Bob Daisley has demos with Randy Rhoads but wants to be paid royalty for them

Bob Daisley has demos with Randy Rhoads but wants to be paid royalty for them

Close but not quite. Former Ozzy Osbourne bassist Bob Daisley recently spoke to Songfacts and advised that he has many hours of demos featuring Randy Rhoads that he has offered to the Osbourne camp but for which a financial arrangement could not be reached. Daisley also spoke in detail about the songs that he wrote on the first two Osbourne solos albums.

The following are excerpts from the interview by Songfacts with Daisley:

“Songfacts: Since there’s not that much material of Randy that’s been released, I’m surprised they never issued those demos as part of a boxed set or something.

Bob: Well, a couple of years ago when they planned to release the boxed set for the 30th anniversary, I went to Sharon’s accountant who handles all her affairs and handles the publishing company and all that. I said, “Well, I’ve got these demos and I’ve got tapes of this recording, outtakes, I’ve got rehearsal takes, I’ve got us just chatting, clowning about, songwriting tapes,” I said, “I’ve got loads of stuff, I’ve got hours of it. Why don’t you include that on the boxed set?”

And I said, “Well, I’m not just giving it away, I’m the only one that’s got this stuff. So I want a royalty on it.” She wouldn’t do it. She just wanted to buy it off me for a pittance and I said no. I’m not doing that again. I’ve been screwed enough.

Songfacts: I don’t blame you.

Bob: The fans suffered. Everybody wants to hear that stuff and I was willing to put it out there. But I said, I’m not just giving it to her. Because also what I have to be careful of is if they control it, they can edit it to make it sound like that same old fairytale that they come up with about how Ozzy and Randy wrote everything, which is total bollocks….

Songfacts: How much of the lyrics would you say on those first two Ozzy albums did you have a hand in writing?

Bob: Oh, more than 95 percent. Some songs 100 percent, some songs 95 percent. Ozzy used to just sing whatever came into his head, and it was usually nonsense. But I got the idea of his phrasing and his melodies from that. Every once in a while he might sing a line and I’d think, “Actually, that’s not a bad line. I’ll use that.” It might be one line or he might have come up with a title like he did with “Mr. Crowley.” But yeah, the majority, I’d say 95 percent plus.”

You can read the rest of the interview at Songfacts.