September 20, 1980 - Ozzy Osbourne and Blizzard Of Ozz

Three weeks after my last release another new artist joins my library when former Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne released his first solo album "Blizzard Of Ozz" on September 20, 1980. After being fired from Black Sabbath Ozzy recruited some new musicians to form his solo project. They would include keyboardist Don Airey (who guested on Sabbath's "Never Say Die!"), drummer Lee Kerslake, bassist Bob Daisley and guitarist Randy Rhoads. Let's see how Ozzy does flying solo with a new band!

The first song on the record is "I Don't Know" and after a slow start Rhoads comes in with a nice guitar riff and Daisley and Kerslake form a simple rhythm section. Ozzy begins the first verse and he still sounds like his usual self as sings nicely overtop of Rhoads' riff. They move into a slower chorus as Rhoads continues his solid guitar and Ozzy sings a pretty bland chorus. Rhoads fires off some sweet guitar after the chorus, but it's just a couple bars before they return to the main verse. They play another verse and chorus and afterwards things change to a very light rock section with Rhoads playing some decent slow guitar and Ozzy singing along. They build from this slow part back into a heavier riff and Rhoads goes off for his first guitar solo of the record. He shows us that he can shred as he plays a pretty awesome solo that includes lots of fast notes and fits the mood really well. He plays some more wicked guitar in a nice little bridge riff that connects things back to the main beat once more. They play a final verse and chorus and bring this decent song to a close. The next song is "Crazy Train" and this would become one of the most well-known rock songs around the world. Ozzy starts by yelling "All aboard!" followed by some nice evil sounding laughter. Daisley plays a nice bass riff bit when Rhoads comes in on guitar he takes over with one hell of a catchy guitar riff. It sounds pretty sweet and Rhoads leads it right into the first verse, which he drives with a different faster riff that also sounds pretty awesome! Ozzy begins the first verse and his voice along with Rhoads wicked guitar sound pretty great together. The chorus is also extremely catchy as Ozzy sings "I'm going off the rails on a crazy train" and Rhoads plays some excellent guitar in the chorus and a nice bit at the end that leads right back into another verse. He is playing some spectacular stuff throughout this song and showing that he's one hell of a guitarist! After another really great verse and chorus Kerslake plays some nice drums in a little bridge riff that leads into the guitar solo. Rhoads makes everything he's played thus far seem like child's play as he reels off a truly amazing guitar solo that sounds so damn good! After his solo he plays the epic opening riff again and it seems to sound even better this time! He nicely connects back to the verse as Ozzy leads one final epic verse and chorus before Rhoads and Kerslake jam it out until it fades to an end. Certainly an awesome and very memorable song! Track 3 is "Goodbye To Romance" and is much slower paced than the first two songs. Rhoads plays some decent light guitar and Daisley and Kerslake carry the beat with a slow rhythm section. Ozzy sings slowly overtop and things don't sound bad but it sounds even lighter than it should following such a great heavy song prior. The chorus is very similar to the verse as they lightly jam along and Ozzy laments the loss of a relationship. This slow style would become a staple for Ozzy solo albums and while it's definitely not my favourite Rhoads still plays some nice guitar. After another slow verse and chorus they play a slow bridge riff that leads to the Rhoads guitar solo. He goes full electric and plays a pretty sweet solo that is surely the highlight of the song. I leads back into another chorus and afterwards Rhoads slowly jams along while Ozzy sings a final verse. It's back to the chorus once more and after this one we hear Airey for the first time as he plays some light synths overtop of the chorus riff tospice things up a bit for the ending. It's nothing too special though as they slowly fade out this one as well. The next song "Dee" is under a minute long and is a short solo guitar piece by Rhoads. It's played on acoustic guitar and Randy plays fast and slow at times, very beautifully weaving his notes together. It's not what I would expect on an Ozzy album, but I like it and think it sounds pretty cool. The final song on this first side is titled "Suicide Solution" and it became the subject of much controversy after a teenager was found to have killed himself while listening to this song. His parents tried to sue Osbourne, claiming it was his fault because he wrote this song, but thankfully he was found innocent. I agree that it's definitely not Ozzy's fault and am glad that a bad precedent was not set. Musically it sounds like a typical Ozzy song, with Rhoads leading the way with a solid, heavy guitar riff and Daisley and Kerslake providing the simple rhythm section. None of the lyrics are direct commands at all and I think it's pretty obvious that there is no message that Ozzy wants listeners to commit suicide. The lyrics clearly paint an idea of someone being chased by the grim reaper, death following them around every corner, and suicide is somehow(?) the way out. After a couple verses and chorus's they move to a part that you would assume would be a solo, but instead they play a slow, heavy rock riff and Rhoads plays some droning, more trippy guitar instead of his usual flashy solos. It sounds decent enough but I certainly enjoy his amazing solos and it's odd not to hear one as they just jam out the end of the side. 

Side two kicks off with "Mr. Crowley" and Airey plays some awesome, haunting keyboards to open this song. It's a really epic opening bit that sounds pretty amazing, but when Ozzy sings the name of the song things shift into a more typical rock beat as Rhoads takes over with a nice, slow guitar riff. There's no real chorus to this song as Ozzy just keeps restarting the riff with a new "Mr. Crowley". Rhoads has a couple chances to show off his stuff but once Ozzy finishes singing they move into a full-blown guitar solo. Rhoads plays some electrifying stuff as he is absolutely tearing it up in this amazing solo! It's a decent length as well and by the end my jaw is left open as he plays some really great stuff! He also connects it nicely back into the verse as Ozzy rejoins the mix and Rhoads returns to the main riff. After the verse Rhoads plays a new guitar riff that sounds sweet as he takes things in a new direction. Ozzy sings a short new verse and his final "yeah!" carries into another Rhoads guitar solo. He just keeps pulling out all the stops as he plays some more fantastic, speedy guitar in this solo! Things start to fade out, but it's thankfully a slow fade that allows us to listen to Randy's amazing guitar playing all the way until the end of the song, and he never let's up right until the end! What a spectacular guitar display, and a great song to boot! Up next is "No Bone Movies" and Rhoads typically leads the way with another solid main guitar riff and Kerslake plays some decent drums. Ozzy comes in to sing the first verse and sounds like his usual self as he has certainly seemed to have found a formula that works. Rhoads guitar continues to be the highlight and the chorus for this song is just Ozzy singing the name a few times, a little uninspired. The music is catchy enough though as they play another verse and chorus before it's guitar solo time. Rhoads plays some long, high notes, but he never really gets it going in this solo as he seems content to jam along more slowly. It's not like it's bad at all, you just know he could've done so more. This leads back into a final verse and with still a minute and a half to go, they begin to jam out the chorus! Rhoads solos overtop at times and Ozzy does some decent rambling vocals as Daisley and Kerslake keep the chorus beat going. It all ends with a pretty nice rock and roll flourish that has some great guitar, bass and drums before we hear Ozzy say "that'll do". Yes, it sure will. Track 8 is the longest on the album at just over six minutes, "Revelation (Mother Earth)". Rhoads plays a slow but nice guitar riff and Airey plays some backing keyboards in this sad-sounding opening. The rest of the band joins in for the verse as Ozzy sings some slow, high-pitched vocals. His lyrics are about how man continues to abuse our planet and he pleads "let my mother live". For a slow verse it's not too shabby and things get a bit heavier in the chorus as Rhoads plays some nice guitar and we hear lots of bells that actually sound quite fitting in the sombre mood. They return to the slow verse but this time add some weird synth-like vocals that I'm not a fan of. Instead of another chorus Rhoads takes things a different way with a nice new guitar riff that leads to an instrumental part with Airey playing some nice piano. He plays some better synths in this part that make things sound a bit haunting, but his piano playing is quite good as he plays a great solo. This connects nicely back into the cool bridge riff and Rhoads takes off in another direction now as he seems to be building things up for an epic guitar solo. Rhoads delivers the goods with another really great guitar solo and I love this progressive song with all it's different parts! This closing guitar solo sounds pretty epic and awesome and Kerslake ends the song with a final epic cymbal splash, and it leads right into the final song on the album "Steal Away (The Night)". Rhoads starts another catchy lead guitar riff that sounds pretty good and Daisley plays some solid bass to back him. Ozzy sings nicely along to the beat in another catchy, well-done riff but his chorus lines are again to just sing the name of the song a few times. I guess that's all that's needed from him? Rhoads plays some more sweet guitar to keep things interesting and he brings it back for another solid verse and simple chorus. Rhoads final guitar solo on the album is another great one and it's hard for words to accurately describe how many unique, amazing guitar solos he plays on this album. He is one hell of a guitarist and Ozzy definitely found his main man. Rhoads continues to lead the way as they play a final verse and jam out the chorus a couple times to finish off this electric debut album.

That is the end of "Blizzard Of Ozz" and I thought it was a pretty great album! Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley are both really great songs and Ozzy Osbourne seems to have successfully remade himself. Randy Rhoads seems to be elite already and he is the highlight of every song on the album. It's a hell of a debut album and one that will be very tough to beat, and it also comes out the same year as his former band Black Sabbath's rebranding. Who did it better? Tune in to the year-end rankings to see!