Rock and Roll Rebels

As metal's biggest advocate of new rock guitar talent, Ozzy Osbourne changed the world

- CHRIS GILL

MUSIC FANS KNEW Ozzy Osbourne as the Prince of Darkness or maybe even the Messiah of Metal, but among the hard-rock guitar community, he'll always be remembered as the Godfather of Heavy Guitar. Thanks to his impeccable taste, discerning ear and a perfect 1,000 batting record when choosing great guitarists for his bands, Ozzy introduced the world to an incredible roster of phenomenal players that he handpicked from the underground and boldly brought into the mainstream during his 45-plus years as a solo artist. This is a big reason that Guitar World — a publication for guitar players — frequently interviewed and featured Ozzy on its covers and is celebrating him today, even though he never played the instrument himself.

The amount of great guitar music that Ozzy gifted metal aficionados over the course of 18 studio and live albums, plus nearly two dozen headlining and Ozzfest tours, is staggering. Even during the mid-Nineties and early 2000s when solos fell out of fashion, fans of great guitar music could always turn to Ozzy to get their fix. It's no wonder that a Who's Who roster of guitarists showed up to perform at the Back to the Beginning tribute concert to show their deep respect for Ozzy and his immortal contributions to guitar culture.

Randy Rhoads