November 7, 1981 - Diary Of A Madman

Three days after my last release (which happened to be his former band Black Sabbath) and a year after "Blizzard Of Ozz" Ozzy Osbourne released his second solo album "Diary Of A Madman" on November 7, 1981. This album has the same line-up as their superb debut album but Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake were curiously not given any credit for any of the songs, despite them both helping with the writing of music and Daisley even writing some of the lyrics. This was apparently a decision made by Ozzy's manager (and wife) Sharon and they were also both fired from the band and did not go on it's subsequent tour. That is pretty insane to just write them off like that, and thankfully they won a lawsuit and are now given the proper credit but what a way to blow up the band. So let's listen to our second and final album by this line-up!

The album kicks off with "Over The Mountain", one of the two successful singles. Kerslake starts it off with a pretty sweet drum roll before he and Daisley settle into a nice backing riff while the talented Randy Rhoads leads the way with some nice catchy guitar. Ozzy begins the first verse overtop this main riff and he sounds like himself, sounding pretty solid singing in his usual high voice. Kerslake adds some more nice drums to the chorus which has a much simpler guitar riffs but it's not long before they're back for the next verse. After another verse and chorus they slow things down in a new part where Ozzy sings "you don't need a ticket to fly with me", I'm free" and Rhoads starts a new guitar riff that sounds pretty cool. This leads right into a full-blown guitar solo and Rhoads reminds us how amazing he is by playing a phenomenal solo. It sounds really great as he keeps you on the edge of your seat and another Kerslake drum roll brings things back to the main riff. They play a final verse but instead of the chorus, Rhoads plays the same lead-up to his last solo and ends the song on an awesome note with a final flash of brilliance. A great way to start things off! The next song was an even bigger radio hit, titled "Flying High Again". They kick right into the main riff as Rhoads plays some great slow guitar and Daisley backs him with some solid bass. Ozzy sings an echo-y "oh no... here we go" before resuming his natural vocals for the catchy first verse. He sounds great when he sings "I've been a bad, bad boy" and when he sings the name of the song to start the chorus things sound really epic as Rhoads quiets down before reeling off some sweet guitar. They play another catchy verse and it's easy to see why this was the lead single as it's a simple riff but it sounds great. After a longer chorus the second time it's time for Randy's guitar solo. He starts it off slow, but really ramps things up and delivers another face-melting solo by the end that sounds pretty awesome. This leads right into another chorus as Ozzy songs the name of the song some more and from there they basically start the song over as we hear Ozzy's "oh no... here we go" again. I love the line "people think I'm crazy but I'm in demand" as that sums things up pretty nicely! They play a final chorus and unfortunately they just jam out the chorus several times over until it eventually fades to an end. A boring end to an otherwise quite good song. Track 3 is the seven-minute "You Can't Kill Rock And Roll" and it begins very softly with Rhoads playing some decent light guitar. Ozzy sings lightly along in the first verse and while things sound decent, it's a big shift down from the first two songs. Rhoads shifts to some slightly heavier guitar in the chorus as Ozzy tells us that rock and roll is a religion and it's here to stay. I totally agree, but this song sounds like light, breezy rock, it's got no roll! They play another tame, slow verse and chorus but then Daisley shifts to a nice heavy bass riff to set the stage for the guitar solo. Rhoads does a pretty good job; it's not nearly as flashy as the earlier songs but fits the slow mood nicely. After the solo Daisley's solid bass continues into a short bridge part that brings us back to the slow main riff for another verse. They play the chorus a couple times before Rhoads goes off on a new part with some cool droning guitar. They start the fadeout with a minute left in the song still so we hear Randy lead a final solid part, but it just gets quieter and quieter. I think they could've faded with 10 seconds or so left and let us hear Randy full blast! The final song on the first side is "Believer" and Daisley leads the way with a nice bass riff while Rhoads plays some screeching guitar in the background. After a drum fill Rhoads plays a slow, epic riff that blends very nicely with Daisley's bass and sounds pretty great. He even speeds things up when Ozzy begins singing and things sound very smooth in this cool verse. Ozzy sings faster in the chorus that sounds a bit less epic but they move to a new part afterwards with Rhoads playing some lighter guitar and Ozzy singing a short bridge. This connects to a new heavy riff that becomes the backing for Rhoads' guitar solo and everything sounds pretty awesome! Rhoads plays some excellent guitar and sounds all over the place, but also in perfect harmony. After the solo they continue this heavy riff a little longer before bringing it back to the main riff for a final verse. Like the second song on this album, they choose to just slowly fade the song out to a continued playing of the main riff. You would think they could end these songs with a flash considering how great the rest of the song was, but it's another boring ending to an otherwise solid song. 

Side two begins with "Little Dolls" and Kerslake plays some cool drums to kick it off before they settle into a slow, heavy riff led by some nice guitar by Rhoads. Ozzy's high vocals sound good as usual in the verse and they connect to a bridge riff briefly before returning for a second verse. After this bridge they finally move to the catchy chorus where Ozzy sings some solid lead and backing vocals. They return to the slow main riff for another verse, then they slow things down in a new part with some lighter guitar. Ozzy sings a light new verse and this leads right into another chorus, then it's guitar solo time. Rhoads plays a solid solo, but it's not one of his bests and he only really gets going right at the end. Kerslake plays another nice drum bit that resets the song as they return for a final verse and chorus. The rhythm section jams out the chorus riff for the final minute while Rhoads does some light soloing overtop until things eventually fadeout. The next song is called "Tonight" and it's another slow song with Daisley playing some nice bass and Rhoads playing some light guitar. Ozzy begins a light verse that fits the mood well and we hear some synths and piano that add to the sad feel of the song. It flows right into the sappy chorus and Ozzy seems to love singing these slow ballads that sound good for sure, but it's definitely much lower energy than the fast-paced songs. The piano, while out of place for Ozzy, sounds pretty good as they play another verse and chorus before Rhoads takes over for his solo. He plays a decent slow guitar solo that fits the mood nicely and it leads into a new bridge riff that's similar to the main one. Ozzy continues to sing lightly and this leads right into another slow verse and chorus. After this chorus Rhoads delivers a real guitar solo that is much faster and undeniably better as he plays up and down his guitar. The song starts to slowly fade out with a minute left but Randy continues to play some awesome guitar right until the very end. Track 7 is "S.A.T.O." and it has a slow opening before they kick into full swing with a fast-paced main riff that sounds pretty good. Ozzy's vocals sound pretty good while Rhoads plays some sweet guitar in the verse. The guitar slows down in the chorus but Daisley plays some nice bass and they fire right into the next verse. After another chorus Rhoads goes off for an extended guitar solo that sounds pretty amazing! He plays lots of great stuff and keeps your attention the whole time before nicely bringing things back to the main riff. They play a final solid verse and chorus before jamming things out and ending on a nice heavy note. The final song on the album is the title track "Diary Of A Madman" and Rhoads plays some iconic guitar that sounds almost haunting and really good. He plays an epic opening bit and Daisley and Kerslake come thundering in as Rhoads switches to a heavier guitar sound in a great shift that sounds pretty awesome. This heavy riff is short though as Ozzy comes in to sing the first verse overtop of Rhoads' slow haunting guitar. Ozzy's vocals sound really great in this song as he leads the cool verse and chorus. After a second go through they move to a short bridge riff that brings us to an epic new part with some more haunting guitar and even some violin! Ozzy sings a new verse and things sound pretty epic in this part and it leads wonderfully into a new heavy riff. This heavier part sounds pretty great and Rhoads goes off for a sweet little solo where he shreds it up very nicely! This leads into a final verse and chorus before we hear some epic backing vocals overtop of the nice chorus riff that takes us to the end of the album. A fine way to end a pretty rockin' album!

That is the end of "Diary Of A Madman" and I thought it was another pretty good album from Ozzy and co. Randy Rhoads' amazing guitar work is all over the album once again and I thought the first side in particular had several great songs. The second side was a bit less awesome, but this was still a great album overall. The fact that I don't think it surpasses their debut album "Blizzard Of Ozz" is a testament to that album's greatness, not a knock on this latest offering. It will be a different line-up next time out!