Black Sabbath Reunite with Bill Ward at Awards Show

Members of Black Sabbath appeared with original drummer Bill Ward earlier today at the Ivor Novello Awards to accept a Lifetime Achievement award. The Ivor Novello Awards, for the record, are presented by the British Academy of Composers & Songwriters and HOLY SHIT, THEY BROUGHT BACK BILL WARD!

But let’s not get too excited just yet. First of all, Ozzy Osbourne, who along with his wife has been the most vocal opponent of Ward rejoining the band, was not present. And while Tony Iommi did say that the band intends to embark on a “final tour” next year, it hasn’t been specifically said that whether or not Ward will be touring with the band. On top of that, the Ivors are all about honoring songwriters, so obviously you can’t honor Black Sabbath’s body of work without acknowledging Ward.

That said, this is a big deal. That Iommi and Geezer Butler would take the stage with Ward assumedly means there’s no bad blood between the two. Which means one of two things: either Iommi and Butler aren’t as controlled by the Osbourne camp as has been assumed for some time, or…dare we say it?…the original line-up of Black Sabbath will be reuniting for the tour.

It’s a shame if it’s all a publicity stunt, but still, baby steps. First it’s accepting an award together, then it’s an amiable phone call, then, who knows?

Check out more pictures of the event here.

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