The Unlikely Watch Collector
The Unlikely Watch Collector: Ozzy Osbourne
From rock-star Rolexes to crazy train Cartiers, the Prince of Darkness’ timepieces defy all expectations.
By Rhonda Riche
Editor-At-Large
We were all surprised when legendary heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne died in July. Even though he had led a life of rock star excess, he seemed indestructible. After all, he had just performed at an all-star tribute to Black Sabbath just 17 days before.
Ozzy was also one of those rare artists, like David Bowie or Tina Turner, who was able to remain relevant over the decades.
The hard rock of Black Sabbath led to the rise of heavy metal in the 1970s (and the grunge aesthetic of the 1990s). His solo work paved the way for countless hair metal bands, as well as the establishment of Ozzfest and music festival culture in general. In the 2000s, Osbourne’s influence also extended from music to TV with the reality series “The Osbournes.”
The guy was always in the public eye. That is why it’s weird that so many of us are now just discovering that Osbourne was also a watch guy. Today, we take a look at the life and timepieces of Ozzy Osbourne
Back To The Beginning
The earliest photo we could find of Osbourne wearing a wristwatch was this publicity photo of Black Sabbath from the early 1970s.
On his right wrist, he is seen sporting a watch with a funky silhouette fitted on a black leather strap. This style of watchcase, known as tonneau, is peak 1970s design, as these barrel-shaped cases saw a massive resurgence during the decade. And while we can’t positively ID this particular timepiece, Omega used this silhouette in everything from the Speedmaster Mark II sports watch to the Omega Geneve Large Tonneau Retro dress watch.
Fun Fact: In the 1960s and ’70s, England taxed its newly minted millionaire rock stars a whopping 95% of their income. For a more scholarly explanation, give The Beatles “Taxman” a listen. As a workaround, creative accountants encouraged musicians to buy up assets such as mansions, luxury cars, and fancy watches to lower their taxable income and create a tangible base of wealth.
Crazy Train
In 1979, Osbourne was fired by Black Sabbath because of his notorious drug and alcohol use (he once told a reporter that he drank 28 gallons of booze to get through the Christmas holidays). That didn’t stop Ozzy from having a very successful solo career in the 1980s. His first solo album, “Blizzard of Ozz,” went platinum, and subsequent releases, “Diary of a Madman” and “Bark at the Moon,” were also best-sellers.
While Ozzy adopted a much more theatrical look in this era, his taste in timepieces was much more Wall Street than Hollywood, which is not as strange as it sounds; both 1980s metal and brokerage bros shared a love of cocaine.
The clash between the two cultures is best summed up when he appeared on the cover of Circus magazine dressed like Mickey Mouse (the shoot was improvised because Osbourne impetuously shaved his head the night before) and wearing a Rolex President.
Osbourne was a huge Rolex fan and owned a wide array of models, including the aforementioned Rolex President, a Submariner Date, as well as many Daytona models.
Ozz Fest
What made Osbourne such an ageless style icon was his ability to make incremental changes over time, which meant that he was always moving forward.
In the 1990s, he emerged from the cocoon of big hair and sequined stage costumes with a new, unmistakable look: tiny, round sunglasses; dark, shoulder-length hair; a cane, a coat, and a cross pendant necklace. Likewise, Osbourne’s watch box also had momentum.
In 2002, Ozzy appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine sporting a Franck Muller Cintree Curvex with an 18K gold case and bracelet with a factory-set diamond bezel.
Just as a Rolex President didn’t seem like an obvious fit with his over-the-top ’80s outfits, a Franck Muller didn’t seem like the obvious choice for Osbourne’s elder goth statesman attire. But the contrast works.
The Osbournes
It must be acknowledged that Ozzy was no angel. But the singer was keen to move on and make amends for the chaos he caused in his earlier incarnations.
This was mostly apparent in the 2002 to 2005 reality series “The Osbournes.” This program also made it clear just how important his wife and manager, Sharon, was in keeping The Madman alive and relevant during the crazy years.
It must be noted that Sharon also has an affinity for good watches. She is frequently pictured stacking or double-wristing a Bulgari Serpenti with a Cartier Panthére or Ballon Bleu.
While researching this story, it became apparent that Ozzy and Sharon liked sharing their timepieces, as there is ample photographic evidence of the couple wearing extremely similar Cartiers.
No More Tears
One reason that fans may have overlooked the fact that Osbourne was a collector is that he folded his watches into his unique persona. Ozzy wore the brands; they never wore him. That doesn’t mean that he didn’t enjoy the odd statement watch.
Case in point: The rocker counted a Jacob & Co. Five Time Zone watch that is dripping in diamonds, a bulky Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore, and a sleek Roger Dubuis Much More amongst his collection.
Osbourne was afraid of going in for some after-market modifications. Among the flashiest gems, Ozzy also made room for custom craftsmanship. He owned a Rolex Explorer II 16570 Bamford Limited Edition PVD – a heavily modified version of the classic tool watch with a purple dial and a black PVD finish.
Not only does the Rolex reference recall Osbourne’s early watch-collecting days, but this customized timepiece encapsulates the Prince of Darkness’s latter-day aesthetic perfectly.
