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Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi has reflected on his friendship with Ozzy Osbourne in a new social media post.

Today (22 July) marks one year since the passing of the Sabbath frontman, which occurred just a matter of weeks after his final gig with the band for the mighty Back To The Beginning concert event in their home city of Birmingham, UK.

• READ MORE: “I was just amazed at all the great jazz voicings that song has”: The Ozzy Osbourne classic Kirk Hammett wishes he wrote

Iommi writes, “Hi everyone. Well, it’s now a year since Ozzy’s passing and I still can’t believe that he’s not with us. I watch him on YouTube and it feels like he’s still here with us. We always stayed in touch, almost every week or so and we’d usually talk about our ailments and then about what we’d been doing that particular week.

“The fans have been absolutely brilliant and the love and respect that they have shown for him has just been amazing. I’m so glad that we were able to play one final show with the original line up of Sabbath at the Back To The Beginning show in our home town of Birmingham! There will never be another Ozzy. I miss you my dear friend.”

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Iommi spoke to ITV News shortly after Osbourne’s death last year, in which he shared his belief that the Prince of Darkness held on to be able to do their final gig: “I think he really just held out to do that show. I really feel, and me and Geezer [Butler] were talking about it last night, that we think he held out to do it, and just after that, he’s done it and said goodbye to the fans. And that was the end of it, really.”

The Back To The Beginning event raised an estimated eight million for charity in total. Iommi was recently made an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the King’s Birthday Honours for his services to music and charity. Iommi has worked on humanitarian projects over the years, such as international disaster relief and cancer patient advocacy.

The post “I watch him on YouTube and it feels like he’s still here with us”: Tony Iommi reflects on friendship with Ozzy Osbourne a year on from his death appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Ad feature with Harley Benton.

Are you looking for a shred machine with top-notch playability and superior tones that doesn’t shred apart your wallet? With a metal-ready spec sheet that defies its price point – plus a plethora of attention-grabbing finishes that’ll turn heads if your lead playing doesn’t already, Harley Benton’s new Fusion IV Series might just be the ticket.

Harley Benton – the brand owned by German musical instrument retail giant Thomann – has made a name for itself for its tantalisingly affordable guitar gear, with a vast product lineup spanning everything from electric and acoustic guitars to amps, effects and even banjos. But the Fusion IV Series arrives as the brand’s most shred-friendly offering to date.

Each guitar in the range clocks in around the very reasonable £400 mark. There’s a massive range of spec sheets to choose from, too.

A choice of double-humbucker, HSS and HSH pickup configurations is on offer, ensuring everything from warm, smooth sweep picking, articulate twangy leads, crushing high-gain riffs and soaring Eddie Van Halen-style solos are taken care of.

Each guitar is powered by Tesla and EMG pickups, with a unique voicing option switch located between the volume and tone pots to further expand your tonal palette. On the double-humbucker models, flipping this switch activates a hum-free Ghost Coil mode, the HSH activates a classic coil split, and the HSS models offer series switching for thicker, humbucker-style tones.

The series also features a range of bridge options, including Babicz two-point tremolos, hardtail options, and – because no shred offering would be complete without them – a couple of Floyd Rose models, too.

And if lead playing is the name of the game, you’ll need uninhibited access to the upper frets if you really want to soar. So you’ll be glad to know Fusion IV Series guitars sport a contoured neck hell, so playing all the way in the higher registers is a breeze.

As guitarists we’ve all got our own identity and different finishes speak to us differently. But there’s definitely an option for you with the 11 vibrant finishes on offer with the Fusion IV Series. Our favourites are this White Metallic and Purple Metallic you see in the video above…

Other specs present on each model in the Fusion IV Series include a truss rod spoke wheel for quick neck relief adjustments, staggered locking tuners for faster string changes, and a compound-radius fretboard for superior playability across the ‘board.

Learn more about the Fusion IV Series at Harley Benton.

The post Harley Benton’s Fusion IV Series is its most shred-ready offering to date appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.