Today I received an email from Sharon Osbourne’s office regarding Ozzfest 2001. Here it is:

There’s no need for hype, hoopla, and puffery. The Ozzfest 2001 will showcase the heaviest line-up yet. The Main Stage bill is confirmed.

BLACK SABBATH
Marilyn Manson
Slipknot
Papa Roach
Linkin Park
Disturbed

Tour dates, venues, second stage line-up, ticket on-sale dates, and other announcements to follow in the coming weeks.

A quick call to Sharon’s office confirmed that the Sabbath lineup is Tony, Ozzy, Geezer, & Bill. More information to come when I receive it.

No word as of yet as to how this will delay Bill’s third album, “Beyond Aston”.

After 30 years of neglect, Black Sabbath was awarded a Grammy Award for their song “Iron Man” from the Reunion album. The ceremonies were held yesterday in Los Angeles, and Bill Ward was on hand, receiving the award on stage. Bill had this to say about Black Sabbath’s winning the award for “Best Metal Performance”…

Drummer Bill Ward said it was gratifying to see artists from the Woodstock generation, including the night’s top winner, Carlos Santana, doing so well.

“I think it’s totally cool,” he said. “I didn’t think that 31 years ago, I’d be standing up in a suit. I feel more like an accountant than the guy who plays drums in Black Sabbath.”

Unfortunately, this award was not shown on the television broadcast, but there was a mention of the award during the show. Furthermore, there was a brief picture of Bill on stage accepting the award on the show during the telecast.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of the Grammy Award Winning album Reunion, the only official live album by the original Black Sabbath, you can do so by clicking on the album cover below.

The Black Sabbath Reunion Tour is progressing. Bill’s not having any problems at all health wise on the tour, and is enjoying the tour immensely. Thanks to all that have seen Bill so far, your enthusiasm for his return to the drumkit in Black Sabbath means the world to him.

For the latest tour reports, please visit Joe Siegler’s Black Sabbath site at http://www.black-sabbath.com for all kinds of tour reports, phots, and other things.

Vinny Appice: Also along on the Black Sabbath tour is Vinny Appice. Vinny is not playing, he’s been brought along by Sabbath management just in case something (god forbid) would happen to Bill again. Vinny has several tour photos online at his web site. Make sure and check them out at his site! The shot of Bill here was one taken by Vinny Appice backstage at the Minneapolis, MN Black Sabbath show on January 17, 1999.