Ozzy Osbourne has praised Tony Iommi for recording Black Sabbath's latest album while battling cancer.
The 65-year-old guitarist revealed his lymphoma diagnosis in January and Ozzy paid tribute to him for continuing to work on the record '13', their first since 1978's 'Never Say Die!'
Speaking to Daniel P Carter on BBC Radio 1, he said: "We realised this is probably our last chance (for making a new album), we're in our mid-60's now and we wondered whether we could still do it.
"Tony had done a bunch of songs before he got diagnosed. Tony has this ability to come out with these amazing riffs. There are only so many notes in a guitar - where do they come from?! But he came down every day after treatment. Chemotherapy knocks the crap out of you and he came down and he came out with some phenomenal stuff. I said you really are a hero man. For him to come in day after day, he wasn't sleeping, it keeps you awake that stuff does. He was doing his bit. We said if the pressure gets too much, just call it. We all rallied round. That's what you got to do.
"I'd be on stage and I'd forget that he had cancer. He's my hero. He never complained once. If it were me I'd be in hospital with a morphine pipe up my butt!"
Tony admitted recording the album with Ozzy and bandmate Geezer Buttler while he was ill was difficult but said the duo helped to cheer him up when he was feeling low.
He explained: "For me it was difficult it made me feel quite ill, sick, throwing up and everything else. The days I felt not so bad we'd work at it and it was good to have all the guys around me. They got my head in a different place. They could easily think that's it. So they did perk me up. I knew Ozzy was really worried and he's always been really worried that if we did another album it's got to be good. Well we know that! But I had confidence in what we got and we had more than enough stuff to fill another album, so there's plenty of stuff there!"
The full interview where Black Sabbath talk about their new album '13' with Rock Show host Daniel P Carter will be broadcast on Monday (03.06.13) on the Radio 1 Rock Show at 12 midnight.
Tagged in Sharon Osbourne Ozzy Osbourne Tony Iommi