Sometimes, rock history is written by accident. The Traveling Wilburys began as a casual jam session; a one-off idea that turned into a legend. In the mid-1990s, something similar happened behind closed doors—only this time, the world never got to hear the result.
That’s the story of a lost Ozzy Osbourne album—written and recorded alongside guitar genius Steve Vai—then locked away, buried by management, and nearly forgotten.
A Session That Spiraled
It began innocently. Steve Vai was brought in to write a single song for Ozzy’s 1995 Ozzmosis album. Busy with his own solo project (Fire Garden), Vai wasn’t expecting much—just a quick collaboration. But once he and Ozzy stepped into the studio, everything clicked.
“One session turned into another, and another,” Vai told Eonmusic. “Before we knew it, we said, ‘Let’s just make a new record!’”
And they did. The duo built an entire album from scratch—raw, inspired, and unlike anything either of them had made before.
Shut Down Before It Began
Then came the cold reality: business.
Ozzy’s management stepped in, reminding him the Ozzmosis album was already in progress. Budgets were tight, and keeping Vai—one of the world’s top guitarists—in the studio wasn’t cheap. Just one track from the sessions, “My Little Man,” made the final album.
The rest of the songs? Shelved.
“I’m sitting on a whole Ozzy record,” Vai admitted. “It doesn’t sound like my stuff. It doesn’t sound like Ozzy’s usual stuff. It’s its own thing. But it’s just sitting there.”
A Lost Chapter in Metal History
While the record would need work to be fully releasable—possibly even re-recorded—the songs exist. And that fact alone has become a point of fascination for diehard fans.
This isn’t just another collection of demos. According to Vai, these tracks represent a creative side of Ozzy that’s never been heard—experimental, spontaneous, and free from the usual expectations.
But trapped under layers of legal red tape and music industry politics, it’s likely this album may never see daylight.
A Legend Grows in Silence
In the world of rock, few things are more tantalizing than what could have been. For Ozzy Osbourne—whose career has spanned the outrageous, the brilliant, and the bizarre—this forgotten album with Steve Vai adds yet another mysterious layer to his legacy.
It’s a chapter locked in a vault, but still very much alive in the minds of fans. And as long as it remains unheard, its legend will only grow louder.
