Randy Rhoads’ career was far too short – he died in a plane accident in 1982, at the age of 25 – but his precise, architectural, hyperspeed solos on Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” and “Mr. Crowley” helped set the template for metal-guitar soloing for decades to follow.
Often heralded as the greatest hard rock/heavy metal guitar player of all time, Rhoads was born on December 6, 1956, in Santa Monica, California. His mother, Delores Rhoads, was a school music teacher and Randy began playing guitar before he even reached the age of 10. By his teenage years, he had developed an interest in hard rock and after playing in several school bands, he co-founded Quiet Riot with singer Kevin DuBrow. A major draw on the Los Angeles club circuit, Rhoads also worked as a guitar teacher before joining Ozzy’s Blizzard of Ozz band in 1979.
By the time the phenomenally talented guitarist recorded his final album, Ozzy’s Diary of a Madman, he was getting deeper into classical music, and even exploring jazz, leaving the world to forever wonder what he would have done next.