Changes (Black Sabbath song)

"Changes" is a song by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath. A ballad, it first appeared on Vol. 4, which was released in 1972. In 1993, Ozzy Osbourne released a live version as a single from Live & Loud album.^[1] In 2003, a version with his daughter, Kelly Osbourne was released as a single.

"Changes"
Song by Black Sabbath
from the album Vol. 4
Released	September 1972
Recorded	1972
Genre	Soft rock
Length	4:43
Label	Vertigo (UK) Warner Bros. (US)
Songwriter(s)	Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi Geezer Butler Bill Ward
Producer(s)	Patrick Meehan Black Sabbath

Overview

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 break-up 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]

Personnel (original version)

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

Charts

Chart performance for "Changes"

Chart (2025)	Peak position
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)[7]	11

Cover versions

Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne version

"Changes"
Single by Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne
from the album Changes
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. Ozzy said Kelly wanted a song about her after he made songs about her siblings on Ozzmosis—"Aimee" about Aimee Osbourne and "My Little Man" about Jack Osbourne—and so he decided to help her career re-recording "one of my favourite songs of all time".^[8] 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.^[9] "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.^[10] Maura Johnston of The Village Voice ranked the song at number 27 on her list of the "50 Worst Songs of the '00s".^[11]

Following Ozzy Osbourne's death in July 2025, the song debuted at number eight on the UK Singles Downloads Chart,^[12] peaking at number seven, one week later.

Track listings

• UK CD1^[13]

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

• UK CD2^[14]

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

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2003–2004)	Peak position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15]	31
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[16]	4
Germany (GfK)[17]	15
Ireland (IRMA)[18]	7
Norway (VG-lista)[19]	15
Scotland (OCC)[20]	1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[21]	26
UK Singles (OCC)[22]	1
UK Indie (OCC)[23]	1
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[24]	2
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[25] Felix da Housecat Remix	31

Chart (2025)	Peak position
UK Singles Downloads (OCC)[26]	7

Year-end charts

Chart (2003)	Position
Ireland (IRMA)[27]	82
UK Singles (OCC)[28]	7

Chart (2004)	Position
UK Singles (OCC)[29]	35

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[30]	Gold	400,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref(s).
United Kingdom	8 December 2003	CD	Sanctuary	[31][32]
United States	19 January 2004	Contemporary hit hot adult contemporary radio		[33]

Yungblud version

"Changes"
Single by Yungblud, Nuno Bettencourt, and Frank Bello featuring Adam Wakeman and II
Released	18 July 2025 (2025-07-18)
Recorded	5 July 2025
Venue	Villa Park (Birmingham)
Length	5:40
Label	Capitol
Songwriter(s)	Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi Geezer Butler Bill Ward
Producer(s)	Matt Schwartz
Yungblud singles chronology
"Zombie" (2025) "Changes" (2025)
Music video
"Changes" (Live From Villa Park / Back To The Beginning) on YouTube

A live recording of Yungblud's cover of the song from the Back to the Beginning concert was released as a charity single on 18 July 2025.^[34]

Rhys Buchanan of Rolling Stone said Yungblud's performance at the 5 July 2025 benefit concert, which he dedicated to Diogo Jota, "stopped the stadium in its tracks".^[35]

It featured Frank Bello on bass, Nuno Bettencourt on guitar, Sleep Token II on drums, and Adam Wakeman on keyboards.^[34]

Following Ozzy Osbourne's death in July 2025, the song debuted at number 1 on the UK Singles Downloads Chart.^[12]

All proceeds will go to benefit Acorns Children's Hospice, Birmingham Children's Hospital and Cure Parkinson's.^[34]

Charts

Weekly chart performance for "Changes"

Chart (2025)	Peak position
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[36]	17
UK Singles (OCC)[37]	90
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[38]	42

Charles Bradley version

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,^[39] 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.^[40] 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.^[41]

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.^[42]

This version saw further use in an April 2022 promo for Turner Classic Movies.^[43]

Billy Walker version

Country musician Billy Walker recorded a version of the song on his 1973 album The Hand of Love.

Eminem sampling the track

• Eminem sampled "Changes" on "Going Through Changes", a track on his 2010 album Recovery.^[44]