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“There are some people who are like a shooting star. They come, hit the planet
and explode into a beautiful rainbow of colours. Then they shoot off
somewhere else... that was the life of Randy Rhoads.”
The source of these touching, eloquent words? Believe it or not, they’re directly
from the mouth of hard rock’s most beloved madman, Ozzy Osbourne – taken
from an interview he did with Guitar World magazine a few years ago. In truth,
to anyone who knows more about Ozzy than the often shocking image the
popular tabloid press like to portray, this sort of lyrical waxing by the
legendary heavy metal artist will come as no surprise, especially when it comes
to Randy Rhoads. After all, the singer considered the late, great guitarist to
have not only been his “best friend” but also “the greatest musician I have ever
known.”
Ozzy is not alone in rightfully considering Randy to be one of the most
extraordinary musical talents in the history of rock – only a handful of players
are as beloved and revered as he is. In the space of a mere two studio albums
with Ozzy – 1980’s Blizzard of Ozz and 1981’s Diary of a Madman – the
guitarist established himself as one of the most innovative and inspirational rock
guitarists to ever walk this planet. Furthermore, despite the heartbreaking fact
that Randy was taken from us at the tender age of only 25, the timeless nature
of his talent continues to inspire countless young players some 26 years later...
such is the size of the indelible shadow Randy cast and the colossal impact of
his brief but brilliant career.
What makes Randy so very special? Well, like all timeless musicians it wasn’t
only his incredible playing but also his profound skills in the areas of
composition and arranging. Simply put, the songs he wrote with Ozzy are as
fresh sounding and exciting today as they were when they were first penned.
Add to that Randy’s brilliant rhythm work, his jaw-dropping solos and lead fills,
plus his trademark penchant for successfully blending his classical sensibilities
with hard rock and you’re left with the stuff that legends are made of. As Zakk
Wylde, Ozzy’s current, longstanding six-string sideman and a guitar God in his
own right, so aptly puts it in his heartfelt, handwritten introduction to this tome:
“What more can I say? Randy had it all, still has it, always had it – beyond
forever, always will. Without Randy I wouldn’t be the player I am today –the
chops, the writing and that amazing father Marshall tone.” And Zakk isn’t
alone with such sentiments – as you will see from the quotes that pepper this
piece, Randy influenced a whole generation of cutting-edge players who are
now influencers themselves. From the likes of Kirk Hammett & Kerry King to
Dimebag (RIP), John 5 & Alexi Laiho (Children of Bodom), Randy’s influence is
omnipresent...
Talking of omnipresent entities: to a great many folk, Randy’s beloved, large
logo, white Marshall 100 Watt Super Lead head is as synonymous with the
guitarist as is the unique white Jackson guitar he designed (aside for trivia fans
– this axe was originally named the “Concorde” by Randy and co-creator,
Grover Jackson). As the engineer of Blizzard of Ozz and the
producer/engineer of Diary of a Madman and the posthumously released live
Tribute albums, Max Norman, recently told us about Randy, “he 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.” As a fitting tribute to Randy, the 1959RR head you’re now
the proud owner of is not only visually identical to his legendary Marshall, it is
also sonically identical as well.
As revealed elsewhere in this manual, when Randy ordered his now famous
white head, he visited the factory to pick it up and had it modified for more
gain while he was there. Thanks to the Rhoads family, one of our engineers
was allowed to take a detailed peak inside Randy’s original head (wisely kept
under lock and key in a vault in an undisclosed location along with his equally
famous guitars) to ensure that the Tribute amp was electronically identical to it.
As a further bonus we were also able to speak to the Marshall test manager
who did the modification while “the small bloke with a white Les Paul” patiently
stood by and waited! The mod in question? It simply cascades the two halves of
the first ECC83 valve, giving you a lot more preamp distortion than in a
standard 1959 Super Lead head. Channel I (a.k.a. the “High Treble” channel)
remains “as is” but when you plug into Channel II (the so-called “Normal”
channel) both Volume controls (I & II) work together in tandem (series) to
produce the increased preamp overdrive desired. The result? Well, to quote
Zakk again, “Father Marshall tone” indeed!
Randy was so happy with his visit to the Marshall factory and the amp he left
with that he actually penned the following in a postcard to his friend and ex-
band mate, Kevin DuBrow – the recently deceased singer for Quiet Riot. "I did
something you'll appreciate – I went to the Marshall factory and ordered my
own amps, I had them beefed up and modified there, I got them in white!”
Randy entered this world as Randall William Rhoads in Santa Monica,
California, on December 6th 1956. To say he was born into a musical family
would be a gross understatement as his beloved mother, Delores, ran a Music
School in North Hollywood named Musonia - a fine institution she still works in
every day at nearly 90 years young! Randy started playing guitar at the
tender age of 6½ after finding his Grandfather’s old Gibson acoustic in a
closet. “He just picked it up and that was his life from then on.” Delores recalls
with a grin. “Naturally I had him start taking lessons from one of my guitar
teachers – he learned a few simple chords and they would play some of those
songs that he especially liked.”
Even though one of his most magical musical moments is the short acoustic solo
piece “Dee” (named after and dedicated to his mother, Delores) on Blizzard of
Ozz, Randy didn’t stick with the acoustic long. “By the time he was seven he
came to me and said, ‘you know Momma, I really want to play electric
guitar.’” Delores laughs. “I had a very good teacher at that time so I said fine
but the only instrument we had was an old semi-acoustic and the guitar was
almost larger than he was!”
Armed with his behemoth instrument, Randy was a natural and developed as a
player incredibly quickly. “He learned very fast, it was just amazing.” Delores
confirmed. “The story about his teacher, Scott Shelley, saying to me, ‘I’ve
taught him all I know I can’t teach him anything more’ has been written up in
the magazines quite often. I said, ‘Come on Scott,’ because I thought he was
teasing me but he told me that he really meant it. So then Randy had to take it
upon his own self to do what he wanted to do, which he did.
“He just loved the guitar,” Delores continues. “That was his whole life. He
wouldn’t go any place without his guitar - if we went on a vacation, we had to
take it!” Alongside his love for the guitar came an affinity for rock music after
his older brother, Kelle, took him to an Alice Cooper concert which, as Mrs.
Rhoads recalls with a smile, “impressed Randy a great deal and influenced him
to get really interested in rock.”
Marshall’s meet up with Kelle Rhoads for a technical assessment of Randy’s Marshall gear
It was my pleasure to assist Randy in this very joyful occasion, at Musonia School of Music
in California; it was just me and the Signature Series Development Engineer from Marshall
Amplification, we were in the room where I teach my students, and one by one the amp and
cabinets that belonged to Randy, were pulled from their road cases and thoroughly scrutinized.
Randy was so happy the day he got to go to Marshalls and pick this equipment. Well, here we are
twenty five years later with the very same gear, except the black stenciled name on the boxes is
not just a touring guitarist name anymore; it is the name of one of the world’s greatest Icons. I could
feel his presence that day, laughing and smiling while the Marshall engineer worked over the circuit
board and sweated to make sure everything was 100% accurate.
In the end standing on the porch of Musonia, as Randy and I so often did, smoking a cigarette
(so appropriate if you knew Randy) the Marshall engineer and I said goodbye and off he went
back to England… and I was left with special memories of Randy and his amps once again.
54
ENGLISH
Randy Rhoads: Tribute to a Timeless Talent
Randy Rhoads was more than just a
guitar player – he was a lion! He represented
the hardworking musician whose dedication
to his instrument brought him all the success
that he deserved, without compromising his
attitude and vision or his sound and tone. He
also laid down the blueprint to show us how
to follow our own vision as well.
Kirk Hammett, Metallica
I can’t say enough good things about Randy and the
influence he had on me, especially when it came to
orchestrating. The classical vibe he had was incredible.
I loved Randy’s brittle sound and his awesome ability to
double his leads. There’s no telling what that cat would be
busting off if he was still around. He was a monster player
and his guitar work on “Blizzard of Ozz” and “Diary of a
Madman” was definitely one step above anything else
going on at that time. To me, Eddie Van Halen was heavy
rock ‘n’ roll, but Randy was heavy metal.
Dimebag Darrell (RIP), Pantera, Damageplan
From Randy's fierce playing to
his dedication as a musician, he was
and still is an inspiration to me in all
ways, not just as a guitarist.
Doug Aldrich, Whitesnake
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Zakk Wylde
Black Label Society & Ozzy Osbourne
Kelle Rhoads
I was 13 when I first heard Randy playing on the live
'Tribute' album which is still my favourite Ozzy release
and always will be. The way Randy played rhythm and
threw in those gnarly licks in-between just blew me
away. I was already familiar with players like Steve Vai
and Yngwie Malmsteen but there was just something
about his sound that was something else.
He's definitely been a big influence on my playing... and
how I like my guitars shaped! Each note he played
served the music which is what makes a great guitarist...
and that was Randy.
Alexi Laiho, Children of Bodom
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