Changes (Black Sabbath song)

The song's piano melody was composed by guitarist Tony Iommi, who was experimenting with the instrument in the studio.^[2] The lyrics were by bassist Geezer Butler,^[2] and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne has referred to the song as "heartbreaking". Quite different from Sabbath's previous work, the song was described as a "forlornly pretty" ballad by critic Barney Hoskyns.^[3] It was inspired mainly by drummer Bill Ward's breakup with his first wife.^[2]

Notably, "Changes" was not recorded with a real string ensemble. Instead, Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi used a Mellotron to create the sound of an orchestra. The ballad is generally an outlier in the band’s discography as it does not feature guitar or drums. To alleviate concerns about the band departing their well-known heavy sound, Osbourne promised in a 1972 interview "We're certainly not going to get any less heavy, we will probably do 'Changes' on stage with a Mellotron, but we'll never take strings on stage with us or anything like that."^[4]

The band first performed the song live in 1973.^[5]

"Changes" was ranked the 12th best Black Sabbath song by Rock - Das Gesamtwerk der größten Rock-Acts im Check.^[6]

• Ozzy Osbourne – vocals
• Tony Iommi – piano, mellotron
• Geezer Butler – bass guitar, mellotron

"Changes"
Single by Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne
from the album Shut Up
Released	8 December 2003 (2003-12-08)
Length	4:07
Label	Sanctuary
Songwriter(s)	Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi Geezer Butler Bill Ward
Producer(s)	Mark Hudson
Ozzy Osbourne singles chronology
"Stillborn" (2003) "Changes" (2003) "In My Life" (2005)
Kelly Osbourne singles chronology
"Shut Up" (2003) "Changes" (2003) "One Word" (2005)

Three decades later, Ozzy recorded another version of the song, this time with his daughter, Kelly Osbourne as a duet. The revised lyrics for this version, released on 8 December 2003, reflect the moments of their life together. The single reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the second father-daughter duet to top the chart after Frank and Nancy Sinatra did so with "Somethin' Stupid" in 1967.^[7] "Changes" also reached the top 20 in Germany, Ireland, and Norway.

According to the Ozzy Osbourne official website, the single sold over one million copies.^[8] This version of the song was ranked number 27 on the "50 Worst Songs of the '00s" list in a 2009 Village Voice article.^[9]

Track listings

• UK CD1^[10]

1. "Changes" – 4:07
2. "Changes" (Felix da Housecat's dance mix) – 6:11
3. "Come Dig Me Out" (live) – 3:54

• UK CD2^[11]

1. "Changes" – 4:07
2. "Changes" (Who's the Daddy dub mix) – 5:41
3. "Changes" (enhanced video) – 4:07

Charts

Certifications

Release history

Charles Bradley recorded a cover of the song in a soul music style. It was first released as a Record Store Day Black Friday single in 2013,^[30] and would later be released as the title track of Bradley's 2016 album Changes.

The following year, Bradley's cover received increased exposure when it was used as the theme song to the Netflix-produced adult animated sitcom Big Mouth.^[31] The series' cast members Maya Rudolph and Jordan Peele also performed a version of the song for the series' soundtrack in character as Connie the Hormone Monstress and the Ghost of Duke Ellington, respectively.

Charles Bradley's version of the song is featured in the 5th episode of the 4th season of the show Black-ish and the end credits for the 2nd episode of the 6th season of Suits.^[32]

Bradley's version of the song also appeared in an episode of the HBO series Big Little Lies, and was featured on the soundtrack album of the show's second season.^[33]

This version saw further use in an April 2022 promo for Turner Classic Movies.^[34]

• Eminem sampled "Changes" on "Going Through Changes", a track on his 2010 album Recovery.^[35]