September 17, 1991 - No More Tears

On the same day as the "Use Your Illusion" albums and three years since "No Rest For The Wicked", Ozzy Osbourne releases his sixth solo album "No More Tears" on September 17, 1991. Ozzy has managed to keep the same line-up together since last album and drummer Randy Castillo and guitarist Zakk Wylde are Ozzy's co-songwriters for this whole album. Longtime bassist Bob Daisley was not involved in the songwriting this time around, however Motorhead bassist/vocalist Lemmy Kilmister helped Ozzy write lyrics for four of the album's songs. This album would end up being one of Ozzy's best-selling and it had several succesful radio singles. Let's check out the newest from Ozzy!

The album begins with "Mr. Tinkertrain" and it opens with some children talking and yelling while John Sinclair plays some music box-esque keyboards that combine to give off a very creepy vibe. Somehow this turns into a heavy rock riff that Wylde nicely builds up with some cool guitar, but then things quiet right down for the start of the first verse. Ozzy sings in a quiet voice overtop some very quiet guitar, but soon enough things kick into regular Ozzy gear as he sings in his usual loud voice and Zakk is leading the way with some solid, heavy guitar. They play a short bridge between the verse and the chorus and the heavy opening riff turns out to be the chorus riff as Ozzy nicely yells overtop. They quiet down again and repeat the verse/bridge/chorus and this chorus segues right into a slow part with some dreamy synths by Sinclair. Ozzy says "can you say Mr. Tinkertrain?" before he begins a nice maniacal laugh and Wylde begins the guitar solo. The solo sounds very epic and Zakk comes flying out of the gates, but the latter part of the solo is less exciting and it and most of the music fade away as Daisley plays bass alone in a short part before the band comes roaring back in for a final chorus. They jam out the end of the song with the rest of the band singing "that's why they call me" in the background while Ozzy continues to yell the name of the song until eventually things come to a halt. The next song is "I Don't Want To Change The World" and Zakk plays another pretty cool guitar riff to lead the way until Ozzy comes in to sing. The guitar stops each time Ozzy sings in the verse and it makes not just Ozzy's vocals sound epic, but it makes the guitar hit nice and fresh every time it comes back in. Ozzy sounds good in a slightly less loud voice in the chorus and Wylde continues to spice up any non-vocal parts with some cool guitar. After another solid verse and chorus they move into a heavy new part that sets the stage for a lengthy guitar solo. Wylde gets a ton of time to work here and he doesn't disappoint with a solo that sounds great the whole way through and has snippets of his shredding prowess. Zakk switches to some much lighter guitar for the next part as he plays some slower, almost acoustic guitar while Ozzy sings a soft new part. It seems a little out of place to me, but they still do a solid job on it and they segue from here back to the main riff rather smoothly. A final verse follows before they jam out a couple choruses to end this nice upbeat song (for the most part). Track 3 is called "Mama, I'm Coming Home" and it would become a rock radio staple and one of Ozzy's most popular songs, despite it being markedly sappier than Ozzy's usual music. Wylde leads the way with the iconic light guitar riff and while it sounds very light and sappy, Zakk is still doing a fine job playing a very catchy guitar riff. Ozzy starts to sing lightly overtop and he continues to just have this epicness to his voice that only Ozzy can bring as he sounds nice and smooth. Daisley's bass sounds pretty cool as well and Castillo's drum fill signals a shift to a heavier side as Wylde switches from light to his usual heavier guitar. There's no real chorus with Ozzy singing the name of the song several times throughout and they continue to jam until Ozzy holds several long "hooooooooome"s. Wylde plays a great little light guitar bit and sets himself up perfectly to ignite the epic electric guitar solo. He doesn't shred it in this slow solo but he hits all the right notes to make this a made-for-radio classic and the solo leads perfectly back into the main riff as they jam out one long final verse/chorus before Wylde neatly ends the song with a light guitar finish. Up next is "Desire" and Daisley plays a chugging bass riff to keep the pace while Zakk plays some long-held guitar notes before finally ramping into another typical Ozzy main riff that sounds both heavy and catchy. Ozzy sings a loud and decent verse and they segue nicely into a catchy chorus that Ozzy ends with a nice "don't you ever take my name in vein, oh yeah". They play another verse and a couple choruses before a siren blares and they slow things down in a new part. Castillo plays a couple nice drum fills in this part and it sets the stage for a lengthy guitar solo by Wylde. Zakk doesn't go insane, but he still plays a epic solo that fits the mood perfectly. After a final chorus they end the song as it began, but the slow opening riff sounds like a weird way to finish off this song. Track 5 is the title track "No More Tears" and Daisley opens it with a very catchy and cool bass riff. Sinclair adds some epic synths as the bass continues and Zakk slowly fades in with some crazy high guitar and everything sounds pretty great. Everything but the bass falls away as Daisley continues to keep a cool pace and Ozzy shouts out the first lines of the song. Inbetween Ozzy's lyrics Zakk hit us with some short guitar riffs that sound downright dirty and pretty awesome and this is a pretty sweet verse. Ozzy holds some long notes as they nicely fade into the chorus and although Ozzy just sings the name of the song several times, things still sound quite epic and great with Zakk leading the way on guitar and Daisley keeping up that iconic and catchy bass riff. They play another sweet verse and chorus before Sinclair takes over with some epic synths that build and build until they suddenly stop. Sinclair then switches to piano and although this is not your typical Ozzy part, I think his slow piano sounds great and we also hear some orchestral music that makes things continue to sound really epic. There's some difficult to hear talking going on overtop the music and the one part that really stands out is "in the bush" in a bit of a strange addition, but the music led by Sinclair's piano sounds great. Zakk plays some slow but elic guitar overtop it all and they very nicely segue into a full-blown solo and Zakk really takes off! He plays an amazing solo that ends with him just shredding his guitar and then they immediately hit reset and start the song over basically. It's a sudden but nice shift and they play a final awesome verse and chorus before Zakk plays a nice little guitar outro and they end the song with the weird "in the bush" talking. Aside from the weird talking, I thought this was a pretty freaking awesome song, what a catchy and awesome verse! The next song is "S.I.N." and it starts slow but once again things sound pretty epic with Daisley playing a nice bass riff and Wylde playing some nice guitar. This opening somehow morphs into a more typical Ozzy riff for the verse as Zakk plays some fast guitar and Ozzy sounds good as usual leading the verse. It sounds like a chorus is coming, but they go right into another verse before finally reaching a catchy chorus. After the chorus it's solo time and Wylde delivers a pretty great solo with some nice fast parts. After another verse and chorus it's time for a second solo and Zakk delivers once again with a pretty cool solo. The song eventually just fades out from here, but Zakk sounded like he was still going; it could've been the best solo ever but we'll never know! Aside from the frustrating way to end it, another pretty good tune.

Track 7 is called "Hellraiser" and Sinclair opens it with some ominous keyboards before Wylde comes in with another cool guitar riff. Daisley keeps pace on bass while Ozzy sings the verse and the chorus is easy to sing along to and Ozzy ends it nicely by yelling "I'll put a spell on you!" After another verse and chorus there's a short trippy part before Zakk takes off for his solo and as usual he does a pretty good job. They play a final verse and chorus before Zakk ends the song nicely with a final guitar bit. Up next is "Time After Time" and it's another slower song but Zakk still plays some cool light guitar to lead the way as Ozzy sings in a more hushed voice. Zakk starts to play a bit of louder guitar in the chorus and by the second verse things sound like a heavier jam as Zakk continues to escalate. After another chorus he peaks with his solo and for a sappier song he still plays a pretty awesome guitar solo. They play a final slow verse and chorus and then Zakk returns to the light opening guitar to play out the song nicely. Track 9 is "Zombie Stomp" and Daisley opens it with a nice bass riff that keeps the pace and Zakk comes in on guitar. Castillo nicely layers his way into the song on cymbals and drums and this opening seems like it lasts a while before they finally do reach a verse. Once they do it's another great example of a heavy yet very catchy main riff by Wylde and Ozzy yells a solid verse as usual. The chorus is quite fun and catchy as well and I like how Ozzy's voice distorts at the end and Castillo plays a nice drum fill. After another verse and chorus Zakk plays a solo that isn't a shredder but it fits the mood of the song perfectly. They proceed to jam out a final verse and chorus and continue to play the catchy main riff until it eventually comes to a halt. The next song is "A.V.H." and Zakk opens it with some acoustic vuitar that sounds pretty cool, but it's not long before they shift into a typical riff with Zakk playing some loud guitars and Ozzy yelling nicely overtop. It rolls right into a lighter chorus that still has some bits of cool guitar by Wylde and then it's back to the main riff. After another verse and chorus the lighter music continues and Zakk solos overtop and while it starts pretty fast it's not a real face-melter. They play a final verse ane chorus before this shorter song suddenly ends. Track 11 is "Road To Nowhere" and Sinclair starts things off with some slow synths, Daisley and Castillo play a soft rhythm section and Wylde plays some slow but still loud and epic guitar overtop. The guitar calms down in the verse as Ozzy nicely leads another slow rocker but Zakk still has sole nice catchy guitar to play in the chorus and afterwards he plays another short but epic bit between verses. After another verse and chorus Ozzy sings a brief new part that sets the stage for solo time and Zakk's guitar sounds quite epic overtop the slow background as he rips off a pretty good solo. They play a final chorus before Ozzy continues to sing the last thing a few times more, but the song's not over yet as Wylde had another solo for us! It's similar to the forst one but it still sounds nice and epic and he finishes off the song nicely. The next two tracks are bonus tracks, starting with "Don't Blame Me" and Daisley plays a pretty catchy bass riff that meshes nicely with the loud guitar to drive this song. Ozzy sings a solid verse but he sounds really good yelling the chorus as he alternates with Zakk's heavy guitar for a catchy chorus. After another verse and chorus Zakk plays a lengthy solo that's mostly melodic but has bits of fast guitar and Castillo plays some solid drums to back him as well. They hit reset and slowly build up to a final verse and chorus before Ozzy unexcitedly just yells the name of the song about a dozen times to end it. The final song on the album is "Party With The Animals" and Zakk leads the way with a fast-paced and cool guitar riff  and Ozzy sings nicely along in this toe-talling verse. The chorus is just Ozzy yelling "Party! Party with the animals, party! but it sounds pretty catchy and the music continues to sound good. After another solid verse and chorus Zakk plays some guitar, but I wouldn't really call it a solo, it's just the band playing. It's not bad, it's just a little surprising I guess! Castillo plays some solid drums as they build it back up the fast-paced main riff and playback final couple choruses to finish off the album.

That is the end of "No More Tears" and I thought it was a pretty sweet album! Their last album "No Rest For The Wicked" was Wylde's debut and was pretty good, but in three years he's come a long way as he is the driving force behind every song. Zakk plays some incredible guitar and not only that but I thought most of the songs had a great blend of heaviness and catchiness, aside from the few slower songs which were also pretty good. The title track is easily my favourite and a pretty great song but the whole album is solid the whole way through. I think it's even better than "Diary Of A Madman", which is saying something, but I think it falls just short of Ozzy's debut "Blizzard Of Ozz". It's a close second though and I'm excited to see where Ozzy and Zakk will go next!