Former Black Sabbath Vocalist Tony Martin Shares His Views on Bill Ward Debacle

With Black Sabbath recently parting ways with original drummer Bill Ward, former Sabbath vocalist Tony Martin has just weighed in on the issue.

In the long and diverse history of Black Sabbath vocalists, Tony Martin put in more time fronting the band than any member besides Ozzy Osbourne. Although Martin didn’t create an impact as notable as Ozzy or Ronnie James Dio, Martin was a key figure in keeping the band together. After a decade of service to Black Sabbath, the former vocalist has put his two cents into the Bill Ward debacle.

“My years with Black Sabbath span 10 years and I’ve heard all the stories, not once did they say a bad word about Bill,” says Ward. “They’ve always rated him, they love him. He’s had his little moments like we all have, them included, but I didn’t understand why they didn’t give him time to get his thing together, why not set up rehearsals to help him out?

Martin continues, “It seems a bit like a publicity stunt in that they’re saying, “We can’t be bothered to do rehearsals to get him to learn all the stuff again, so we’ll save it for another time and another reunion.” I really don’t know, but just don’t get it. Bill’s a lovely guy by the way, really cool.”

Black Sabbath have already played two out of their three shows scheduled for 2012, with the Lollapalooza festival this August serving as their one and only US date.