| Article |
| Bill Ward | |
|---|---|
 ' | |
| Birth Name | William Thomas Ward |
| Born | May 5, 1948 |
| Instrument | Drums, Percussion |
William Thomas "Bill" Ward (born 5 May 1948) is an English musician and visual artist, best known as the original drummer for the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. An original founding member of the band, Ward also performed as a lead vocalist on two Black Sabbath songs; "It's Alright" from the album Technical Ecstasy and "Swinging the Chain" from the album Never Say Die!. Ward is known for his very unorthodox style of playing the drums, often using snare-drills and tempo-drop to match both vocals and riff.
History[]
Early years and Black Sabbath[]
Bill Ward started to play drums as a child, listening to the big bands of the 1940s and his major influences were Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich, and Louie Bellson. Later he was influenced by drummers such as Larrie Londin, Bernard Purdie, Joe Morello, Keef Hartley, Hughie Flint, John Bonham, Ringo Starr, Jim Capaldi, Clive Bunker. In the mid-1960s Ward sang and played drums in a band called The Rest. Ward and guitarist Tony Iommi played together in a band called Mythology, and upon that band's dissolution joined vocalist Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler, who had played together in a band called Rare Breed. The new band called themselves Earth, soon to be renamed Black Sabbath.
Ward's drug and alcohol use increased throughout Black Sabbath's heyday. By the late '70s, Ward was drinking during gigs, something he had never done before. He also began experiencing panic attacks. Ward has said he cannot remember the 1980 recording Heaven and Hell due to his alcohol abuse. According to Black Sabbath bandmate Iommi, Ward disappeared on 21 August 1980, without saying goodbye, other than a telephone call to then-Black Sabbath vocalist Ronnie James Dio informing him "I'm off then, Ron." He then briefly played in a band called Max Havoc. He sat out one album (1981's Mob Rules) before returning to Black Sabbath for 1983's Born Again album. He once again left the band for health reasons prior to touring in support of Born Again. He again rejoined Black Sabbath in the mid-1980s, though the band did not record or tour during this period.
Pranks[]
According to Tony Iommi, he and the band would often set Ward's beard on fire and perform other harmful pranks on him. On one occasion, Ward even received third-degree burns. In an interview with Guitar World, Tony described it as follows:
Iommi claims that Ward almost died after a prank-gone-wrong during the recording of Black Sabbath Vol. 4 in 1972. The band was renting a Bel-Air mansion belonging to John DuPont of the DuPont chemical company. The band found several spray cans of gold DuPont paint in a room of the house; finding Ward naked and unconscious after drinking heavily, they proceeded to cover the drummer in gold paint from head to toe. Ward soon became violently ill and had a seizure and an ambulance had to be called. The paint had blocked all of Ward's pores, which they were subsequently informed can be fatal.
During the recording of 1980s Heaven and Hell, Iommi doused Ward with a solution used by studio technicians to clean the tape heads. He then set light to the solution, which was much more flammable than Iommi had anticipated. Ward suffered third-degree burns as a result and still has scars on his legs from the incident.
Solo career[]
After a few years in hiatus, Ward decided to return to playing music in the late 1980s. In 1989, He went to work on a solo album, which featured a huge array of guest musicians, including former Black Sabbath bandmate Ozzy Osbourne and his guitarist, Zakk Wylde. Released in January 1990, Ward One: Along the Way showcased Ward's versatility in musical tastes and abilities, as he would even sing vocals on some of the songs on the album. It would be seven years, before he released his second solo album, When the Bough Breaks, in 1997.
In 2002, he released the song "Straws" as a single for charity. The song would reappear on his 2015 album, Accountable Beasts.
Later career[]
Before the full Black Sabbath reunion, Ward and the original Sabbath had reunited twice for short sets, first for Live Aid in 1985 and then at a Costa Mesa, California Ozzy Osbourne show on 15 November 1992. Sabbath, with Judas Priest singer Rob Halford replacing Ronnie James Dio who had recently left the band, opening the show for Osbourne. The Ozzy Osbourne band (Osbourne, Zakk Wylde, John Sinclair, Mike Inez, and Randy Castillo) then did a full set before Osbourne was reunited with Iommi, Butler, and Ward for four numbers.
Ward made a brief return to the band for a South American tour in 1994 with Tony Martin fronting, before finally rejoining the band for the two shows at the Birmingham NEC, England on 4 and 5 December 1997, which made up the Reunion album. When what was billed as the original line-up reunited for the Ozzfest tour in 1997 Mike Bordin played drums. Ward then had to skip all but the last two band appearances in 1998 while he recovered from a heart attack suffered during the tour rehearsals that May. As the band rehearsed, Ward stopped and asked if he could lie down for a spell. He then asked for his assistant and informed the band that his arm had gone numb. Iommi and Butler then left for a short time, not knowing that Ward had actually suffered a heart attack. Outside, they saw an ambulance pass but weren't aware of what was happening. Upon returning to the rehearsal space a frantic Ozzy Osbourne informed them "Bill has had a heart attack! Bill has had a heart attack!" As was the case in 1980, he was replaced at short notice by Vinny Appice, although this time it was always intended to be a temporary absence for Ward, health allowing.
Since mid-2002, Ward has done a monthly Internet-only radio show named Rock 50 on radio station WPMD from Cerritos College in California. Ward plays a variety of metal, hard rock, and some classic rock.
Brief reunion with Black Sabbath[]
In October 2006 news leaked that Ward would be reuniting with Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Ronnie James Dio for a tour though under the moniker Heaven & Hell. However, Ward later decided not to participate in the tour or continue participation in the band because of musical differences with "a couple of the other band members" and a reported concern about extended touring.
On 11 November 2011, Iommi, Butler, Osbourne, and Ward announced that they were reuniting to record a new album with producer Rick Rubin and to start touring in 2012. In February 2012, however, Ward left before work commenced on 13, the first studio recording to include original band members Iommi, Osbourne, and Butler since the live album Reunion (1998), which contained two new studio tracks. Ward said that he had failed to reach an agreement regarding his contract. However, he did later admit that his weight would have been an issue in a 2013 tour. Osbourne also suggested that Ward's decision not to take part was down to his health, in an open letter: In April 2015, Ward criticized Osbourne on his Facebook fan page via a letter to his and the band's fans.
Ward's surgery on his shoulder prevented him from playing drums again until May 2014, delaying his third studio album Accountable Beasts. He had also expressed a desire to tour behind the album once it is released, provided that sales were acceptable.
Ward says he has "lost a friend" in Osbourne, but maintains contact with Butler and Iommi; if they could "come to some terms" if Ozzy would make amends for statements he made in 2012 and 2013, he would rejoin Black Sabbath.
Ward reunited with Sabbath members Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler to accept the "Lifetime Achievement" award at the May 2015 Ivor Novello Awards.
Personal Life[]
Ward has two sons, Nigel and Aaron, and one daughter, Emily. Ward maintains a vegan diet.
According to his Black Sabbath bandmates Tony Iommi and Ozzy Osbourne, Ward has dramatically changed his lifestyle since Black Sabbath's 1970s and early 80s heyday. Iommi says he quit smoking, gave up alcohol, and no longer uses drugs of any kind. Osbourne says that Ward has been sober for approximately 30 years. However, more recently, in 2013, Osbourne has criticised Ward's health, regarding him as "incredibly overweight" and suggesting that he would have been unable to drum for Black Sabbath had he stayed in the band following their 2011 reunion, given his physical condition, although Ward himself has insisted his health has not affected his ability to play the drums.
Ward later admitted he underwent gastrointestinal surgery in 2013 and is still recovering. "My health right now is not bad but it's not good enough to certainly play in any band never mind Black Sabbath."
Influence[]
Drumming website Totaldrumsets has listed Ward among the "The 100 Most Influential Drummers Ever!" and has defined him "the mastermind behind the unholy birth of heavy metal drumming".
Equipment[]
Ward uses Tama drums, Sabian cymbals, Vic Firth drumsticks, and Gibraltar hardware.
Tama Imperialstar drums
- 15"x13" Tom
- 16"x16" Floor Tom
- 18"x16" Floor Tom
- 14x8" Snare Drum
- 14"x5" Snare Drum
- 26"x14" Bass Drum
- 26"x14" Bass Drum
- 20"x14" Gong Drum
AA and Hand Hammered Sabian cymbals
- 14" AA Rock Hats
- 10" AA Mini Hats
- 20" AA Medium Crash
- 29" AA China (custom)
- 22" Hand Hammered Raw Bell Dry Ride
- 14" Hand Hammered Sizzle Hats
- 22" Hand Hammered Medium Crash
- 14" Hand Hammered Mini China
- 22" Hand Hammered Power Ride
- 21" Hand Hammered Medium Crash
Discography[]
Ward has been on a number of albums with Black Sabbath until Born Again in 1983. It wasn't until later that he would play with Osbourne and the rest of the band on his Live & Loud live album for their title track "Black Sabbath" and on "Reunion".
1970s[]
- 1970 – Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath
- 1970 – Black Sabbath – Paranoid
- 1971 – Black Sabbath – Master of Reality
- 1972 – Black Sabbath – Vol. 4
- 1973 – Black Sabbath – Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
- 1975 – Black Sabbath – Sabotage
- 1975 – Black Sabbath – We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll
- 1976 – Black Sabbath – Technical Ecstasy
- 1978 – Black Sabbath – Never Say Die!
1980s[]
- 1980 – Black Sabbath – Heaven and Hell
- 1981 – Black Sabbath – Live at Last
- 1983 – Black Sabbath – Born Again
- 1983 – The Mezmerist – The Innocent, The Forsaken, The Guilty (demo)
1990s[]
- 1990 – Bill Ward – Ward One: Along the Way
- 1993 – Ozzy Osbourne – Live & Loud
- 1994 – Nativity in Black: A Tribute to Black Sabbath
- 1997 – Bill Ward – When the Bough Breaks
- 1997 – Ozzy Osbourne – The Ozzman Cometh
- 1998 – Black Sabbath – Reunion
2000s[]
- 2000 – Tony Iommi – Iommi
- 2002 – Black Sabbath – Past Lives
- 2002 – Bill Ward – "Straws" (single)
- 2002 – Black Sabbath – Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath 1970-1978
- 2003 – Dio – Stand Up and Shout: The Dio Anthology
- 2004 – Black Sabbath – Black Box: The Complete Original Black Sabbath (1970-1978)
- 2006 – Black Sabbath – Greatest Hits 1970-1978
- 2007 – Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath: The Dio Years
- 2008 – Black Sabbath – The Rules of Hell (Disc 1: Heaven and Hell)
2010s[]
- 2015 – Bill Ward – Accountable Beasts
Tourography[]
With Black Sabbath[]
- Black Sabbath Tour (1969-1970)
- Paranoid Tour (1970-1971)
- Master of Reality Tour (1971-1972)
- Vol. 4 Tour (1972-1973)
- Sabbath Bloody Sabbath Tour (1973-1974)
- Sabotage Tour (1975-1976)
- Technical Ecstasy Tour (1976-1977)
- Never Say Die! Tour (1978)
- Heaven & Hell Tour (Apr 17 – Aug 19, 1980)
- Cross Purposes Tour (Aug 27 – Sep 3, 1994)
- Reunion Tour (1997-1999)