Shot in the Dark (Ozzy Osbourne song)

1986 single by Ozzy Osbourne

"Shot in the Dark"

Single by Ozzy Osbourne
from the album  The Ultimate Sin
B-side| "Rock 'n' Roll Rebel"
Released| 20 January 1986 (UK)[1]
Genre| Glam metal[2][3]
Length| 4:26
Label| CBS Associated
Songwriter(s)|

* Ozzy Osbourne
* Phil Soussan

Producer(s)| Ron Nevison
Ozzy Osbourne singles chronology
| "So Tired"
(1983)  | "Shot in the Dark"
(1986)  | "The Ultimate Sin"
(1986)

|
|

"Shot in the Dark" is a song recorded and performed by English heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne. It is the ninth and final track on his 1986 album The Ultimate Sin. A top-ten hit on mainstream rock radio, the song also became his first single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 68.[4] The official music video for the song was directed by Andy Morahan,[5] and was played in power rotation on MTV.[6]

## Composition history

[edit]

"Shot in the Dark" was originally composed sometime around 1983 by members of Wildlife, a band featuring Steve Overland, Chris Overland, Simon Kirke of Bad Company, keyboardist Mark Booty, and future Ozzy Osbourne bassist Phil Soussan. Wildlife recorded a demo version of the song that was never officially released. When Soussan joined Ozzy Osbourne's band a couple of years later, he and Osbourne then reworked the song for Ozzy Osbourne's recording and release in early 1986, with Osbourne supposedly writing new lyrics. However, there is ambiguity in terms of which parts of the original version were left intact in Osbourne's rendition, and as a result, there has been much debate over the proper authorship of the song. Although the writing is credited solely to Soussan and Osbourne on the single and its parent album, The Ultimate Sin, some question whether other members of Wildlife (the Overland brothers, in particular) deserve writing credit for Osbourne's rendition.[7]

## Later releases and omissions

[edit]

Despite the commercial success of "Shot in the Dark", it was notably omitted from various re-releases and further compilations after 2000, widely believed to be the result of the aforementioned authorship issues, along with other legal disputes from Phil Soussan and predecessor bassist Bob Daisley,[8] while Osbourne himself has simply stated that he hates The Ultimate Sin album in general.[9] One notable exception to the song's consistent exclusion from compilations is the original 1997 release of The Ozzman Cometh. However, the 2002 re-release of this retrospective featured the track "Miracle Man" replacing "Shot in the Dark". In addition, the song is absent from compilations such as The Essential Ozzy Osbourne, Prince of Darkness, and Memoirs of a Madman. Both the EP Just Say Ozzy, which contains a live version of the song, and the original studio album The Ultimate Sin, were officially deleted from Ozzy's catalog in 2002.

The original Ozzy Osbourne un-edited studio recording of "Shot in the Dark" (4:26) appears only on the 1986 single and the original release of The Ultimate Sin album. Later reissues of albums featuring a studio version of "Shot in the Dark" (namely, the 1995 remastered edition of The Ultimate Sin and the original 1997 release of The Ozzman Cometh) have the song edited to a 4:16 version, missing four extra measures of music after the first chorus.

The original Wildlife rendition of the song was recorded and released by the Overland brothers' post-Wildlife AOR band FM on their 2012 release Only Foolin EP'.[10]

## Track listing

[edit]

Side ANo.| Title| Length

|
|

1.| "Shot in the Dark"| 4:26

Side BNo.| Title| Length

|
|

1.| "Rock 'N' Roll Rebel"| 5:28

## Charts

[edit]

Chart (1986)  | Peak
position

|

Ireland (IRMA)[11] | 15
UK Singles (OCC)[12] | 20
US Billboard Hot 100[13] | 68
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[14] | 10

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Music Week" (PDF). p. 18.
2. ^ Begrand, Adrien (5 April 2017). "36 Essential '80s Pop Metal Tracks". Stereogum. Retrieved 10 November 2019.
3. ^ "Ozzy Osbourne's 20 Best Solo Songs, Ranked". SPIN. 2020-02-20. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
4. ^ "Ozzy Osbourne | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
5. ^ Garcia, Alex S. "mvdbase.com - Ozzy Osbourne - "Shot in the dark [version 1]"". Music Video DataBase. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
6. ^ MTV Programming, 22 February 1986
7. ^ Interview with FM Vocalist, Steve Overland, Retrieved 3 December 2015
8. ^ "Trivia / Ozzy Osbourne". Retrieved 19 Dec 2020. "The original version of The Ultimate Sin has been out of print since 1995. No official reason for this has been given, but it's widely believed that it's due to an unresolved legal struggle between Ozzy Osburne [sic] and songwriter Phil Soussan over the rights to the song "Shot in the Dark.""
9. ^ "Fetus Jars and Werewolves: Ozzy Osbourne Looks Back Ahead of Box Set Release". Rolling Stone. 23 Aug 2019. "asked his least favorite, the reply is swift: 1986's The Ultimate Sin. Although it's currently out of print physically (but available on streaming services), the LP contains one of his biggest hits, "Shot in the Dark," and has been certified double platinum."
10. ^ "FM: "Only Foolin' EP"". Rock United. 28 November 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
11. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Shot in the Dark". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
12. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
13. ^ "Ozzy Osbourne Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
14. ^ "Ozzy Osbourne Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2021.

* v
* t
* e

Ozzy Osbourne

Studio albums|

* Blizzard of Ozz
* Diary of a Madman
* Bark at the Moon
* The Ultimate Sin
* No Rest for the Wicked
* No More Tears
* Ozzmosis
* Down to Earth
* Under Cover
* Black Rain
* Scream
* Ordinary Man
* Patient Number 9

Live albums|

* Speak of the Devil
* Tribute
* Live & Loud
* Live at Budokan
* Ozzy Live

Extended plays|

* Mr. Crowley Live EP
* Just Say Ozzy

Compilations/box sets|

* Best of Ozz
* Ten Commandments
* The Ozzman Cometh
* The Essential Ozzy Osbourne
* Prince of Darkness
* Memoirs of a Madman

Singles|

* "Crazy Train"
* "Mr. Crowley"
* "Flying High Again"
* "Over the Mountain"
* "Symptom of the Universe"
* "Paranoid"
* "Bark at the Moon"
* "Shot in the Dark"
* "No More Tears"
* "Mama, I'm Coming Home"
* "Changes"
* "Pictures of Matchstick Men"
* "Gets Me Through"
* "Dreamer"
* "In My Life"
* "I Don't Wanna Stop"
* "Not Going Away"
* "How?"
* "Under the Graveyard"
* "Ordinary Man"
* "It's a Raid"

Featured singles|

* "Close My Eyes Forever"
* "Hey Stoopid"
* "Shake Your Head"
* "Shock the Monkey"
* "N.I.B."
* "Stillborn"
* "Take What You Want"

Other songs|

* "Goodbye to Romance"
* "Suicide Solution"
* "I Don't Want to Change the World"
* "Hellraiser"

Concert tours|

* Blizzard of Ozz Tour
* Diary of a Madman Tour
* Speak of the Devil Tour
* Bark at the Moon Tour
* The Ultimate Sin Tour
* No Rest for the Wicked Tour
* No More Tours Tour
* Ozzfest
* Ozzfest lineups by year
* Merry Mayhem Tour
* Ozzy and Friends Tour
* No More Tours II
* Back to the Beginning

Band members|

| Guitarists|

* Randy Rhoads
* Bernie Tormé
* Brad Gillis
* Jake E. Lee
* Zakk Wylde
* Joe Holmes
* Gus G

|

Bassists|

* Bob Daisley
* Rudy Sarzo
* Pete Way
* Phil Soussan
* Geezer Butler
* Mike Inez
* Robert Trujillo
* Jason Newsted
* Rob "Blasko" Nicholson

Drummers|

* Lee Kerslake
* Tommy Aldridge
* Carmine Appice
* Randy Castillo
* Deen Castronovo
* Mike Bordin
* Tommy Clufetos

Keyboardists|

* Adam Wakeman

Books|

* Ordinary People: Our Story
* I Am Ozzy
* Trust Me, I'm Dr. Ozzy

Related articles|

* Discography
* Filmography
* Black Sabbath
* The Osbournes
* Savage Skies
* Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home

| Family members|

* Sharon Osbourne (2nd wife)
* Aimee Osbourne (daughter)
* Kelly Osbourne (daughter)
* Jack Osbourne (son)
* Don Arden (father-in-law)

|

* Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work

|

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