There were ‘lone man against the world’ anthems like You Can’t Kill Rock and Roll and Believer with such lines as ‘You’ve got to believe in yourself or no one will believe in you’. At the time Sharon had a boyfriend called Adrian, and Ozzy’s then wife was Thelma. which I later found out stood for Sharon. It spoke of voodoo dolls, madness, hallucinogenic journeys, and then there was the strange indefinable quizzical title S.A.T.O. The inner sleeve sadly said nothing more than ‘The Ozzy Osbourne Band’.Īn interview with the sleeve’s designer Steve Joule aka Krusher can be found here: INTERVIEW I quickly discovered that the text was written in what is called the ‘Theban Alphabet’ and I set about translating those abstract shapes into English. The magical and strange alchemical text on the inner sleeve added to this sense of other worldly occultism and devil worship. In some way I felt as if I were opening a gateway to a secretive and exclusive world of demonism, it made me feel as if I belonged. My childish interpretation of the sleeve was that it represented a truly compelling evil, a hermetically sealed world of diabolic conjurings and evil machinations. The cover was instantly satisfying, with its spooky cobwebs, satanic overtones, inverted cross, blood and dead animals. With one foot still firmly in the world of childhood and the other foot on the first slippery steps to becoming a teenager, Diary of a Madman resonated with me. I am sure every ardent record collector would relate to this and agree that there is no greater feeling than rushing to the record shop to pick up a crisp, shiny, new LP on the day of its delivery. It was the first record that I was anticipating every day since its release date was announced, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.
But Diary of a Madman was the very first record that I was old enough to be there for at its virgin birth, for that all important day of release.
Any guitar fan needs to own this and Osbourne's breakthrough solo debut, Blizzard of Ozz, which also doubles as Rhoads' premier.I already had the first Ozzy Osbourne album, Blizzard of Ozz, and was busy cultivating a collection of Black Sabbath records, along with an ever growing collection of hard rock and NWOBHM discs. Mastered from the original master tapes and featuring all of the original performances, pressed at RTI, and housed in a gatefold jacket, Diary of a Madman is an essential rock document. This 30th Anniversary Edition presents the LP in definitive sonics. Osbourne and Rhoads light up every song here, and it's no wonder many of the tunes-"Flying High Again," "Believer," "Over the Mountain"-remain part of the iconic vocalist's concert set list. A perfect foil for Osbourne's creativity and an inimitable instrumentalist, Rhoads died in a plane crash in 1982 just as he and Osbourne were redefinining hard rock and mainstream heavy metal.īranching further into classicist fields and expanding the sonic palette, Diary of a Madman epitomizes musical chemistry, raw skill, and dark moodiness. Originally released in 1981, Diary Of A Madman is Ozzy Osbourne's sophomore solo smash and, sadly, the final studio album on which virtuoso guitarist Randy Rhoads appeared.
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