Michael “Boyd” Quinton says the success of his band Crazy Babies — Ozzy Rebourne has been something of an “accident.”
“If you had told me 10 years ago I’m going to be Ozzy Osbourne one day, I’d have gone, ‘What?'” Quinton, who plays the part of the notorious heavy metal singer, says from his home in the Brownstown area. But what might seem like a shot in the dark has taken Quinton and Crazy Babies over the mountain, and possibly beyond.
The Detroit metro area-based quartet, formed in 2015, will be featured on the Dec. 15 episode of “Clash of the Cover Bands,” an E! network reality show produced by Jimmy Fallon. Hosted by Stephen “tWitch” Boss and judged by Adam Lambert, Meghan Trainor and Ester Dean, each episode features cover and tribute bands from around the country competing head-to-head for a first prize of $25,000 and an appearance on Fallon’s “The Tonight Show” on NBC.
Crazy Babies compete against Atlanta’s Slippery When Wet: The Ultimate Bon Jovi Tribute. Quinton, of course, can’t reveal anything about what happens, but he does say that he and his mates — who were discovered online by the show’s producers — had a good time taking part in the filming in Los Angeles.
“The experience was great,” Quinton, 56, recalls. The best part, he adds, was meeting other bands engaged in the same kind of pursuit as Crazy Babies.
“I don’t know how they did it, but they found all these bands that look and sound just like the original — to me that was amazing,” he says. “There was an Elton John who had the slot between his teeth and the glittery outfits. I actually felt like I was meeting Elton John. Same with the Britney Spears. It really felt like you were meeting them.”
They likely said the same about Quinton and probably guitarist Keith “Rock” Holstein, who bears a strong resemblance to longtime Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde. Quinton, who was raised in Walled Lake, was a fan of both Osbourne and his band, Black Sabbath, although Sammy Hagar is also a big favorite. “I love the high-energy frontman that connects with everybody in the audience,” Quinton explains. “That really drew me to those personalities.”
A high school jock who played football, soccer and basketball, he played in bands while studying at Schoolcraft College and Oakland University. He also started his own businesses, including an industrial building maintenance company and a classic-car parts supplier.
Crazy Babies was born after Holstein attended a show by one of Quinton’s bands, which closed the night with Osbourne’s solo hit “Crazy Train.”
“He came up to talk to me and said, ‘What do you think about an Ozzy tribute group?'” Quinton recalls. “I’d never thought of that, but I said I’d love to. We found a bassist (Rob “Blasto” Johannis) and a drummer (Charlie Smaldino), and within a year we got started.”
Quinton did have an early moment of uncertainly, however.
“I said, ‘How am I gonna look like Ozzy?'” he remembers. “I had light brown, curly hair at the time. My wife helped me a lot. We were just looking at pictures, straightening my hair, coloring it, and lo and behold … I showed up at the first gig and everybody said, ‘Damn, you look like Ozzy!'”
Crazy Babies hasn’t looked back since, with a steady stream of shows and several Detroit Music Awards nominations for Outstanding Tribute Band. The group has yet to meet Osbourne himself, but Quinton and company are confident that if he didn’t approve, they’d have heard about it by now.
“The (‘Clash of the Cover Bands’) producers were telling us they were amazed we were allowed to come on the show,” Quinton says. “There’s no way we could be on the show if Ozzy and Sharon (his wife and manager) didn’t approve it. They know we’re out there and exist, at least. They haven’t stepped on us, so that’s a good sign.”
Detroit’s Crazy Babies competes Dec. 15 in “Clash of the Cover Bands,” airing at 9:30 p.m. Wednesdays on E! Visit nbc.com/clash-of-the-cover-bands or crazybabiesozzy.com for more information.
