Guitarist / vocalist Billy Morrison - best known for working with Billy Idol - recently spoke with Eddie Trunk on SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation. During their conversation, he talked about joining Billy Idol’s band, and reveals the story of how he first met Ozzy Osbourne.
Billy Morrison on Meeting Ozzy Osbourne:
"Round about 30 years ago, I got invited to a party at the Osbourne's house, one of their old houses' Christmas party. And it was so overwhelming. I mean, there was real snow and reindeers running around, like this was an Osbourne's party like you would imagine. And I was so overwhelmed. I get so socially anxious in rooms like that. I walked, I opened a door to get away from hundreds of people and Ozzy was in that room and he went, 'Oh, hello. I'm Ozzy.' I said, 'I know that. I can see that. I'm Billy.' He said, 'Come in. What are you doing?' I said, 'I'm so anxious out there.' He said, 'Me too.' And we just sat there for hours talking about Cadbury's chocolate, the Sex Pistols, you know, we just bonded. We just hit it off."
“I guess the way that your love makes me feel/Must mean I’m really addicted,” sings Ozzy Osbourne on “Crack Cocaine”, the newly released track from Billy Morrison’s new solo album, The Morrison Project, that’s due April 19 via The Label Group’s partnership with TLG|ZOID through Virgin Music Group.
This seismic collaboration also features Steve Stevens on guitar and was co-written by Morrison, Osbourne, and Stevens who all appear in the video with Paris Jackson playing the glamorous/romantic interest, with cameos from visual artist Risk and actor Jeff Hilliard. Watch the video below, listen to the track (produced by Morrison and Stevens) here, and pre-save the album here.
“Crack Cocaine” marks the first new song with Ozzy on vocals since the 2022 release of his worldwide smash album Patient Number 9 which earned him two Grammy Awards (“Best Rock Album,” “Best Metal Performance”). “I was in the same room as Billy and Steve,” says Ozzy about co-writing the song. “The lyrics just came out of the blue. It was written in about 20 minutes.”
Billy - the British guitarist, singer, and songwriter primarily known as Billy Idol’s rhythm guitar player for the past 15 years alongside lead guitarist Steve Stevens - sheds more light on the song’s origins: “The music was a direct result of sitting in a room with Steve, both with de-tuned guitars, and writing what we felt was an ultimate Ozzy riff. From there, we brought Ozzy over, and we all sat around working on the lyrics, but 90% of those came from Ozzy himself. He’s the one that suddenly stood up and sang “Like Crack Cocaine”!! We looked at each other and knew we had the title!!”
Importantly, reveals Steve, “First and foremost, Billy and I discussed what an Ozzy fan would really love to hear. We really zeroed in on the ‘90s-era Ozzy, the truly heavy stuff. We cast aside any rules both musically and lyrically. It was really a great team and Billy is just such a great motivator. Obviously as a guitarist, to contribute to an Ozzy song is like a kid in a candy store. He’s played with such an amazing array of guitarists that I tried my best to honor that tradition.”
Adds Steve: “I think the fact that Billy and I have spent the better part of 16 years working together in Billy Idol means we are almost telepathic in how we arrange guitars, etc. Billy and Ozzy have such an amazing friendship that it was easy to feel inspired and want to help them achieve any idea I could assist with. As we worked in my home studio, I tried to make the actual recording process almost invisible. Forget any technical aspects and really have some fun. To Ozzy’s credit, he was totally focused—and man the first time I heard him sing in what was essentially my living room, fucking chills ran down my spine.”
“Crack Cocaine” is the second single/video from The Morrison Project and follows the single/video “Drowning.” Watch the video, which illustrates the soul-destroying effects of information overload, below.
For The Morrison Project—his third solo album and first since 2015—he has assembled an electrifying 12 songs including guest performances by Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, DMC, Al Jourgensen, Steve Vai, Steve Stevens, Linda Perry, Tommy Clufetos, John5, and more. See the track listing below.
The Morrison Project was produced by Billy Morrison, mixed by Barry Pointer, and mastered by Dave Donnelly. All the songs on the album - recorded in Los Angeles at various studios - were written by Billy Morrison in collaboration with his guests.
How did The Morrison Project come together? “I truly believe that making music without any preconceptions or goals yields the most creative and enjoyable results. And that is exactly how this record came to life. Making music with Erik (Eldenius) and Jeordie (White) during Covid, and mixing different musical styles started my journey towards this collection of songs that ended up featuring a lot of my friends.”
The Morrison Project features 12 original tracks:
"Drowning"
(Written by Billy Morrison/Erik Eldenius/Jeordie White)
"Crack Cocaine"
(Featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Steve Stevens with Tommy Clufetos on Drums)
(Written by Billy Morrison/ Ozzy Osbourne/Steve Stevens)
"Its Come To This"
(Written by Billy Morrison/Erik Eldenius)
"The Ayes Have It"
(Featuring Al Jourgensen and John5 with Roy Mayorga on Drums)
(Written by Billy Morrison)
"Dystopia"
(Written by Billy Morrison/Erik Eldenius/Jeordie White)
"Incite The Watch"
(Featuring Corey Taylor and Steve Vai)
(Written by Billy Morrison, Erik Eldenius, Jeordie White, Corey Taylor)
"Puppets On A String"
(Written by Billy Morrison/Erik Eldenius/Jeordie White)
"Just Like A Movie"
(Featuring D.M.C. and Persia Numan with Erik Eldenius on Drums)
(Written by Billy Morrison/Erik Eldenius/Jeordie White/ Darryl McDaniels/Persia Numan)
"The Sound Of Freedom"
(Written by Billy Morrison, Erik Eldenius, Jeordie White)
"Mr. Dream"
(Featuring Billy Idol and Steve Stevens)
(Written by Billy Morrison, Erik Eldenius, Jeordie White, Steve Stevens, Billy Idol)
"We Are The Dead"
(Written by Billy Morrison, Erik Eldenius, Jeordie White)
"Chasing Shadows"
(Featuring Linda Perry)
(Written by Billy Morrison)
"Drowning" video:
