The song was very controversial following its release. On January 13, 1986, Osbourne was taken to court by the parents of John McCollum, a teenager who shot himself in the head while listening to this song. What is mostly overlooked is that John was reported to have a depression illness. Although the court cleared Osbourne in the case, many listeners continue to wonder what Osbourne was saying part way through the song. Osbourne had a habit of talking or yelling things while recording the song, for example, singing "Cocaine" during the Black Sabbath song "Snowblind." He would often repeat these live, but sound engineers usually edited such interjections out of the records. IBAR, The Institute for Bio-Acoustics Research, analyzed the song and found that subliminal message-like noises were recorded in the song; Osbourne, however, denied anything of the sort. Lyricist Bob Daisley and Osbourne himself both claimed that Ozzy said, "Get the flaps out," referring to a part of the female anatomy. However, some claim that Ozzy said, "Get the glass shoot," "Let yourself go," "Get the fucking gun" or "Get the gun, get the gun, shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot," both of which supported the court case. Either "Get the flask out" or "Get the shot glass," however, were more logical translations, since the song is dealing with alcohol.
What is also overlooked is that Daisley, when he wrote the lyrics, used the word "solution" to mean a substance--in this case, an alcoholic beverage--dissolved in a liquid, not in the sense of solving a problem. Finally, Osbourne himself is a recovering alcoholic, and the song is particularly meaningful to him because it depicts the personal self-destruction he was facing before he cleaned himself out and sobered himself up.
Another tragic case was that of rock music obsessed 14 year old (Eric A.) of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, who shot himself with a .22 caliber rifle. His parents blamed Osbourne, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath and Mötley Crüe. Osbourne, however, was the prime target, due to his song, "Suicide Solution."
The song is also famous for Randy Rhoads's solo at the end of the song on the live album Tribute; this solo originated from Rhoads' Quiet Riot days in which he performed this song part way through "Laughing Gas," the original solo was over 6 minutes and contained references to "Goodbye to Romance," "Mr. Crowley," and "the overture to The Legend Of William Tell," even though the solo he performed with Osbourne was just over two minutes. The live solo features arguably Rhoads's fastest recorded playing.
Suicide Solution
Ozzy Osbourne Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Suicide is slow with liquor
Take a bottle and drown your sorrows
Then it floods away tomorrows
Away tomorrows
Evil thoughts and evil doings
Cold, alone you hang in ruins
You can't escape the master keeper
'Cause you feel life's unreal, and you're living a lie
Such a shame who's to blame and you're wondering why
Then you ask from your cask is there life after birth
What you sow can mean hell on this earth
Hell on this earth
Now you live inside a bottle
The reaper's traveling at full throttle
It's catching you but you don't see
The reaper is you and the reaper is me
Breaking laws, knocking doors
But there's no one at home
Made your bed, rest your head
But you lie there and moan
Where to hide, suicide is the only way out
Don't you know what it's really about
Ah, now people, you really know where it's at
Ah, ah you got it, fox
Get the flaps out, Satan, Satan, Satan, ha ha ha
Wine is fine but whiskey's quicker
Suicide is slow with liquor
Take a bottle, drown your sorrows
Then it floods away tomorrows
Take me away
Oh, oh, tomorrow
It's never gettin' fixed, no flaps, nobody, no flaps, nothing?
The lyrics to Ozzy Osbourne's song Suicide Solution appear to be warning about the dangers of alcohol and how it can lead to depression and suicidal thoughts. The opening line, "Wine is fine but whiskey's quicker. Suicide is slow with liquor," implies that while drinking can be a temporary escape from one's problems, it can also lead to dangerous and irreversible consequences. The lyrics go on to detail the feelings of someone who feels that they are living a lie and wonder if there is life after death.
The lines "Now you live inside a bottle. The reaper's traveling at full throttle. It's catching you but you don't see. The reaper is you and the reaper is me" suggest that the singer sees himself in the person he is describing, and is warning himself of the dangers of alcoholism. The lyrics also mention breaking laws and knocking on doors, but finding no one at home, which may symbolize the isolation and loneliness that can come with addiction and depression.
Overall, the song appears to be a cautionary tale about the dangers of alcoholism and how it can lead to suicidal ideation and even death.
Line by Line Meaning
Wine is fine but whiskey's quicker
Drinking wine is ok, but drinking whiskey can make you more impulsive and likely to take drastic actions, like suicide.
Suicide is slow with liquor
Alcohol may make you feel better for a little while, but it won't solve your problems and can actually make everything worse.
Take a bottle and drown your sorrows
When you're feeling down, it's easy to turn to drinking as a way to forget about your problems for a little while.
Then it floods away tomorrows
But that temporary relief comes at a high cost, because avoiding your problems today can only make them worse tomorrow.
Evil thoughts and evil doings
If you're in a dark place, you might start to have thoughts and take actions that you never would have considered before.
Cold, alone you hang in ruins
When you're feeling depressed, it can feel like you're alone and that everything around you is falling apart.
Thought that you'd escape the reaper
Sometimes we feel like we can avoid the consequences of our actions or even our own mortality, but that's just an illusion.
You can't escape the master keeper
No matter what you do, the end is coming for all of us, and there's no escape from that.
'Cause you feel life's unreal, and you're living a lie
Depression and anxiety can make it feel like nothing is real and that life has lost all meaning, even when that's not actually true.
Such a shame who's to blame and you're wondering why
When you're dealing with these emotions, it's natural to ask why you feel this way and who might be responsible.
Then you ask from your cask is there life after birth
In a moment of despair, you might start to question the very nature of existence and wonder what lies beyond this life.
What you sow can mean hell on this earth
Your actions, good or bad, can have real consequences for yourself and others in this life.
Now you live inside a bottle
If you turn to drinking as a way to cope, you might find yourself trapped in a cycle of addiction that's hard to escape.
The reaper's traveling at full throttle
No matter how fast you try to run, time is always marching forward and death is always coming for all of us.
It's catching you but you don't see
Even though the end is inevitable, it can be hard to accept that fact and to prepare for it.
The reaper is you and the reaper is me
In the end, we're all marching towards the same fate, and there's no escaping it.
Breaking laws, knocking doors
When you're struggling, it can be tempting to lash out and hurt others or break the rules as a way to feel like you have some control.
But there's no one at home
But ultimately, those actions won't solve your problems or make you feel better, and you'll just be left feeling more alone.
Made your bed, rest your head
In the end, we're all responsible for our own actions and their consequences, and we have to face those consequences.
But you lie there and moan
But it can be hard to accept those consequences and to deal with the pain and suffering that can come with them.
Where to hide, suicide is the only way out
When you feel completely overwhelmed and helpless, suicide can seem like the only escape from your pain and emotional turmoil.
Don't you know what it's really about
But ultimately, suicide doesn't solve anything, and it only leaves behind more pain and suffering for the people who cared about you.
Ah, now people, you really know where it's at
This song is a warning about the dangers of alcohol and the consequences of giving in to despair and hopelessness.
Ah, ah you got it, fox
This line is a bit nonsensical and seems to be simply a vocalization of frustration and emotion.
Get the flaps out, Satan, Satan, Satan, ha ha ha
This line is also difficult to decipher, but it seems to be a commentary on the darkness and evil that can lurk within our own minds and souls.
Take me away
The final lines of the song seem to express a desire for escape, but they also suggest that there may be no real escape from our own inner demons and the inevitability of our own mortality.
Oh, oh, tomorrow
It's never gettin' fixed, no flaps, nobody, no flaps, nothing?
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DAISLEY, OSBOURNE, RHOADS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind