I’m just devastated to hear the news of the passing of my dear friend Eddie Van Halen. He fought a long and hard battle with his cancer right to the very end. Eddie was one of a very special kind of person, a really great friend. Rest In Peace my dear friend till we meet again.
I was totally shocked to hear the very sad news of Jeff Beck’s passing. Jeff was such a nice person and an outstanding iconic, genius guitar player - there will never be another Jeff Beck. His playing was very special & distinctively brilliant! He will be missed. RIP Jeff -Tony
My best out to James Hetfield. You’ve done the right thing seeking help - I’m thinking of you my friend and wishing you all the very best on your recovery. Looking forward to seeing you back at your best very soon.
Your pal
Tony
I woke up this morning to hear the awful news of Taylor Hawkins death. What a terrible loss to us all. He was such a lovely guy and such a brilliant player.
My deepest condolences go out to his family, his band and his fans. He will be sadly missed Rest In Peace Taylor. -Tony
Remembering our dear friend Ronnie. I can’t believe it’s been 10 years since Ronnie passed away. He is so greatly missed but never forgotten and his music will live on in our hearts forever.
Tony 🤘
So sorry to hear the very sad news of Charlie Watts passing. He was such a nice guy and a major influence in the music business - he’ll be sadly missed. My deepest condolences to his family and to Mick, Ronnie, Keith and all his friends and fans. R.I.P.
Tony
Had a really lovely day today at the Gibson Garage launch In London. My friend Cesar the CEO of Gibson invited myself,
@DrBrianMay
and
@JimmyPage
to the launch. It’s a very impressive place and it will be great for guitar players to visit… plenty of guitars to see and play.
Happy Birthday to my dear old pal Brian May.
Another year and I just can’t believe how fast they come round! Have a fantastic day Brian and a great birthday show. All the best mate.
I look back and am amazed how we released ‘Black Sabbath’ in February 1970 then toured, wrote, recorded and released ‘Paranoid’ only 7 months later! And these weren’t knock-off albums, they are both full of our classic tracks.
-- Tony
Here we go again, another year!!! Have a very happy birthday my dearest friend Brian. Have a wonderful day and I’ll see you soon my brother!
@DrBrianMay
So sorry to hear about
@DaveMustaine
's diagnosis. Get well soon buddy, we’re thinking of you and the many good times we’ve had on tour together. Working is the best recovery.
- Tony
I’m wishing
@OzzyOsbourne
a speedy recovery and I know he’ll be gutted that he’s had to cancel part of his tour but I’m sure he’ll be back on stage as soon as he’s able.
Get better soon my friend.
Lots of love Oz,
Tony x
Join me this Friday to discuss the art of writing riffs!
Greatest Guitar Riffs, starts Friday 24th November with Tony Iommi on Sky Arts. Freeview channel 36.
Very sad day today! We lost our dear friend Trevor Francis - Britain’s first million pound soccer player and a really lovely man. Maria & I have so many wonderful memories over the years with Trevor and it’s so sad to lose him at such an early age. RIP Trev, we’ll miss you buddy.
So shocked to hear the sad news of Martin Birch’s passing.
Martin was a lovely guy and a great producer - he produced Heaven and Hell and The Mob Rules for Sabbath. He will be deeply missed and my thoughts go out to his family. R.I.P.
Tony
We are excited to announce 'Anno Domini 1989-1995', the first boxed set celebrating singer Tony Martin’s era of Black Sabbath, will be released on 31st May 2024. The set picks up Black Sabbath’s story in 1989, two decades into the band’s ground-breaking career as metal
It’s true, that I will be performing at the opening of the Commonwealth Games. I’m very honoured to have been asked to do it and I’m really looking forward to the day! It’s such a great boost for Birmingham to have the games held here.
Photo (c) Ross Halfin.
It’s a very sad day for me today. Mike Clement my dear old friend and my guitar tech for the last 33yrs passed away this morning. Mike was a really lovely man very loyal and I could depend on him 100%. My deepest condolences go out to his family and his many friends. RIP.
- Tony
What a great night I had last night at the Queen show. The band sounded fantastic and the stage show and presentation was stunning. Here’s a picture of me and my dear friend Brian in his dressing room.
Tony xx
Remembering Ronnie! Can’t believe that the time has flown by so quickly - we miss you Ronnie and your memory will live on in your music forever!
Apologies for missing this on the 16th.
- Tony
My greatly missed guitar tech Mike Clement was cared for by the kind people at St Richards Hospice. His son-in-law Ollie Davies will be bravely running the London Marathon to raise money for the charity.
- Tony
Whether it's Tony Iommi, Ritchie Blackmore, Vivian Campbell, David Feinstein or any of the other musicians Ronnie James Dio played with, you should spin something of his on this day.
Today is the 13th anniv of his passing (16 May 2010), but the voice remains.
#ThisisYourLife
Last night I had the honour of playing Paranoid in Birmingham with the amazing
@hollywoodvamps
! Can’t remember the last time I played with another band, such a special day.
Photo Credits:
B&W:
@cerealkyler
Colour:
@theaaronperry
What a terrible shock to hear from JDs wife last night that my old pal John Diggins had passed away! He was a very dear friend to me and we’d known each other since the 70s. He’s built many guitars for me over the years and he was a superb craftsman who loved what he did. He will
Thanks to everyone who supported us at the Ballet, we had a great premiere last night. I’m honoured to be involved with these talented dancers.
I’m afraid I won’t be joining every performance. Tony
Headless Cross is 30 years old, wow! The video shoot started at dusk and only finished when the sun came back up! We’d all had so much whisky to keep warm thank goodness we didn’t have to drive home.
Check out this track from the album with Brian May!
I’ve noticed a lot of acoustic guitars on the web supposedly signed by me.
I didn’t sign any of them, it’s all a scam, and the ‘authentication’ is valueless. Be warned. - Tony
A riff with the devil’s interval, banned by the Roman Catholic Church in the 13th century… can you guess what riff we’re talking about? 🎸
Greatest Guitar Riffs starts tonight 9pm on Sky Arts, with Tony Iommi. Freeview channel 36.
Black Sabbath - Heaven & Hell and Mob Rules Deluxe Editions - Available Mar 5
2-CD And 2-LP Versions Of First Black Sabbath Albums With Ronnie James Dio On Vocals Feature Newly Remastered Audio Along With Rare And Unreleased Music.
More detail:
Many thanks to everyone who bid for Maciej’s models, Karen who ran the auction and especially the winner, Edward Bransky. GBP£781.80 has gone to the Cancer Unit at Heartlands Hospital.
What a fantastic day today at the Black Sabbath Bench unveiling. It was so nice to see the wonderful turnout of fans from all over the world...Thank you all so much for coming and supporting this fabulous event...really great!!
— Tony