What if Randy Rhoads, had stayed with Quiet Riot?

I know it is a question that really doesn't have an answer but what do you think. Would Quiet Riot have been a bigger band then they were? Would Ozzy have been as big as he became after his exit from Black Sabbath? Or would they both have quietly walked into obscurity?

What if Tony Iommi had remained with Jethro Tull?

detuned wrote:

What if Tony Iommi had remained with Jethro Tull?

That certainly would have changed the face of metal.
I think if Randy has stayed with Quiet Riot, they probably would have written better songs, Ozzy said in an interview that Randy taught him a lot about writing songs, that he did not understand. So I think after Quiet Riot did the Cum on Feel the noise ( assuming the record company would still push them to do this) they would have had better songs to work with, but I don't think Randy would have stuck with them forever.
Ozzy would have still been successful, with our without Randy too big a name comming out of Black Sabbath, I don't know if the material would have been as good on the first two albums, I don't remember who Ozzy's other guitarist prospects were.

Ozzy didn't write any songs when Randy was in the band. Randy and bassist Bob Daisley wrote all the music and lyrics. Bob and Randy made Ozzy.

Also, according to Bob and sources close to Randy, the band was not suppose to be called "Ozzy Osbourne", but The Blizzard of Ozz. Original European pressings of the record on Jet Records had The Blizzard of Ozz featuring Ozzy Osbourne.

Randy had every intention of quitting the band after the tour for Diary of a Madman.

If you get the chance to read the Biography titled "Randy Rhoads" do it. It's quite insightful reading.

ultmetal wrote:

Ozzy didn't write any songs when Randy was in the band. Randy and bassist Bob Daisley wrote all the music and lyrics. Bob and Randy made Ozzy.

Also, according to Bob and sources close to Randy, the band was not suppose to be called "Ozzy Osbourne", but The Blizzard of Ozz. Original European pressings of the record on Jet Records had The Blizzard of Ozz featuring Ozzy Osbourne.

Randy had every intention of quitting the band after the tour for Diary of a Madman.

If you get the chance to read the Biography titled "Randy Rhoads" do it. It's quite insightful reading.

Rudy Sarzo in his book 'Off the Rails" which chronicles his Ozzy/Randy Rhoads years backs up these claims

Quote :

Ozzy said in an interview that Randy taught him a lot about writing songs, that he did not understand.

Well, when you know absolutely nothing you're bound to pick up something from someone like Randy...

Ozzy Osbourne has never written a song in his life...

Ozzy's voice is a major part of the music but it was the musicians he worked with (Iommi, Butler, Rhoads, Daisley) that made his career possible.

I think QR may have made some minor success with Randy but it was Ozzy's name and reputation from his time in Sabbath that gave Randy's music mass exposure.

According to the "Off The Rails" book by Sarzo, Randy was increasingly getting into Classical music and preparing to leave Ozzy's band.

As for QR without Rhoads, who knows? But how much bigger can you get than Metal's first Billboard #1 Album?

Shawn Of Fire wrote:

As for QR without Rhoads, who knows? But how much bigger can you get than Metal's first Billboard #1 Album?

That's true... but it was mainly the pop crossover single "Come On Feel The Noise" that sold those albums. I think Randy has left a more lasting impression on the world with his two records with Ozzy.

I think Randy and Daisley wrote "Bark at the Moon" and other songs off that album too which are usually credited to Jake E. Lee.

Daisly had a hand in every Ozzy album on some level up through No More Tears I think, so yeah...that's totally possible...

There is an interview where he breaks down who wrote what...I'll see if I can find it.

This is mostly talking about what lyrics Bob wrote...

BobDaisley.com wrote:

21. You worked on six albums with Ozzy, which songs did you write the lyrics for?

BD. I go into specifics and detail with the songs and each album when talking about them in my book but as a brief description and explanation, the following gives you an idea...

Blizzard of Ozz

I Don't Know: I think the title was Ozzy's but I wrote all the lyrics of the song except one line - 'ya gotta believe in foolish miracles' - which was also Ozzy's.

Crazy Train: The title was mine and 99% of the lyrics were mine. I think a word or two came from Ozzy.

Goodbye to Romance: Ozzy had a few lines ready for this one, including the title but I wrote most of the lyrics. My message was directed at Ozzy to 'look ahead' and not get stuck in the past regarding his dismissal from Black Sabbath, which was still bothering him. I wrote the outro lyrics in the control room of a Birmingham demo studio when we first recorded the song as a demo for the record company. I still have that demo. Incidentally, the title is a line from an Everly Brothers' song 'Bye, Bye Love'.

Suicide Solution: My title and all my lyrics except the first line which was Ozzy's - 'wine is fine but whisky's quicker' - and that was his whole and sole contribution, other than his usual vocal melody.

Mr. Crowley: The title was Ozzy's, an ode to Aleister Crowley. Ozzy also had a couple of lines within the song but again most of the lyrics were mine. Being that Crowley was reputed to be a black magician, I didn't want to make it a negative message and turned it into a 'Crowley, what were you thinking?' theme.

No Bone Movies: Title and lyrics all mine. Ozzy, Randy, Randy's girlfriend Jody and I had been to see a porn flick in Soho, London and Randy called it a 'bone movie' which I don't think I'd ever heard.

Revelation (Mother Earth): When it came time to write the lyrics at Ridge Farm during the recording of the album, I was reading parts of 'Revelations' in the bible. I read a lot of philosophy and all sorts of schools of thought, which influenced the lyrics and message in the song. Ozzy did come up with a couple of lines in this one too though.

Steal Away the Night: The 'steal away' part was Ozzy's, I think we used it in another song originally but didn't suit it as much as where it ended up. Nearly all the lyrics are mine.

You Looking at Me, Looking at You: Originally meant to be on the album but ended up as a B-side for the single when 'No Bone Movies' which was supposed to be the B-side but made it onto the album. 'You Looking at Me' was one of the first songs we wrote together. The title and lyrics are all mine, Ozzy may have put in a word or two.

Diary of a Madman

Over the Mountain: Title and lyrics were mine. To be fair, Ozzy's melodies and scat singing before lyrics were written sometimes influenced what I wrote, the lyrics were written to fit his phrasing on most songs.

Flying High Again: The title and lyrics were mine, Ozzy may have put in a word or two again. In my book, there's a whole story about how this song came about from an experience I had as a young lad playing in bands in Australia. The title actually came from a very 'straight' bloke who asked me a question about drugs.

You Can't Kill Rock 'N' Roll: Ozzy's title, and a few words were his but the meat and potatoes of the lyrics were mine. I wrote it about being screwed by record companies and being lied to, a premonition me thinks...

Believer: My title and lyrics. I was reading about the power of belief at the time and
wanted to convey a positive message. Maybe a word or two from Ozzy and some inspiration from his phrasing but all my idea.

Little Dolls: My title and lyrics. Again, maybe a word or two here and there from Ozzy but totally my idea. A song about Voodoo without mentioning the word. Smurf knows how I came up with that one...

Tonight: Ozzy had originally sung 'just a kiss before we say goodnight' to open the song but I thought that was a bit soppy so changed the idea to someone down and out on the street. I think Lee came up with the 'tonight' where it ended up in the chorus but I wrote almost all the lyrics.

S.A.T.O.: Not my title, Ozzy and Sharon changed it from 'Strange Voyage' which had been mine, to 'S.A.T.O.' after Lee and I were ousted. I wrote the lyrics about how life can be a strange voyage and was inspired by a Buddhist text entitled 'A Ship to Cross the Sea of Suffering'. The S.A.T.O part is explained in my book.

Diary of a Madman: My title and lyrics. The title came from a movie of the same name which I'd seen starring Vincent price. When I told Ozzy about my idea he loved it and that became the title of the next album before we'd even started writing it. I wrote the lyrics about my own personal experience which I go into detail about in the book. When Randy, Lee and I first worked up the music for the song without Ozzy, he came in the next day, heard what we had and said, "Who the Smurf do you think I am, Frank Zappa?"

Bark at the Moon

Bark at the Moon: Ozzy's title, which came from a saying he had, 'eat smurf poo and bark at the moon' but I wrote all the lyrics. Based on a fictitious 'Hammer Horror' type character.

You're No Different: Ozzy's title. He wanted it to be about people judging and criticizing him, which was happening in the press at the time, so that's what I wrote it about.

Now You See It (Now You Don't): My title and lyrics. A simple ditty about hiding a sausage...

Rock 'N' Roll Rebel: Ozzy's title and another one about him being accused of being a devil worshiper. Some of the lyrics were his too but about 90% were mine.

Centre of Eternity: My title and lyrics. A tongue-in-cheek philosophical look at 'time' and our existence in eternity.

So Tired: My title and lyrics. Something quite unusual for me to write - a love song. The idea came from a Kinks' song I heard on the radio one night driving back home from Ridge Farm. Their song was called 'Tired of Waiting' but that's where the similarities end.

Slow Down: My title and lyrics. Inspired by The Beatles' song of the same name but again, that's where the similarities end, the lyrics are very different. I remember Jake E. Lee particularly liked this one.

Waiting for Darkness: Ozzy's title but I wrote all the lyrics. I wrote it about the hypocrisy within organized religion, the brainwashing, mind control, paedophilia and manipulation through guilt, and that if that's what equates to the 'light' then I'll wait for the 'darkness'. When Ozzy was asked what the song was about during his interview with 'International Musician' magazine, mentioned earlier, his answer was, "A witch." It seems he didn't understand the lyrics I'd written and he'd sung, although he took credit for writing it.

Spiders: My title and lyrics. When we were recording 'Bark' at Ridge Farm, there were hundreds of little spiders everywhere. They were harmless but the glut of them inspired the song idea. I turned it around at the end with 'the spider's in your head'...
One Up the B-side: Specifically written as the commissioned B-side for a single release, hence the title. My title and lyrics, a parody containing innuendos on anal sex.

The Ultimate Sin

Ozzy (or someone other than me) came up with the titles for all the songs on this album, including the title track. I had co-written a lot of the music with Jake E. Lee in Palm Springs while Ozzy was in The Betty Ford Clinic there. All the vocal melodies were Ozzy's and most likely the song titles. I was dismissed after a little tiff between Ozzy and me and then called back to write the lyrics for the album a month or so later, so things developed while I was gone. Bass player Phil Soussan used some of my bass lines on the album but I'm glad I didn't play on that one, I think it's Ozzy's worst album. Even he didn't like it and referred to it as 'The Ultimate Din'. But yes, I wrote all the lyrics for that album.

No Rest for the Wicked

Miracle Man: I can't remember who came up with the title for this one, maybe Ozzy. I wrote all the lyrics which were about a controversial character in the news at the time by the name of Jimmy Swaggart, a bible-punching, hellfire-and-brimstone-threatening evangelist who got busted with a hooker in a cheap motel. I was proud of my ridiculing lyrics on that one, I'll probably go to hell now...:-)

Devil's Daughter: I think the title was Ozzy's but I wrote nearly all the lyrics, maybe Ozzy came up with a few words, to be fair. The 'holy war' part was inspired by a familiar cry during strife in the Middle East at the time but I made it about an exorcism, to make it more commercial and less offensive.

Crazy Babies: Ozzy's title, mostly my lyrics, some of which I'd had since Rainbow days. Ozzy did contribute a few lines here and there but the bulk of it was mine. A simple 'young rebels' theme.

Breaking All the Rules: Ozzy's title and a few lines were his but I wrote a lot of it, more than half. The idea was a 'thinking outside of the square' theme with the obvious rebelliousness.

Bloodbath in Paradise: Ozzy's title and for a while I didn't know what I was going to write it about, he just wanted that particular title. The full story of this is detailed in my book but as a quick explanation, I thought of California being the 'paradise' and then the obvious 'bloodbath' which came to mind was the Charles Manson Family murders in the late '60s, I wrote all of that one.

Fire in the Sky: Ozzy's title and a few of the lyrics were his but 90% were mine. I thought of writing it about a U.F.O. sighting or experience, but Ozzy wanted it about an 'inner child' situation so that's what I wrote it about and included a bit of 'me' in there too.

Tattooed Dancer: I can't quite remember whose title it was but the inspiration for the lyrics came from a strip bar on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood named 'The Seventh Veil' where we used to sometimes ogle the dancing tattooed crumpet. A few lines are Ozzy's but again the bulk of it was mine.

Demon Alcohol: I remember this one well, it was my title and all the lyrics are mine. I wrote it from a standpoint of the 'demon alcohol' singing the song to a weak alcoholic.

No More Tears

I didn't actually write any of the lyrics for 'No More Tears', I only played on it. I was called in at the last moment to play on the album and then when I'd finished recording all my bass parts I stayed on in L.A. to write the lyrics. I got as far as six sets and was then told I'd done enough for the moment. I had asked to be able to retain my publishing rights this time instead of doing a 'buy out' so I could receive royalties... that's when I was sent home.

Thanks for posting Shawn. That was an interesting read.

No sweat...

Quote :

No More Tears

I didn't actually write any of the lyrics for 'No More Tears', I only played on it. I was called in at the last moment to play on the album and then when I'd finished recording all my bass parts I stayed on in L.A. to write the lyrics. I got as far as six sets and was then told I'd done enough for the moment. I had asked to be able to retain my publishing rights this time instead of doing a 'buy out' so I could receive royalties... that's when I was sent home.

I remember hearing that Mike Inez came up with the main bass riff for the title track... So Inez didn't play on the album?

Then Carlos would be out of a job.

Troublezone wrote:

Quote :

No More Tears

I didn't actually write any of the lyrics for 'No More Tears', I only played on it. I was called in at the last moment to play on the album and then when I'd finished recording all my bass parts I stayed on in L.A. to write the lyrics. I got as far as six sets and was then told I'd done enough for the moment. I had asked to be able to retain my publishing rights this time instead of doing a 'buy out' so I could receive royalties... that's when I was sent home.

I remember hearing that Mike Inez came up with the main bass riff for the title track... So Inez didn't play on the album?

It would appear not...