READY FOR A CHANGE

For this week’s Song Lyric Sunday, Jim Adams is asking us to think about songs dealing with “changes”. Well, how can I pass up an opportunity like that? Today I am going with a song from a group usually not associated with ballads. My featured artist is Black Sabbath and my song choice is an obvious one: “Changes”.

Sabbath was formed in Birmingham, England in 1968 by guitarist Toni Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osborne. Like so many young guys from that time period, they were looking to escape a life of factory work through music. They got their start in such bands as the psychedelic Rare Breed and Mythology. Influenced by the reigning British rock and blues bands of Led Zeppelin, Cream and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, our four enterprising guys formed Earth Blues Company (shortened to Earth) in 1968. Then, as Black Sabbath, the group helped define the heavy metal music genre early in its career with the release of albums such as the eponymous Black Sabbath (1970), Paranoid (1971) and Master of Reality (1971).

Black Sabbath has sold over 75 million records worldwide, making the group one of the most commercially successful metal bands. They were ranked by MTV as the “Greatest Metal Band of All Time” and placed 2^nd on VH1’s list of “100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock”. Black Sabbathwas inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. In 2019 the band was presented a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

As I mentioned earlier, these four guys suffered the same plight as many young men …. give up your youth and life to working day after day in the factories, the mines or on the docks doing back-breaking manual labor and earning barely enough to exist or find an escape through music. This is true for so many guys who formed bands back then. And success did not come overnight. They earned it all. This is just one of the many reasons I love heavy metal music and why I get annoyed at people who dismiss it out of hand as nothing but noise.

But I digress…..

“Changes” is a piano ballad mainly inspired by drummer Bill Ward’s ongoing breakup with his first wife. As explained in Ozzy Osbourne’s autobiography, while in the studio and experimenting with the piano, guitarist Tony Iommi composed the song’s sentimental melody. This was later accompanied by bassist Geezer Butler’s lyrics. The song was not recorded with a real string ensemble. Instead, Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi used a Mellotron to create the sound of an orchestra. The ballad also does not feature guitar or drums. Quite different from Sabbath’s previous work, “Changes” has been described as ‘heartbreaking’ and ‘forlornly pretty’.

From Black Sabbath’s 1972 album, “Vol 4”, this is “Changes”:

Lyrics

I feel unhappy, I feel so sad
I’ve lost the best friend that I ever had
She was my woman, I loved her so
But it’s too late now, I’ve let her go

I’m going through changes
I’m going through changes

We shared the years, we shared each day
In love together, we found the way
But soon the world had its evil way
My heart was blinded, love went astray

I’m going through changes
I’m going through changes

It took so long to realise
And I can still hear her last goodbyes
Now all my days are filled with tears
Wish I could go back and change these years

I’m going through changes
I’m going through changes

Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Tony Iommi / John Osbourne / Terence Butler / W.t. Ward
Changes lyrics © Metal Skull Music, Onward Music Ltd

“Changes”
Song by Black Sabbath
from the album Vol. 4
Released	25 September 1972
Recorded	1972
Genre	Soft rock
Length	4:43
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi Geezer Butler Bill Ward
Producer(s)	Patrick Meehan Black Sabbath

Three decades later in 2003, Ozzy Osbourne re-recorded “Changes” as a duet with his daughter, Kelly. The lyrics for this version were revised to reflect their relationship and moments of their life together focusing on the changing relationship of a father and daughter drifting apart. This rendition reached No. 1 in the UK singles chart.

Here are Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne performing “Changes”:

Lyrics

[Verse 1: Kelly Osbourne & Ozzy Osbourne]
I feel unhappy, I am so sad
I’ve lost the best friend that I ever had
She is my baby, I love her so
But it’s too late, now, I’ve let her go

[Chorus: Ozzy Osbourne with Kelly Osbourne]
We’re going through changes
We’re going through changes

[Verse 2: Kelly Osbourne & Ozzy Osbourne]
We shared the years, we shared each day
I love you, daddy, but I’ve found my way
You know, the world is an evil place
My baby’s grown, now, she found her way

[Chorus: Ozzy Osbourne with Kelly Osbourne]
We’re going through changes
We’re going through changes

[Verse 3: Kelly Osbourne & Ozzy Osbourne]
It took so long to realize
And I can still hear his last goodbye
Now, all my days are filled with fears
Wish I could go back and change the years

“Changes”
Single by Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne
from the album Shut Up
Released	8 December 2003
Length	4:07
Label	Sanctuary
Songwriter(s)	Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi Geezer Butler Bill Ward
Producer(s)	Mark Hudson
Ozzy Osbourne singles chronology
“Stillborn” (2003) “Changes“ (2003) “In My Life” (2005)
Kelly Osbourne singles chronology
“Shut Up” (2003) “Changes“ (2003) “One Word” (2005)

Ch-Ch-Changes

NAR © 2023