Rudy Sarzo: The 1982 Randy Rhoads Interview

A Renowned Bassist’s Heartfelt Tribute to His Friend and Bandmate

Randy Rhoads, Ozzy Osbourne, Rudy Sarzo, Tommy Aldridge in 1982.

Randy Rhoads and Rudy Sarzo played side-by-side in Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne’s band. A skilled Cuban-born bassist, Rudy initially auditioned for Quiet Riot near the end of Randy’s tenure. They became close friends, and Randy invited Rudy to give bass lessons at his mother’s school, Musonia. After Randy quit Quiet Riot to record and tour with Ozzy Osbourne, he recommended that Rudy step in to play bass on Ozzy’s Diary of a Madman tour. Rudy played bass on Ozzy’s Tribute and Speak of the Devil LPs.

After Randy’s death, Rudy joined the reconstituted Quiet Riot for the multi-platinum Metal Health album and continued with the band through 1985. He then spent seven years in Whitesnake and recorded and toured with Quiet Riot from 1997 to 2003. Since then, he has toured with Yngwie Malmsteen, Ronnie James Dio, Blue Öyster Cult, Queensrÿche, the Guess Who, and, beginning in 2021, a reconstituted Quiet Riot.

Outside of music, Rudy’s a self-confessed computer geek and skilled 3-D digital animator. His book Off the Rails details his experiences with Randy Rhoads and Ozzy Osbourne. Our interview took place in August 1982, a few months after Randy perished in a plane crash.

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When did you first meet Randy?

I met Randy back in late 1977. When I joined the band Quiet Riot in 1978, I started playing with him. They already had a couple of albums out on CBS Sony. By 1978 they had management and everything, but they were just playing locally. And their record deal with CBS Sony was just in Japan. So by the time I joined the band, we didn’t have an American record deal. That’s one of the reasons why it broke up.

What were your first impressions of Randy?

I thought he was an excellent guitar player – totally excellent. I went to audition, and that’s how I met him. But at that time I was paying attention to a lot of things, not just one person in particular. It didn’t hit me how good he was until I’d played with him more.

How would you describe the difference in Randy’s playing with Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne?

Day and night. Let me put it this way: The band Quiet Riot was working very hard to get a record deal. When we were in L.A. trying to get a record deal, we had to be ourselves, but also try to please the record labels. So we were more pop-oriented rather than when he joined Ozzy. Ozzy told him just to go all the way and be totally himself, be totally out on his playing. Be the best Randy Rhoads he can be, not just try to please record companies. So his playing was totally himself. When he was with Quiet Riot, it was a little bit restrained because of the material.