By Mitch Lafon

Rudy Sarzo is rock’s premier journeyman bass player having landed gigs with OZZY OSBOURNE, WHITESNAKE, QUIET RIOT, DIO, BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, MANIC EDEN, DIO’S DISCIPLES, ANIMETAL USA, and more. The finger-licking bass man sat down with BraveWords.com’s Mitch Lafon to discuss the past, present and future.

BraveWords.com: Tell us about your work with computer animation.

Rudy Sarzo: “I’ve been doing 3D animation (using AutoDesk). I first jumped into it with DIO back in 2005. I did all the visual effects for that tour. We had a Jumbotron with us, so I did the visual effects and animation.”

BraveWords.com: You mentioned DIO. Will you work with DIO DISCIPLES again?

Sarzo: “Yeah. The whole thing with Dio Disciples is that it’s a must that we celebrate Ronnie’s music. All of us that got to know him, play with him and are still influenced by him... I used to get a lot of advice from Ronnie. I used to go over to his house and ask him questions about everything. I always ask myself, ‘what would Ronnie do?’ I do what I believe he would do, so he’s still a major influence in my life.”

BraveWords.com: Is Dio Disciples simply a live band doing Dio covers or does the band, at some point, record a new album of original material (even under another name)?

Sarzo: “Dio Disciples is Ronnie’s band though I’ve heard that Jimmy Bain, Vivian Campbell, Vinny Appice, Claude Schnell will be doing something too.  But it’s just a way for us to celebrate the great music, the great man, his memory and just to keep it alive. It’s a joy to play that music and we connect with that.”

BraveWords.com: Another person that was important in your life was Randy Rhoads. How was the experience (emotionally) of writing the book, Off The Rails, for you?

Sarzo: “That’s a great question. It was cathartic. When I sat down to write down the book, it was to answer one question: what was it like to play with Randy Rhoads? I was the only musician blessed enough to have played with him both in QUIET RIOT and OZZY OSBOURNE, so I got to experience the metamorphosis from Randy being the local guitar hero in L.A. and being in a band that was chasing its tail trying to get a record deal. We went through all these evolutions of what Quiet Riot should be according to the local music industry versus when Randy joined Ozzy and was told to just ‘be yourself’. That’s when Randy became Randy Rhoads. That’s the Randy that everybody is familiar with all the significant musical contributions. I got to experience both and I learned so much from him. It was incredible. At the height of his career, he decided that he must go back to school and get his degree in music because Randy was all about the music.”

BraveWords.com: He really was ‘all about the music’ and the quality of music he left behind. There is a lot of originality and ‘special-ness’.

Sarzo: “Magic and uniqueness. It’s really rewarding when I get a message on Facebook from kids that are 10 or 12 years old that have discovered Randy. I’m always fascinated by that because it’s been thirty years and still when the new generation is exposed to his music they pick up on Randy in their music. I can hear it and it’s always intrigued me how kids can hear where the source comes from... as far as metal goes there’s a lot of Randy in every guitar player. Randy is the source. He’s the fountain that everybody drinks from.”

BraveWords.com: The reason we are chatting today, of course, is the Ozzy Osbourne Speak Of The Devil DVD release. It’s show from June 1982 - three months after Randy passed away. How was it to get back on tour and bring Brad Gillis into the fold?

Sarzo: “I dread to think what would have happened if the tour had been canceled and Ozzy went back all by himself under such a fragile mental and spiritual state.”

BraveWords.com: He might be dead. He might have committed suicide.

Sarzo: “Absolutely and that’s why I say, ‘I dread to think.’ Most likely, that’s what would have happened. So, it was a matter of keeping Ozzy occupied and keeping him moving. At the same time, we had to continue the tour with dignity. There was not a single show that we did after the crash... The first thing you heard at every show was Randy playing the intro to ‘Diary Of A Madman’ - if that doesn’t bring reality home... You’re on stage behind these castle walls of the production and that’s the first thing you hear. If that doesn’t put you in the zone (as far as remembering Randy) then you’re in a coma. Every single show was a celebration of Randy; not only from the audience (who would come with banners that said, ‘long live Randy Rhoads.’)”

BraveWords.com: It must have been cathartic for them to be able to go to a show and grieve with the band...

Sarzo: “Absolutely.”

BraveWords.com: Brad (Gillis) - he’s in a tough spot because he’s simply ‘not Randy.’ Did you have any feelings of animosity towards him?

Sarzo: “In one sentence (and I’ve always says this to Brad), ‘thank you for letting us finish the tour with dignity.’ One thing you have to consider was the difficulty in finding the right guitar player to carry on with dignity doing justice to Randy’s music. At that time, Randy had brought in a certain style of rhythm guitar playing that very few people played. Brad came to our attention through Pat Thrall’s brother (Preston) who happened to be in San Francisco and saw Brad play with the ALAMEDA ALL-STARS that later became NIGHT RANGER. They were playing covers including Ozzy covers and Pat Thrall’s brother said, ‘hey this guy can play rhythm like Randy.’ Bernie Tormé was there before and he’s a great guitar player, but it was not the right style and it made a huge impact on our sound. That’s why we needed someone like Brad.”

BraveWords.com: Unfortunately, Brad didn’t get to stick around with Ozzy to make an album of original music.

Sarzo: “Yeah, but he went on to Night Ranger. Brad came in and really helped us out to continue and finish the tour with dignity. Then, he went off to where he really belonged which was Night Ranger.”

BraveWords.com:  After the tour ends, you also don’t go back to Ozzy. Instead, you end up with Quiet Riot and their huge breakthrough album, Metal Health. Why did you leave the Ozzy camp for Quiet Riot? Was Ozzy’s camp in disarray?

Sarzo: “Actually, Ozzy’s camp was never in disarray. Sharon kept a cool head and kept the whole thing in perspective. There was always a mission and it was always accomplished. I just left because at that point... Listen if Ozzy could have left Ozzy, he would have. We were all in such a state.”

BraveWords.com: Which was made worst by the drugs and alcohol...

Sarzo: “No no no... It had to do with the emotional state. I never would have left Ozzy otherwise. They would have had to kick me out. Imagine me leaving the biggest rock/metal band at the time for the unknown... For a band that nobody really wanted which was Quiet Riot. We had Metal Health mixed and in the can with a record label and we couldn’t even get management. The industry thought that any band that did music like Quiet Riot was dinosaur music.”

BraveWords.com: Which is ironic because it became the music of the ‘80s. Why do you think Quiet Riot struck a chord with the MTV Generation?

Sarzo: “That record (Metal Health) is one of the most honest records I’ve ever made. There was no preconceived notion of how many units we would sell. We just made the record because that was it... For the intent purpose of making a record - nothing else. There was no grand master design or plan. It was just ‘let’s make the best record we can.’”

BraveWords.com: Were you surprised when it hit #1?

Sarzo: “We were at #2 for six weeks behind THE POLICE’s Synchronicity and MICHAEL JACKSON’s Thriller.”

BraveWords.com: Tough albums to beat...

Sarzo: “It’s not that I was surprised that it went to #1, because I had just gotten off a similar journey with Ozzy. Blizzard Of Ozz went through the same building of Ozzy from the bottom to that major tour with Diary Of A Madman, so when I started going up the mountain again with Quiet Riot... The landscape was very similar. As we progressed, I’d think, ‘oh-o I just went through this with Ozzy and if ‘this’ happens next - we’re going to the next level.’ And it did - so I was very familiar with that journey. Getting to #1 with such tough competition is something I never could have imagined, but then again we had the assistance of being on MTV. I could time my watch to Cum On Feel The Noize being played every half hour because they had such limited content. That, to me, is what made that band such a success... Our exposure on MTV which Ozzy didn’t have...The first real substantial footage of Ozzy that we got on MTV was the Speak Of The Devil (what is now the) DVD. It was actually broadcast on Halloween night in 1982.”

BraveWords.com: Why wasn’t Quiet Riot able to sustain the success? The band seemingly faded away while Bon Jovi and Def Leppard took over.

Sarzo: “I can only speak for my involvement which was Metal Health and Condition Critical. At the time, we were not getting the best advice in the industry. If the band had not been asked by the powers that be to come up with exactly the same record as Metal Health and had been allowed to grow... We would have had a better chance to sustain. By the time we came out with the second record (and we were repeating what we had just succeeded with) - we were now competing with a new batch of... Remember, when we were first on MTV we had no competition. It was Def Leppard and us. That was it, so by the second record we have every band from the Sunset Strip. We had MÖTLEY CRÜE, RATT, DOKKEN and countless others.”

BraveWords.com: They had all taken what you had done and moved it forward while your record company was asking you to stand still...

Sarzo: “Right and one of the running jokes that we had with the guys from TWISTED SISTER is that they’d come to Dee and say, ‘we really love that Twisted Sister song Cum On Feel The Noize’ and they’d come to me and say, ‘we really love that Quiet Riot song We’re Not Gonna Take It.’ They wanted similar bands with similar songs and similar impact.”

BraveWords.com: In the ‘90s, you recorded a self-titled album with LITTLE CAESAR’s Ron Young along with WHITESNAKE’s Tommy Aldridge and Adrian Vanderberg called MANIC EDEN. The songs are great. What can you tell me about it?

Sarzo: “At the very beginning of the 1990 Whitesnake tour, David (Coverdale) announced that he was going to take some time off at the end of the tour. He had all these plans and I knew Steve Vai had his own solo career going, so I got together with Tommy and Adrian. So, I said to them, ‘why don’t we find a singer and carry on?’ We’re great friends and we’re a great creative unit. The idea didn’t go over very well, but three years later they said, ‘how about if we do put that band together.’ I think if it had happened right away and riding the wave of Whitesnake - it would have had the momentum of Whitesnake behind it to, at least, create an awareness about the band and an interest within the industry. But by then (when we got together), the Seattle Grunge sound was very popular. Manic Eden’s sound was not very Whitesnake-ish. It was more going back to the roots of all of us. I’m more influenced by ‘60s and 70’s music than anything else. We were put into that Hair Metal band category, but Manic Eden was more of an homage to music and genres that had influenced every single individual of that band.”

BraveWords.com: Had it come out in 1987, it certainly would have been a Billboard Top Ten album.

Sarzo: “Absolutely.”

BraveWords.com: Instead it got ignored.

Sarzo: “It certainly did.”

BraveWords.com: What kind of singer is Ozzy and what kind of singer is Dio?

Sarzo: “Both are very different, but let’s put it this way; when people think of BLACK SABBATH - 99% think of Ozzy Osbourne because he was a founding member. To me, there are two Black Sabbaths. There’s the Ozzy Black Sabbath and the Dio Black Sabbath (that later on became known as HEAVEN & HELL which I thought was great because it really defined Ronnie’s contribution to the band). It was a totally different band especially when Vinny Appice came into the group. If you look at the classic Black Sabbath, Ozzy’s is the one that everyone is going to remember. In addition to that, I got to play with Ronnie in Dio. I was the bass player from 2004 on and Ronnie - just like Ozzy had a very substantial solo career. He also had major contributions with RAINBOW. When Ronnie rejoined Tony and Geezer, we stopped doing the Black Sabbath material and went deeper into the Dio catalogue and Rainbow catalogue. It was spectacular to play those Rainbow songs. There’s something about them and his collaboration with Ritchie Blackmore. It was incredibly unique and magical.”

BraveWords.com: Animetal USA...

Sarzo: “The album will be released worldwide now through Century Media. It’s Sony in Japan, but Century Media for the rest of the world. I am Stormbringer - member of the group. I like to re-invent myself.”

BraveWords.com: Any last words?

Sarzo: “The Speak Of The Devil DVD is such a meaningful release to everyone involved because... I’ve been watching it for the last few days because I feel so connected with it emotionally and in every way. It’s a celebration of Ozzy and Randy - a once in a life time musical collaboration and friendship. It’s truly a triumph of the human spirit... To continue, to carry  and to celebrate all that music. At that time, an Ozzy show was comprised of the Blizzard Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman material plus two and a half songs (because it was a medley of 'Children Of The Grave' and 'Iron Man'). The bulk was Ozzy and Randy compositions. The only way I could survive these shows was to go deep within me. You’ll notice in my performance that I’m not really making eye contact with anybody.”

BraveWords.com: Not sure how you did it. Had my bandmate passed away in a tragedy like that I probably would have curled up into a ball and stopped playing.

Sarzo: “Many times, we felt like that but... You had to look at why we’re doing this. It was a matter of survival both spiritually and physically. Once you get passed that stage; it becomes a celebration. There’s a grieving period, but now I celebrate. You have to learn to take the positive out of it otherwise it would be a wasted life. So, I celebrate Randy’s life every single day. I celebrate Ronnie’s life every single day and even though I had my differences with Kevin DuBrow - I celebrate his life every single day. It’s our responsibility - the people that knew them and created with them to keep the fires burning.”

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