Randy Rhoads’ Isolated Guitar Track From “Flying High Again” Is Absolutely Outstanding

From Ozzy Osbourne’s Diary Of A Madman

When once in a lifetime guitar player Randy Rhoads died in 1982 at the age of 25, he left a legacy shaped by what he accomplished in a short amount of time, and an even greater question as to what more he could have accomplished, given more time. This isolated guitar track from 1981’s Diary Of A Madman features Randy’s guitar playing on ‘Flying High Again’ – nearly 5 minutes of blistering guitar playing that would come to define Randy’s status as one of the gifted musicians to ever walk the earth and Ozzy’s triumphant return to metal following his exit from Black Sabbath.

Randy’s guitar tone was usually pretty fuzzy when he was shredding, but it’s the clean approach to soloing that made Randy so incredibly special.

While his successor Zakk Wylde would come to rely heavily on whammy bars and picking when recreating some of Randy’s best work, Randy mastered the art of the legato, preferring to let the hammer-ons and pull-offs create smooth transitions between notes. His isolated guitars in ‘Flying High Again’ are second to none, and definitely the mark that modern guitarists should shoot for when writing and composing!