Bill Ward recently took a moment to honor the memory of one of rock’s most prolific timekeepers, the late Cozy Powell. During the April broadcast of his “LA Radio Sessions” program, the founding Black Sabbath drummer spun the Rainbow epic “Stargazer,” a track famously driven by Powell‘s thunderous drums, before opening up about their deep personal and professional bond.

Ward reflected on their shared history, noting that their friendship dated back to their youth. He also shared the poignant detail that the two had a profound conversation shortly before Powell‘s tragic death.

“Well, Cozy Powell was somebody that I first met when we were still kids. Great drummer. Tight. Well, first of all, I was attracted to his personality. He was a nice man — very nice man. My last phone call with Cozy, actually, was about two weeks before he passed away. And I am so glad that I was able to talk to Cozy on really meaningful meaningful topics and [we had a] heartfelt conversation. I hadn’t spoken to him for a while, and then, of course, two weeks later, he passed away, which was heartbreaking, of course,” he said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).

The Black Sabbath drummer went on to analyze Powell‘s unique playing style, comparing his own jazz-rooted technique to his late friend’s big band influences.

“But when we first met, when we were still quite young, I liked his already well-defined historic… I could tell where he’d learnt [how to play]. I come from a jazz background, so [Gene] Krupa was my guy. Everybody says it was somebody else, but actually it was Krupa. But that’s okay, what everybody else wants to say; they can say whatever they wanna say. But Cozy was well defined. His chops were — I think his chops were from [the Buddy Rich] Big Band and were maybe from Rich. It fitted in so well. It fitted really well into rock. It’s almost like his body and the way that he played was designed for that era. And he had the chops and the licks that fitted into that.”

Beyond his ensemble work, Powell was a rarity in the music industry: a drummer who could chart entirely on his own merits. Ward highlighted this unique achievement, praising his contemporary’s massive solo success.

“He had a lot of hit records by himself as a single artist, and I don’t know if you know that — where he would do a drum solo, and that would be the record, and they got into the charts. He was always available, always listening. I think he was a drummer’s drummer.”

Powell‘s life was cut short on April 5, 1998, when he died in a high-speed car accident on the M4 motorway near Bristol, England. He was 50 years old. Reports from the BBC at the time indicated that the drummer was driving his Saab 9000 at 104 mph in poor weather conditions, had a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit, was not wearing a seatbelt, and was speaking with his girlfriend on a mobile phone. Before his untimely passing, his staggering resume included stints with Cozy Powell’s Hammer, The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, the Michael Schenker Group, Whitesnake, Emerson, Lake & Powell, and Black Sabbath.

Looking back at the decades that have passed, Ward, who is approaching his 78th birthday, admitted that reminiscing about his late peers carries a heavy emotional weight.

“It’s so sad — very sad — now when I’m thinking about it. For me, I’m gonna be 78 in two months, so for me, at 78 years old, when I go back and digress and go back into the unbelievable amount of people that I’ve met, known and grew up with, and we all went through the same things, it’s an incredible journey, but there’s also a price to pay for the regrets that could have happened. And just the memories alone are often sad as well as brilliant opportunities. It’s a mixed bag. So, yeah, Cozy was an angel. That’s what Cozy Powell was,” Ward concluded.

Fans can tune in to hear the full episode of “LA Radio Sessions” on Saturday, April 18 at 12:00 p.m. PT. Rebroadcasts are scheduled for April 20, 25, and 27 exclusively on 99.1FM KLBP in Long Beach and streaming globally at KLBP.org.