![]() ![]() ![]() Tour bus driver and sometime pilot Andrew Aycock noticed a plane on the property of the place they’d stopped and decided to steal it he took a couple of people up with him the first time and landed without incident. After a show in Orlando, FL in 1982, the band stopped in Leesburg to fix an air conditioning unit. He was a force to be reckoned with, a brilliant musician with a fresh take on a well-worn instrument, and so it was inevitable that he would die young, because that’s rock ‘n ‘ roll for some reason, even when you avoid drugs and alcohol in a band full of drugged-out alcoholics. He also got deep into the theory behind his playing, encouraging Ozzy and the rest of the band to write songs that fell outside of the usual “A or E” key that heavy metal tracks were written in. Those background riffs are solid, nothing fancy – chords and chord-transitions that let Ozzy soar his voice, but when it comes time for the solo Rhoads leaps out and gets downright liquid, slipping through lines and playing faster than any human has a right to play. Tribute is the perfect, er, tribute to how he managed this: check out “Flying High Again”, or the inevitable “Crazy Train”. He plays in support of the singer, up until it’s time to let loose and then GAWD DAMN, Randy Rhoads could melt your face off. The riffs are crunchy and yet grounded, something a shredder like Yngwie Malmsteen could never quite grasp. His playing on Ozzy’s two best albums, the one-two punch of of Blizzard of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman, are what makes those albums so great. He sent everyone back to the woodshed, and his influence on the neoclassical movement of shred guitar cannot be overstated. Randy Rhoads was a barnburner of a guitar player, a shredder that did for guitar in the 1980s what Eddie Van Halen did for guitar in the 1970s. That’s actually a very understated thing to say – “played guitar for”. He was quiet, unassuming, and mostly stone sober, an Odd Couple-esque contrast to the guy he played guitar for, Ozzy Osbourne circa 1980-1981. Shorter than average, and rail-thin to the point of emaciation, most of the space that Randy Rhoads took up was due to his massive, lion-like mane of blonde hair. I think his marriage was on the rocks and he ultimately realized he had to get better or he was going to lose Sharon.Īgain, similar in theme to "The Wall" and also to the Beatles' song "Nowhere Man".Ozzy Osbourne – Tribute Released March 19th, 1987 on Epic Records It's like Pink Floyd's "The Wall", he's building a psychological wall around himself.Īt the end, he finally tears down the wall and decides the depression will pass. In other words, he isn't saying "I wish I had never been born".Īs for the 'road to nowhere' part, I think he's saying he's trapped by his old habits.he isn't making any progress because his past keeps coming back to haunt him. His alcoholism, drug abuse, and depression still haunt him.he can't forgive himself and move on with his life.he hasn't learned to "live for today and not tomorrow".ĭespite that, he decides life has been worth the ride and he would do it all again if he had the choice. In the second verse ("the wreckage of my past keeps haunting me"), he can't let go of his past. He still finds life a mystery.still looking for "the meaning of life". I love the guitar work on it.Īs coconut said, Ozzy is looking back on his life and the mistakes he's made. I can't believe more people haven't commented on this song. I never want to live without you (oh yeah) The wreckage of my past keeps haunting meĪh ah, the road to nowhere's gonna pass me byĪh ah, I hope we never have to say goodbye
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