GUS G. On OZZY OSBOURNE’s Death: ‘It Hit Me Hard, Man. It Was Shocking.’

In a new interview with Germany’s Rock Antenne, Greek guitar virtuoso Gus G., who joined Ozzy Osbourne’s band more than a decade and a half ago, spoke about his time with the legendary BLACK SABBATH singer. Asked what it was like being around Ozzy and his wife/manager Sharon Osbourne, on and off, for a period of several years, Gus said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  ”I really have nothing bad to say about these people. They treated me so nice for the time that I was there with them. When you’re there, it’s like you’re kind of part of the family as well. So, yeah, it was only good times. A lot of laughs. British guys from the ’60 and ’70s, their humor is insane. So it’s impossible to be in the room with them and not start laughing two minutes into this. So they always crack jokes, always say funny stuff. Same with Ozzy, [he was] that character, that crazy character that everybody has seen from television and stuff. But, yeah, it was just nice to be like a fly on the wall, hear these guys tell their stories and just be funny in their way. So, yeah, for me it was some of the best years of my life.”

Asked how he felt when he first heard about Ozzy’s passing, Gus said: “It hit me hard, man. It was shocking. I didn’t expect it. I mean, I knew he was very sick and all that stuff. But especially two weeks after he did his big farewell show [in Birmingham, United Kingdom]. So, yeah, it was pretty shocking. If you look back on it, you couldn’t even direct this thing. The way it was all done, it was just meant to be like that, I guess, in some way. But, yeah, I think it shocked everybody, ’cause they saw him on stage, like, 10 days before he passed. And he was there, he was in good spirits and everything.”

Gus added: “Anyhow, but for me, it was a really tough pill to swallow, so to speak, because even though — I’ll tell you this — I wasn’t close to him after I left the band and stuff; it’s not like we were in touch and we were friends or whatever. But he’s such a big figure in my musical career and in my life. I feel like there’s my life pre-Ozzy and post-Ozzy. So it has been such a big transformation for me and such a big change in my life. And, of course, that affected me. So I’ll miss him, of course, like everybody else.”

The day of Ozzy’s passing, Gus, whose real name is Kostas Karamitroudis, took to his social media to write: “RIP @ozzyosbourne. Dear Ozzy – Thank you for everything you’ve done for me — the advice, the precious memories and for the music. You changed my life forever and I’ll never forget that. As a guitar player, it was the highest honor in my career to record an album and tour the world with you for 7 years. My condolences to the family”.

In a July 2024 interview with Romania’s Rock FM to promote his acoustic shows in the country with Romero, Gus spoke about how he looks back on his time with Ozzy. He said: “It was a big step up and a big challenge to go from one level to another as a performer, as a guitar player. I came from a background of having my own bands and kind of like always feeling secure in that, but getting a gig like that, for me, was a big challenge, obviously, and intimidating. So I had to step up my game very quickly. I had to dissect my own playing style and figure out what it is and try to improve it. It made me a better professional, so to say, better performer. I just one-upped everything that comes together with being not only a musician, but as an entertainer and performer. So it definitely, that gig helped me to bring out the stage persona a bit more to the front — because that stuff only exists on stage, in my opinion, not off stage. So it made me work hard on that and develop that. It was a great opportunity.”

Less than two years earlier, Gus told Czech Republic’s Backstage TV that he had some “really good times” playing with Ozzy. “It was a really highlight of my career, obviously, playing at such a big level and, of course, to play with one of the fathers of this music, heavy metal,” he said. “So, just to be a part of that legacy is incredible; it’s mindblowing. I still cannot believe it happened. I learned a lot.

“I’m not a guy who thinks so much about the past,” Gus explained. “I think I have evolved since then; I have become a better musician, better person, better performer. That was a big stepping stone for me. I look at those days with a lot of joy, and I have nice memories, nice feelings about Ozzy and Sharon [Ozzy’s wife and manager] and the [rest of the] Osbournes; they treated me very nice. And it was some of the best years of my life with them; I got to see and experience things that not many musicians do, so I was lucky in that sense. But I’m doing my thing now and I’ve had my own thing for a long time. And I’m happy where I’m at in life right now.”

In 2021, Gus was asked by Guitar World how he found out he was no longer in Ozzy’s group. “Sharon called me at home,” he said. “I was kind of expecting it. They had announced a festival, and I was waiting to hear back what was going to happen. And then eventually, she gave me a call. I think it was in the middle of the night, because we have such a time zone difference. She called me in Greece, and said, ‘I just wanted to let you know personally, so you don’t find out online, we’re going to do the farewell tour, and Zakk is coming back for that.’ And I was, like, ‘No worries at all. No problem.’ And I thanked her for everything they had done for me. We’re still on good terms, so, no problem at all.”

Back in 2018, Gus told TrueMetal.it that “it was a little bit of a relief” to find out that Ozzy was getting back together with his longtime axeman Zakk Wylde. “I was just kind of tired of waiting around for all these years, not hearing anything about potential tours or recording activities,” Gus said. “Of course, [Ozzy] was very busy with BLACK SABBATH — I understand that — but then in between of all that, there would be all these one-off [solo Ozzy] shows popping up and I had to make myself available for that. But there was never any… I felt like there was no… I didn’t see stuff coming up for the future, you know? So, as much as I loved being in that band and working with him, in a way, it was a little bit of a dead end for me, speaking personally. Of course, now he’s gonna go on a big tour again and do his farewell thing, and that’s great for him, but it was not a creative thing for me.”

It was announced in April 2017 that Wylde would be rejoining Ozzy’s backing group for all his upcoming solo show dates.

Gus, who played on Ozzy’s 2010 studio “Scream”, told TrueMetal.it that part of his frustration stemmed from the fact that he wasn’t told far in advance when his services would be needed by Ozzy, making it difficult for the guitarist to make long-term plans with any of his other projects. “There was never any definite announcement, like, ‘Hey, guys, we’re gonna see you next year’ or something; it was always, like, ‘We’ll see what happens,'” he said. “So that’s a bit of an uncertainty right there, and, of course, I had my own band [and] I had stuff to do, but I could never really book stuff too far ahead into the future just in case something [with Ozzy] came up. So it was really hard to get some info at some points… Anyways, you know, that’s how it is; that was the situation. So, yeah, in a way, like I said, it was a relief, because now I can totally control what I’m gonna be doing, and that’s a much nicer feeling.”

Ozzy died the morning of July 22, his family announced in a statement.