Louisville Leopards continue their crazy story by meeting Ozzy Osbourne

The Louisville Leopard Percussionists, a lovable band of grade school musicians, have deepened their unlikely friendship with heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne.

They'll appear July 25 on “Ozzy & Jack’s World Detour,” an A&E Network show that finds Ozzy and his son, Jack, traveling the world. The show will air at 9 p.m.

The Leopards got Ozzy's attention a few years ago when he saw them perform his song "Crazy Train" in a video that now has almost 2 million views. He was inspired to the tune of a $10,000 donation, which helped keep the cash-strapped after-school program afloat.

Jack Osbourne arranged for the group to surprise Ozzy while the show was in Nashville and the Leopards performed "Crazy Train" for Ozzy, Jack and Ozzy's daughter, Kelly.

"He was so kind to those kids," Diane Downs, founder and artistic director for the Leopards, said of Ozzy. "The whole family was just wonderful. They're not snooty rock stars, they're just regular people."

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Downs said more than 50 kids between the ages of 7 and 16 made the trip to Tennessee.

Some of the musicians had participated in the "Crazy Train" performance that was uploaded to YouTube in 2012, Downs said. But many of the kids that joined later were unfamiliar with the song — and had to rush to learn the tune before meeting its creator.

"We didn't know until three weeks before that we were going to play 'Crazy Train' for Ozzy Osbourne," Downs said. "We declared a 'Crazy Train' emergency and learned it real quick."

Downs said the group had six rehearsal days to nail the song down. But the percussionists didn't take their time for granted.

"When you tell them it's serious, they work like professionals," Downs said. "... The last thing they want to do is get on TV and stink, so they're going to work on it. The kids bucked down."

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The Louisville Leopard Percussionists is a non-profit group celebrating its 25th year. Founded by Downs in 1993, the group of around 60 students in grades 2-9 learn to play music on a variety of percussive instruments through a simple, innovative system.

They each learn a part and then the various parts are brought together to make a whole. It's about listening and teamwork. The students are largely not musically inclined and come from more than 30 zip codes and nearly 50 schools.

"The overall picture is a life lesson," Downs said. "When an opportunity comes up, you work hard to prepare for the opportunity. ... If I can get them to realize I work hard, I prepare myself, I present myself, then my reward comes. You get paid for your job or you get to play 'Crazy Train' for a rock star and his family."

Despite attention from Ozzy and Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page, who posted on Facebook about the group's Zeppelin medley, the group is always hurting for donations to meet its $100,000 budget.

You can help out with a donation at LouisvilleLeopardPercussionists.com.

The Louisville Leopard Percussionists were the subject of a 2008 HBO documentary, "The Music in Me: The Leopards Take Manhattan – The Little Band That Roared," and have performed for Prince Charles and with My Morning Jacket.

Jeffrey Lee Puckett: 502-582-4160; jpuckett@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @JLeePuckett. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/jeffreyl.