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Nov 15, 20225 min read

Ozzy Osbourne - Bark at the Moon (1983)

FROM THE CRYPTS - CELEBRATING PAST ALBUM RELEASES in the HISTORY of HARD ROCK & HEAVY METAL…



On November 15, 1983, the Madman himself, Ozzy Osbourne released his third full-length studio album Bark at the Moon in the UK via Epic/CBS Associated Records. (December 9 in the US).



The album marks Ozzy's change to a synth infused Pop-Metal sound, with both its "sonic production, and in Ozzy's imaging".


The album was remastered on CD in 1995 and again (with a different mix) in 2002. This is Osbourne's first album to feature guitarist Jake E. Lee and only studio album to feature drummer Tommy Aldridge.



Background:

Bark at the Moon is the only Ozzy Osbourne album on which the songwriting is credited entirely to Osbourne. However, guitarist Jake E. Lee maintains that he composed a significant amount of the album's music but was cheated out of his writing and publishing claims by Osbourne's wife and manager, Sharon. Lee claims that after he had composed the songs and completed recording his parts in the studio, he was presented with a contract which stated that he would have no claim to any writing or publishing relating to the album. The contract also stated that Lee could not mention this publicly. Lee claims he signed the contract because he had no legal representation and because Sharon threatened to fire him and have another guitarist re-record his parts if he refused.



Osbourne himself admitted several years later in the liner notes to The Ozzman Cometh that Lee had been involved in the album's writing to at least some degree, stating that the album's title track was in fact co-written by the guitarist. Osbourne's bassist at the time, Bob Daisley, has mirrored Lee's account of the album's production, stating that he co-wrote most of the music with Lee and wrote the vast majority of the lyrics. Daisley has stated that he accepted a buyout from Osbourne in exchange for a writing credit. Osbourne's former drummer Lee Kerslake, who also played with Daisley in Uriah Heep after leaving Osbourne's band, stated that Daisley had been hired by Sharon Osbourne to write the Bark at the Moon album for "$50–60,000 or whatever it is. He was offered the chance to write with Ozzy. Words, music – write the album."



Some European pressings identified the track Centre of Eternity as Forever. On tours for the album, Osbourne referred to it as Forever. This can be heard on bootleg recordings of tours promoting the album.



The title track was released as the album's first single with an accompanying music video, the first Osbourne had made. In the early 1980s infancy of the music video medium, the video was highly anticipated due to his outrageous image.



The decision to release the ballad So Tired as the album's second single was unpopular with many longtime fans.



The track Spiders in the Night was originally only included on the European, Australian, New Zealand and Greek releases, but was included on the 1995 CD reissue and the 2002 reissue, listed simply as Spiders.



Composed by Daisley, the lyrics to the song Now You See It (Now You Don't) were a pointed rebuke aimed at Osbourne's wife and manager Sharon, who had fired him for the band in 1981. Daisley stated many years later that he was surprised the Osbourne camp allowed the lyrics on the album.



Shortly after Bark at the Moon's 1983 release, a Canadian man named James Jollimore murdered a woman and her two children after allegedly listening to the album. The media and Christian groups began to infer that the music was Satanic and had influenced Jollimore to commit the act. The timing was particularly inopportune for Osbourne, who was, at the time, facing allegations that his song Suicide Solution had influenced a fan to commit suicide.



Bark at the Moon is Osbourne's third solo album after parting ways with Black Sabbath in 1979, and his only studio album to feature drummer Tommy Aldridge, who was a fixture of his live band in the early 1980s. Aldridge departed after the recording of the album and was briefly replaced by Carmine Appice, but returned mid-tour after Appice was removed by the Osbournes. When asked why Aldridge was brought back, Osbourne told Hit Parader magazine in early 1984 "For health reasons. He [Appice] was making me sick." Nonetheless, Appice did appear in the popular music video for the Bark at the Moon single.



Bark at the Moon Tour:

The Bark at the Moon Tour began on November 10, 1983 in Leicester, England and ended with the Rock in Rio festival in Rio de Janeiro on January 19, 1985.



Mötley Crüe and Waysted were support acts for the tour. Osbourne witnessed Mötley Crüe perform at the US Festival in May 1983 and chose them as his opening act for his upcoming world tour. Osbourne has been credited for the fame and success Mötley Crüe received going forward in their careers, and also the popularity of their hedonistic lifestyle.



2002 Remixed Reissue:

Bark at the Moon was re-issued again in 2002, although this version was actually a new remix of the album. This 2002 remixed version of the album was met with mixed reaction; many elements found in the original mix are not present in the remix, namely several lead guitar parts. In addition, the song You're No Different has an alternate ending (with the fade-out removed) and Centre of Eternity has an altered intro segment. This edition also included the bonus tracks Spiders and One Up the 'B' Side, originally the B-side of the Bark at the Moon single.



Critical Reception:

A commercial success, Bark at the Moon peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard album chart and within several weeks of release was certified gold for over 500,000 sales in the United States. To date, it has sold over 3,000,000 copies in the United States. In the UK, it was the third of four Osbourne albums to attain silver certification (60,000 units sold) by the British Phonographic Industry, achieving this in January 1984.


In his review, AllMusic’s Steve Huey stated;

“Ozzy Osbourne finds a permanent replacement for Randy Rhoads in Jake E. Lee, a more standard metal guitarist without Rhoads' neo-classical compositional ability or stylistic flair. Still, Osbourne and his band turn in a competent, workmanlike set of heavy metal featuring the crunching title track, whose video (featuring Osbourne dressed as a werewolf) became popular on MTV. Unfortunately, substance abuse problems would prevent Osbourne from releasing another record up to the standards of Bark at the Moon for nearly the rest of the decade.”

Note: The reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. — E.N. Wells



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