Lita Ford teamed up with Ozzy Osbourne in 1988 for what has become one of the greatest duet performances in hard-rock history. The song was 'Close My Eyes Forever'. It came about at a time when hair-metal was at the apex of its popularity, and rock radio was dominated by hard-rock ballads. Ozzy's solo career was back on track after he enlisted Zack Wylde on lead guitar, and Ozzy himself had been to rehab and got cleaned up for the first time since about 1970. Lita Ford, at the time, was also managed by Sharon Osbourne and was working on her third solo-album since the break-up of The Runaways, Lita.Whoever had the idea for this collaboration was a genius, because the market was primed for its success. 'Close My Eyes Forever' would become Lita Ford's best selling single, and Lita became her most successful album. Ozzy probably benefited from this duet just as much, since it showed a softer side of his potential as a vocalist and exposed him to a larger audience through its heavy air-play and successful music video. I'm sure this song played a role in setting up Ozzy for the success he would see with his next album, No More Tears, as well.
Lita Ford would enjoy a little more success with her next release, Stiletto, but within 5 years the grunge-scene would become king, while pop-metal/hair-metal became uncool. But for 1989 'Close My Eyes Forever' was as big a hit as anyone could have wished for. It's a memorable and unique sounding ballad to this day. I've never heard another song quite like it since. Aside from being on the album Lita, it also appears on the 1992 collection The Best of Lita Ford.
Other recommended Lita Ford hits:
-Kiss Me Deadly-Shot of Poison
-Back to the Cave
-Only Women Bleed (Cover of an Alice Cooper classic!)
-Playin' With Fire
No comments:
Post a Comment