Blizzard of Ozz: who invited the cat to Ozzy's cover shoot?
Ozzy on his knees, a cross held high, horns rising out of the smoke behind him. And in the corner, a black cat that, by Ozzy's own account, simply happened to be there.
Ozzy kneels on a bare wooden floor in a long pale cape, a cross on a cord around his neck and another one raised high in his fist, as if he is trying to drive something out of the room. Behind him, out of a cloud of smoke, rise two long curved horns. On the left, a black cat sits and watches the whole thing, completely unimpressed. On this poster it is all in black and white, which makes it look even more like a still from an old horror film.
A new start, on his knees
In 1980 Ozzy needed a new start. Black Sabbath had fired him the year before, and this was going to be his first record on his own. The cover photo was taken by Fin Costello, an Irish photographer who reportedly got the job through Jet Records, the label run by Don Arden, and shot it in a studio in Wapping, in east London.
The pose says everything Ozzy wanted to say about his solo career: theatrical, a bit creepy, and not entirely serious. The man who had sung about Satan for ten years is now the one holding up the cross.
The cat
And the cat? Fans have read all kinds of omens into it. Ozzy himself was much less mystical. Years later he told an interviewer that money was tight, they more or less did the shoot themselves, and as far as he could remember the cat was just there. Then he joked that maybe it was a message from Aleister Crowley. Fitting, since one of the album's best songs is Mr. Crowley.
The album
Blizzard of Ozz was recorded at Ridge Farm Studio in Rusper, England, between March and April 1980, with Randy Rhoads on guitar, Bob Daisley on bass, Lee Kerslake on drums and Don Airey on keyboards. It came out in the UK in September 1980, carried Crazy Train, and reached number 7 in the UK. In America it went on to sell more than five million copies. Not bad for a shoot where the cat was not even on the guest list.
About the poster
This is the Blizzard of Ozz sleeve printed as a 75 × 55 cm (30 × 22 in) landscape poster, from 2020. It is an original magazine insert, never hung, with no staple holes, folded three times as issued. The sheet is double-sided, with Megadeth "Rust in Peace" on the back, so one sheet gives you two classic covers.
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Quick answers
Who took the Blizzard of Ozz cover photo?
Fin Costello, an Irish rock photographer.
Why is there a cat on the Blizzard of Ozz cover?
According to Ozzy, it was not planned. He said the cat was simply there during the shoot, and joked that it might have been a message from Aleister Crowley.
When was Blizzard of Ozz released?
In September 1980 in the UK, and in March 1981 in the US.
How big is the poster?
75 × 55 cm (about 30 × 22 inches), landscape. It is a separate insert, so it has no staple holes, and it is folded three times as issued.
What is on the other side?
Megadeth "Rust in Peace". The sheet is double-sided, so you choose which cover goes on the wall.