After declaring he would retire after the 'No More Tears' tour, 'Ozzy' came back with 'Ozzmosis' in 95'. Here he takes a softer more melodic stance on most tracks an approach he previously felt reticent to do, this however was met with mixed reactions. There are still a couple of decent rockers present but regrettable not enough to make this a parallel to 'No More Tears'. The lineup is very different to the predecessor although the excellent 'Zakk Wylde' is thankfully still present. Bass duties are taken care of by former 'Black Sabbath' acquaintance 'Geezer Butler', former 'Journey' / 'Hardline' drummer 'Deen Castronovo' takes over the drum seat, while keyboards are split between 'Michael Beinhorn' and 'Yes' legend 'Rick Wakeman'.

First up is the best rocker on the album 'Perry Mason' maybe an unusual sounding track with it's quirky lyrics but it still makes for a quality track. The chorus is especially enjoyable and sounds strong with Ozzy' behind the vocals, the guitar work is heavy yet inventive and it all comes together for a strong opener. The tempo is dropped for the emotionally performed 'I Just want You', this cracker is my favourite from 'Ozzmosis' mainly due to the superb lyrics and the feeling 'Ozzy' puts behind them, musically it's strong too with a sweet melody driving throughout. In complete contrast is 'Ghost behind my Eyes' here the vocals sound really scratchy and all told the song is weak with a real lacklustre feel, even 'Zakk Wylde's' fret work can't resurrect this number. The pace is reinstated with the forceful 'Thunder Underground' a 'Sabbath' sounding number, that features a great intro, but in all honesty it goes off the boil and ends up pretty drab and sluggish. Better is the quality penned 'See you on the Other Side', a fine rocker come ballad, highlighting some of 'Ozzy's' best vocals and a cracking emotionally sung chorus. 'Tomorrow' follows in a darker brooding fashion and while not a poor song, a little slow and plodding for my liking, I do however like the lyrics, but the vocal overdubs are a no no. 'Denial' is a typical sounding 'Ozzy' track, seems to me he's done a couple sounding very similar to this, a decent cut if not memorable. Don't quite know what they were trying with the experimental 'My Little Man', the Indian sounding intro gives way to some cliché lyrics and more Eastern melodies- Odd. The tempo is lifted for the plodding rocker 'My Jekyll doesn't Hide' a song no doubt written about his own experiences, not as good as I would have expected, a little run off the mill despite some fine guitar licks here and there. 'Ozzmosis' closes with the balladsy 'Old L.A. Tonight' a piano heavy number that's well penned but hardly remarkable.

I'm a fan of 'Ozzy's' harder faster material and while there's some decent cuts present, the majority is a far cry from 'Crazy Train', 'Over the Mountain' and 'Shot in the Dark'. Those who appreciate his softer material will enjoy 'Ozzmosis', if not pick up a copy of this heavier next release 'Down to Earth' or earlier classics.