Looking back on the rock world 45, 50, or 60 years ago, it's remarkable how prolific acts of every sonic persuasion were expected to be.
There are more examples than can be easily listed here of bands or solo artists releasing, in their early days, albums every 9-10 months; a clip that's almost unthinkable now.
Even at the dawn of the '80s, this pace – or something close to it – was still de rigueur, even for someone as big as Ozzy Osbourne.
Osbourne's post-Black Sabbath career, against any and all odds, took like off a rocket upon the release of his solo debut, 1980's Blizzard of Ozz. A huge part of this success can be chalked up to Osbourne's prodigal six-string sidekick, Randy Rhoads.
With that success, however, inevitably came pressure from the powers that be for a quick follow-up. Though said follow-up, 1981's Diary of a Madman, is, like its predecessor, rightfully regarded as a landmark guitar album, Rhoads wasn't exactly thrilled with the final result.
The classically trained guitarist revealed to Guitar World in a 1982 interview, conducted not long before his tragic death in a plane crash in March of that year, that he wished he had much more time to work on his contributions to the album.
In one particular instance, he said, a solo he laid down merely as a guide of sorts inadvertently ended up on the final product.
“On the first album [Blizzard of Ozz] none of us had played together, so it was everything at once,” Rhoads said. “We were putting the band together, writing the songs, and being in the studio all at the same time.
“There was an exciting energy on Blizzard of Ozz. We turned everything up to 10 and if it felt good we'd play it. We also had time to choose the best parts and record when it felt right.”
On Diary we put a lot more energy into the songwriting. So the songs are happening but my guitar playing isn't
Randy Rhoads
As was the case with just about all but the biggest acts in rock – all of music, really – at the time, Osbourne and co's pace was breakneck.
“Directly after making Blizzard, we did a European tour, came back and did Diary [of a Madman]. There was no break,” Rhoads said. “I didn't have time to sit back and think, ‘What do I want to do? What do I want to accomplish?’ Therefore, I was really short of ideas that I was interested in pursuing.
“On Diary we put a lot more energy into the songwriting. So the songs are happening but my guitar playing isn't. We were in a hurry to get over to the States and tour behind Blizzard, so Diary was rushed. We only had time to get a song's basic form before we had to record it.”
Case in point, Rhoads said, was the fact that one particular solo that he never intended to see the light of day ended up getting pressed onto vinyl.
“Some parts of this record make me cringe from a guitar standpoint. In fact, on Little Dolls I never got to take a real solo,” he recalled to Guitar World.
“What you hear on there is actually the guitar track. It's a dummy solo I laid down where I was later supposed to put down a real one. But I never got time to do it.
“A lot of my things on Diary lack feeling,” he opined. “It sounds a bit ordinary to me, like just sort of play anything you can think of.”
Rhoads did, however, take care to mention in the chat the pride he felt in his contributions to Diary of a Madman's title track, Over the Mountain, and You Can't Kill Rock and Roll.
