Ozzy Osbourne - Diary of a Madman

There are albums that we love and there are albums that are undeniable classics. Diary of a Madman is both.

by Andreas Andreou

Originally released on November 7th of 1981 with a recording line up of Ozzy Osbourne (vocals), Randy Rhoads (guitars), Bob Daisley (bass), Lee Kerslake (drums) and Max Norman as a producer. While it is rumoured that Johnny Cook and not Don Airey played keyboards, producer Max Norman has stated that keyboards were played "by Don and that big ass CS80". Louis Clark is responsible for the string arrangements on the epic title track. 

Back-to-back with Blizzard of Ozz, this second album is a band creation where all members deserve credits. However, no matter how iconic and classic this album is, back in the day it was recorded fast, without even completing or expanding the ideas they had, in the way they really wanted. Diary of a Madman was recorded and released very fast because the management wanted the band to go on tour very soon.

Before even the album was released, Rudy Sarzo (bass) and Tommy Aldridge (drums) took over the rhythm section for the upcoming tour and Daisley with Kerslake were out of the band. Both of them weren't very happy with the situation therein, they wanted this to be a "band", as it was promised, and not just supporting a solo artist. However, Kerslake's replacement was Ozzy's first choice even before the first album but he wasn't available at that time, while Bob Daisley was coming back again and again until No More Tears album.

Diary of a metal classic and beyond:

Over the Mountain: "Something in my vision, something deep inside". The album starts with a well known drum pattern that set a template for countless songs in the metal history. Actually, few years ago, Frankie Banali claimed that this is his intro from the early rehearsals of the band with Dana Strum on bass, and of course Ozzy and Randy, that took place in Los Angeles in late 1979. Randy Rhoads is mixing unique phrases and metal riffing with classical tradition from the opening track. Ozzy always had the charisma to locate pure talent and let his fate and ideas in their hands to expand them. He always had unknown guitarists that after his albums were considered iconic players, each in his time and beyond. Randy Rhoads already sounds like no other and in the years to come, many guitarists wanted to sound like him. 

Flying High Again: "People think I'm crazy but I'm in demand". Drugs was a huge part in Ozzy's life, especially in the '80s. Cheesy lyrics but this feelgood rocker was a fave live hit in the United States. It is rumored that the tour dwarf Ozzy had on stage was Kenny Baker, the actor who played R2D2 at the classic Star Wars films. Ozzy used to call him "Ronnie"...

You Can't Kill Rock And Roll: "King of a thousand knights, pawn in a table fight losing to you". Memorable and great vocal lines with amazingly guitar work and melodies. Lyrically, it is an idea of Ozzy against the attitude of record companies until that time, and Daisley filled the lyrics. However, from that point and on, Sharon gets in the picture and Ozzy was never treated bad again from the record industry. Most likely he had the upper hand and the final word.

Believer: "People beseech me but they'll never teach me things that I already know". Starting with a plain but memorable bass line, "Believer" is a song that brings in mind some of Black Sabbath's glory. It makes no sense to think of better singers. These songs and this album need this voice. I cannot think of anyone else (no matter how good he is) to sing this songs and justify them. These songs are meant to be for Ozzy and he is their soul.

Little Dolls: "The pins and needles prick the skin of little dolls". Side B also starts with a drum intro and this time with a tribal rhythm. Someone might say that the music of this track is to happy for those lyrics, and also this is one of those "not finally completed" songs, since it is rumoured that the Randy solo that is used was just a demo recording and not the final one.

Tonight: "Good intentions pave the way to hell, don't you worry when you hear me sing". Ozzy always had ballads in his albums and some of them are really great. Daisley fills with some notable bass lines and once again, Randy Rhoads spreads his magic.

S.A.T.O.: "Now I find peace of mind, finally found a way of thinking". For some people it stands for Sailing Across The Ocean but most likely it goes for Sharon Arden - Thelma Osbourne (Ozzy's ex-wife) with the change in Ozzy's personal life and in the next months, on July of 1982, Ozzy and Sharon were married. There are even progressive elements in this track, with a weird intro and unorthodox scales. There is great drumming and bass lines on the background and Randy shines here with his licks and performance.

Diary of a Madman: "Sanity now it's beyond me there's no choice". During this period, there are some of the most known incidents of Ozzy's madness; Alamo, doves and bat bite. It is a weird coincidence that all this madness happened at the period around Diary of a Madman, so either he is a madman indeed, or there is a very well stractured professional business plan. The song itself, is a masterpiece and the strings arrangment unique and ahead of its time. You can hear violin and cello in a heavy metal song, in 1981... Progressive metal bands like Psychotic Waltz (just ask them) are highly inspired by this song (and album) and the stracture and aura of this track can be founded in late-Savatage, and even in songs like Queensryche's "Suite Sister Mary".

Diary of a Madman is the last album of Randy Rhoads, that died in a plane accident on March 19th of 1982, while touring with Ozzy in the United States.

Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz

Ozzy Osbourne's first solo album, Blizzard of Ozz, was released on September 20th of 1980. Let's remember...

Black Sabbath no more. Ozzy is on the edge of the abyss. 1979. Enter Sharon. A blizzard is coming.
 

Blizzard of Ozz is a monumental release for heavy metal music and one of the albums that inspired what we love in metal during the glorious '80s. Let's agree on that. This wouldn't be possible without the proper team that included phenomenal guitarist Randy Rhoads, bass player and lyricist Bob Daisley, drummer Lee Kerslake and Don Airey on keyboards. The album was recorded between March to April of 1980, it was produced by the band and engineered by Max Norman. Most likely it was produced by Max Norman but he wasn't the one who started to work on the album from the beginning... However we will speak soon for his complete work at next Ozz albums where he takes full credits.

Now, keep in mind that we are still in 1980, when Iron Maiden and Angel Witch just had their debut albums released, Saxon just started riding on wheels of steel, NWoBHM was all over with countless new bands (some great, some average, most of them with few songs and lot of rock attitude and sound), Motorhead were doing their thing, and just a handful of groups were trying to play heavy metal with the "SOUND" it is meant to be and not with just some distortion or just few (actual) metal songs in hard rock or rock-driven albums. In fact, two other albums that were the bridge from '70s to the '80s metal sound were also released in 1980, and defined-unlocked the "SOUND". These are Heaven and Hell and British Steel. Of course, Judas Priest was already the second greatest metal pioneer (after Black Sabbath) with their '70s metal albums but the production of Tom Allom in British Steel and Martin Birch in Heaven and Hell is the turning point for what followed. From that year and on , heavy metal already had the "SOUND" and the structure. It wasn't "hard-rock-ish", "rock-driven" or "proto-metal" (funny term of the last years, if you want my opinion), or whatever; it is pure Heavy Metal now, in all terms, and that is more than obvious in the '80s, despite that thunder during February the 13th of 1970. There was heavy metal in the '70s of course, but from 1980 and on, there is a real explosion and Blizzard of Ozz is among the albums that settled the template for '80s heavy metal.

Back in Blizzard of Ozz. Its production is not such a defining moment as the two albums mentioned above, but there are some monumental songs in this album; no doubt about it. There are parts that inspired a generation of metal fans, among them musicians that created bands and albums we love. Ozzy, Randy and Daisley were putting most of the music together. Usually Ozzy had a song title, some lines and a vocal melody. He was singing the vocal melody with random words, Randy came up with most of music and Daisley with the majority of the lyrics and some music, with most of the songs completed by the end of 1979 - early 1980. None of those songs was laid on paper or partitures and they were created on jamming and countless rehearsals, by ear and mutual approval.

Randy Rhoads was free to play and compose on classical scales and arrangements. Since 1979 you could hear "this" in some hard rock guitar players and songs but he was probably the first heavy metal artist using classical phrasing. Guitarists like Blackmore, Schenker and Van Halen were a revelation for countless young musicians, but now we are in 1980 and a 100% heavy metal album sets new standards. Also, according to Ozzy, "one day Randy came to me and said that most heavy metal songs are written in an A to E chord structure. Randy said, 'let's try to change that', so we made a rule that almost every number that we recorded on an album was never played in the same key". Just imagine how things would evolve if Randy was still with us. Most likely he would surpass guitarists that are now considered "greatest". 

Ozzy still gives the greatest credit to Randy and he always remembers him. According to Ozzy, Randy was the first one that gave him time and had the patience and time to hear his ideas and work with them. Randy Rhoads (who surprisingly didn't like Black Sabbath) admired guitarists like Leslie West (Mountain), Glen Buxton (Alice Cooper Band) and Jeff Beck, and he was a fan of David Bowie's music, but his playing was mainly a result of classical study; a unique revelation that inspired many guitarists like James Murphy, Joey Tafolla, Criss Oliva and Phillip Sandoval, just to name few, besides the indirect inspiration to countless more.

However, Ozzy's first choice for his solo band was Gary Moore, but this didn't happen because Gary wanted to start his own band. According to the Randy Rhoads audition story, Randy was tuning up, doing some arpeggios and Ozzy stopped him and said, "you got the job". Of course this is a lovely myth (or half of the truth, if you prefer) and a couple of days later, Ozzy auditioned Randy again because he wanted to make sure that it would all work out in a band situation. Frankie Banali played drums and Dana Strum was the bass player in those early auditions that took place in Los Angeles. When Ozzy returned to UK, the label and management (Jet Records and Don Arden) wanted to keep Ozzy's new band all British, so Bob Daisley entered the band and finally they accepted Randy because Ozzy wanted him without any further discussion.

At a time when bands and musicians saw for first time the cover of the album and the layout only upon its release, when Blizzard of Ozz hit the stores, Daisley and Kerslake weren't very happy because they were "promised" that this would be a band and they wouldn't just support a solo artist.

The first song written for Blizzard of Ozz was "Goodbye to Romance", a farewell to Black Sabbath and a commitment to the future, with Ozzy writing and singing "I've been the king, I've been the clown, still broken wings can't hold me down, I'm free again". "Mr. Crowley" is a neo-classical heavy metal piece of art in the true essence of this description, before the term "neo-classical" start to appear in metal music. "Revelation (Mother Earth)" is a milestone of lyrical heavy metal before the term "lyrical" accompany the music of some beloved underground US metal acts in the years to come. No need to mention the heartbreaking performance of Ozzy in this song...

1980. Heavy metal is already here. Complete as we know it. In form, stracture and sound, stronger than ever before. The doors are opened.
 
Blizzard of Ozz is a true groundbreaking album that has sold over 6,000,000 copies worldwide and has been certified 4 times Platinum in the United States, with sales keep going on.

Track list: 1. I Don't Know, 2. Crazy Train, 3. Goodbye To Romance, 4. Dee, 5. Suicide Solution, 6. Mr. Crowley, 7. No Bone Movies, 8 Revelation (Mother Earth), 9. Steal Away (The Night)