Talking of Alice Cooper, while the likes of Jeff Beck, Leslie West (Mountain), Jimmy Page, Ritchie Blackmore, Michael Schenker (UFO, MSG) and Mick Ronson (David Bowie) are often cited as being major influences on Randy, one that is rarely mentioned but, according to close friends, was a huge source of inspiration on the then fledgling guitarist, was Alice Cooper guitarist, Glen Buxton. Detour over, back to the main plot…
Needless to say, with his
“He also told me once that he would learn a lot by actually watching and listening to his students play,” Rudy continues. “Sometimes natural musicians have different ways of doing things – like the way they hold the pick or position their left (fretboard) hand. He would look carefully at the way natural players would handle their instrument and learn from that.”
“Randy was a really good teacher,” Delores confirms with understandable pride. “He always passed on his love for music and encouraged his students to be as dedicated and musically curious as he was. He also made the students feel really important and he would always end up the lesson by playing with them. And, of course, they all came out on cloud nine as they thought they were the good ones.”
After running the usual gamut of garage bands, Randy formed his first real band, Quiet Riot, and by the mid ‘70s the outfit had become the house band at the Starwood, an infamous Hollywood rock club. Sarzo joined that in 1978, a year before Randy left to join Ozzy Osbourne and commence his rapid rise to rock stardom. Ironically though, the Ozzy audition nearly didn’t happen… “When they first called Randy to audition for Ozzy he said, ‘Oh I don’t think I’d be interested because I work for my Mom and I have my own band which I like.’” Delores recounts. “He wasn’t even going to go. I said, ‘What was that all about Randy? Who was that?’ I didn’t recognize the name Ozzy Osbourne because I didn’t know anything about the rock scene and Randy explained to me that he had been in the business for a long time with a band called Black Sabbath. He also said, ‘I really don’t care for that band at all!’“ “So I said, ‘Well if he’s been in the business that long sometimes that’s a good thing. Who you know is important as that can give you a little inlet or something that helps you get further along in the industry.’ Anyway, they called backthem itandwouldsaid,have‘Wetoreallybe latedobecausewant youhetowouldcome beto audition’teachingandhereRandyfirst andtold
“Randy Rhoads - one of the greatest guitar players of all time. With an amazing grasp and depth of knowledge of scales and harmonic theory, Randy insisted on no compromises as he constructed his arrangements and solos - which his work clearly shows.
Randy also insisted on no compromises for his amplification - there's no doubt in my mind that his Marshall amps and cabinets not only accompanied but assisted Randy in his climb to greatness. There's no doubt in my mind that the tonality and presence”of the
Randy Rhoads White Amp will help you get there too!
Max Norman Engineer of Blizzard of Ozz, Producer/Engineer of Diary of a Madman & Tribute
While much has been written about Randy the musician, little has been written about Randy the man and it would appear that he was equally as special as a person as he was a player. “…he inspired, cheered and made everyone in contact with him feel good.” Ozzy wrote in Tribute.
“Musically Randy touched a lot people and still does to this very day,” Sarzo smiles. “I was one of the few blessed ones who got to know him as a human being and I learned a lot from him, especially how to carry yourself in the face of becoming famous. He really took that well and never changed as a person, becoming popular didn’t affect him whatsoever. Some people thought he was quiet but sometimes I think we confuse being quiet with being humble. He was a very humble guy with a great sense of humour. If you spent some time with him you were bound to see him do something funny or ridiculous just for the sake of a good laugh.”
Sadly, as we all know, Randy’s brief but brilliant career came to an end on March 19th, 1982, following a tragic and unnecessary plane crash. As Mrs. Rhoads points out, “he accomplished so much in his short life. Only the Lord above knows how much more he could have given us.”
As already mentioned, despite his
At the aforementioned induction ceremony – with the help of the one and only Zakk Wylde, who was also in attendance as a speaker – the wheels started well and truly rolling towards the creation of the Limited Edition 1959RR. As Zakk told me way back in 2001 when we were working on his own signature head,Randy.“forgetEnd ofaboutstory.”me,Wetheallguyagreedwhoandhassotothankfullyhave a signatureso did theMarshallRhoadsis
Photo © Jay Banbury
“Randy was a phenomenal player and probably my first real taste of heavy guitar. Before I heard him I was listening to hard rock like Van Halen and Randy was much more classical sounding and heavier sounding too. Both his rhythm playing and his leads were incredible. The only time I saw him play live was on New Year’s Eve the year before the tragedy occurred and he really did blow me away. Randy was a tiny dude and must’ve only weighed a 100lbs wet! His guitar was almost as big”as he was but he played the hell out of it.
Kerry King, Slayer
ENGLISH
didn’t want to let his students down. They said they didn’t care how late it was and it ended up that he wasn’t gone all that long at all. He came back much sooner than I expected. ‘Well, what happened?’ I asked and he said, ‘Oh I don’t know. I was just warming up a little bit and tuning up when Ozzy came out and told me I’d got the job!’”
As legend now has it, apparently Ozzy was sleeping on a couch in the rehearsal room and when he initially woke up he thought Randy was a girl! Then he heard him play and literally knew within seconds that he’d found the guitarist of his dreams. “Building the band with Randy was one of the happiest
times of my life,” Ozzy wrote in the sleeve notes of the 1987 album. “He
helped make all my dreams come true.”Tribute
What happened once Ozzy and Randy joined forces is now part of heavy metal folklore and has been documented countless times. Alongside Ozzy, Randy came into his own and his tremendous talents literally took the rock world by storm. “I always tell people that I played with two different Randy Rhoads,” Rudy Sarzo states. “The one I played with in Quiet Riot was a chameleon. We were always trying to please the record companies so we’d always try and write songs that sounded like the current rock hit of the day. With Ozzy though he instantly became the Randy that everyone else got to hear and love – the one who composed “Crazy Train”, “Diary of a Madman” and all those classic songs. He was very focused on his own style and sound because with Ozzy he finally had the freedom to just be himself.
“Being a teacher he was very knowledgeable of music in general so, as a musician he had a very broad vocabulary,” Rudy expands. “He was a very
family. The result is the stunning looking and sounding limited edition head you are now the proud owner of. Thank you Mr. Wylde...and thank you Randy!! To close, why is Randy’s influence still so huge a staggering 26 years after he was taken from us? Rudy Sarzo’s answer is beyond perfect: “Well, since I joined MySpace I get tons and tons of messages from not only older fans but from a lot of young musicians who have been touched by his music and his playing. When they hear it they hear the same purity and soulfulness that we heard when we heard Randy for the first time. That has not been lost or diminished by time. The same exact thing applies to the music of Jimi Hendrix – it has a certain characteristic that makes it timeless. Randy has that same timeless quality to his sound, songwriting and playing style.”
For these very same reasons, Marshall Amplification is proud to offer the Limited Edition 1959RR in tribute to Randy’s timeless talent.
Nick Bowcott, January 2008
Special thanks to Delores & Kelle Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, Rudy Sarzo, Max Norman, Guitar World magazine, Rita Haney & the Abbott family for permission to use Dime’s quote, plus all the wonderful guitarists who kindly gave us the quotes used above.
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“Randy Rhoads? He was a total life changing experience for me. I can still remember back to when I was a 10 year old kid hearing "Crazy Train" for the first time and immediately thinking "that's all I want to do. If I could just play that whole song I'll be happy as a guitarist!" On top of being such a phenomenal and innovative player and soloist Randy was also an amazing” composer. He was definitely an epiphany in my life.
John 5, Rob Zombie & solo artist
| I saw Randy Rhoads when I was 14 years | ” | |
old. He had the best rock sound I have EVER | |||
heard live. His tone and playing blew my mind. | |||
“ |
| Paul Gilbert | |
|
| Randy had a unique gift and |
|
| produced many tasty riffs and melodies. | ||
| He shall remain one of the greats. |
| |
| “ | Yngwie Malmsteen” | |
“Randy Rhoads is truly a guitar icon. His unique approach to songwriting, riff construction and lead playing singlehandedly established a new standard for metal guitar that would last decades beyond his all too brief career and untimely death. Randy's style and techniques, both on stage and in the studio, are every bit as relevant today as they were in 1981, and remain THE template for heavy metal lead guitar. His influence is absolutely colossal, shaping generations of future artists. It's amazing to think that such an abbreviated catalog of material, cut short by tragedy, could so change the genre, but his impact is undeniable. Randy was my very first heavy metal guitar hero, and is a huge part of why I was drawn to music. His playing still gives me the same "goose bumps" it did”when I was 14 years old.... and for that, I remain grateful.
Mark Morton, Lamb of God
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