Fans, friends, fellow musicians and family gathered recently for the 30th annual Randy Rhoads memorial event.
Randy will forever be known for his masterful guitar work on Ozzy Osbourne’s first two solo efforts, 1980’s “Blizzard Of Ozz” and 1981’s “Diary Of A Madman.” With amazing skill, finesse and style, the guitarist quickly established himself in the spotlight as a player to be reckoned with, following years of work with Quiet Riot.
Rhoads was killed on March 19, 1982 en route from an Ozzy show in Louisville to one in Orlando. That fateful day, the tour bus rolled into Leesburg, Florida for some repairs; driver Andrew Aycock took a small plane up and around the extensive private property, offering rides to members of Ozzy’s entourage.
Randy and hairdresser/seamstress Rachel Youngblood went up for a ride, landed safely, and then went back up again for another spin. Aycock buzzed the tour buses, eventually clipping one, causing the plane to spin out of control and crash into a nearby farmhouse, killing all three aboard.
Read details about the incident here.
On March 19, 2012 at Mountain View Cemetery in San Bernardino, California, a 30th annual event was held to remember Randy, his life, his work and his legacy.
Leja Siv Harju of Rock N Roll Industries magazine put together a video report featuring interviews with original Quiet Riot bassist Kelly Garni and current QR and former W.A.S.P. drummer Frankie Banali.
Check it out…and read more - including part 1 of the report - at the RNR blog here.
See also:
Ozzy Osbourne: Record Store Day vinyl releases confirmed
Black Sabbath guitarist issues cancer update