Listen to Bill Ward’s New Song ‘Arrows’
The Bill Ward Band, led by the former Black Sabbath drummer, released a new song titled “Arrows” to mark the second anniversary of the mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017.
Ward was joined by guitarist Keith Lynch, former Ozzy Osbourne and Whitesnake drummer Brian Tichy and ex-Megadeth bassist James LoMenzo on the track, which has received conflicting reviews from listeners.
You can listen to it below.
In an accompanying personal message, Ward explained that he wanted to pay tribute to the victims of the massacre at the Route 91 Harvest music festival, in which 58 people died and hundreds were injured. “To me, it’s kind of like laying a wreath and sending the very best to everybody and wishing everybody well, the injured,” he said.
“It’s just a way of saying we’re very sorry that all those things happened and that we honor those who are not with us today. It’s a very solemn gesture, but at the same time, I’ve written a song that I hope can bring some solace and some good things to those who are still working through that particular shooting and those particular issues that they encountered because of the shooting.”
Earlier this year, Osbourne said he regretted that Ward wasn't part of Black Sabbath’s final album and farewell tour. His comments followed years of acrimony between the two, with Ward suggesting the blame fell on Osbourne for the contract dispute that led to his non-participation.
“I didn’t like the fact that Bill Ward wasn’t there, for a start," the singer said. "People put that down to me, but it wasn’t me, honestly. We didn’t have the fucking time to hang around, we had to get going, but I’m sorry it didn’t work out with Bill. ... The four of us started this, and it should have been the four of us ending it. … It would have been good to have shared that together. Maybe one day there’ll be one last gig, I don’t know.”