In an update to a story making news headlines, the non-profit organization Hall of Heavy Metal History today announced it is helping former Ozzy Osbourne drummer Lee Kerslake who has only months to live, complete his documentary with longtime friends Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of Kiss, and Iron Maiden drummer Nicko Mcbrain among others.
Kerslake‘s dying wish is to receive his Platinum record awards from Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne for his contribution for co-founding the Ozzy Osbourne band, and for co-writing over 7 Ozzy hits from the “Blizzard of Ozz” and “Diary of A Madman” albums. They are considered to be two of the most iconic metal albums of all time. Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne have refused to give Kerslake his Platinum album awards, as a result of their legendary legal battles.
On December 7, 2018, Kerslake was inducted into the Hall of Heavy Metal History. On December 11, 2018, he did an interview with Jimmy Kay on The Metal Voice, where he revealed his terminal illness, saying doctors give him only 8 months to live.
In a statement today, Kerslake says “I am ecstatic over my Induction into the Hall of Heavy Metal History. They are taking donations to fly me the United States via special medical air flight accommodations, in order to help me finish my documentary. I recently contacted Sharon Osbourne to request my Platinum record awards for helping establish the Ozzy Osbourne band. I’ve been waiting for them for years. Life is too short, and I have so much admiration for Sharon as a business woman. I’d like to think that Sharon, Ozzy, and I are friends. It would be a great honor to see them again, and to have them present me with my award at my Induction in January.
“It is a great honor to Induct Lee Kerslake into the Hall of Heavy Metal History,” Says Pat Gesualdo, President of The Hall of Heavy Metal History. “We need to get him to the United States now, he only has months to live. 100% of the donations we can raise go directly to Lee to help him fight his Illness. He has given metal fans around the world so many wonderful memories. Now we all need to be there anyway we can, to help him fulfill his legacy.”
Lee Kerslake will make a final appearance at the Annual Metal Hall of Fame Gala on January 23, 2019, 6;00 PM, at the Marriott Delta Garden Grove, Anaheim, CA.
About The Hall of Heavy Metal History:
The Hall of Heavy Metal History is a non-profit organization, dedicated to enshrining forever, those iconic musicians and music industry executives responsible for making Rock and Metal music what it is today. Their contributions to genre is invaluable, and they continue to inspire fans throughout the world, from generation to generation.
The Hall of Heavy Metal History hosts the Annual Metal Hall of Fame Gala. It is part of the non-profit organization D.A.D. (Drums and Disabilities), which provides free therapy services and programs for special needs children, adults and wounded veterans on a Global basis.
Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from Canada’s The Metal Voice recently spoke to former Gary Moore, Ozzy Osbourne , Rainbow, bassist Bob Daisley about his new tribute album to former guitarist Gary Moore. Which was released on October 26 via earMUSIC, “Moore Blues for Gary – A Tribute To Gary Moore”.
Watch the interview here:
Daisley talks about Gary Moore’s career, the participants on the Gary Moore tribute album, Moore’ preference of Ozzy guitarists and when Moore turned down Ozzy as his frist choice for guitarist when Ozzy got fired from Black Sabbath.
When asked about the time Ozzy wanted Gary Moore as his guitarist prior to Randy Rhoads
“Ozzy never wanted to replace Randy Rhoads with Gary Moore, Gary Moore was Ozzy’s first choice. When Ozzy was in Los Angeles after he got fired from Black Sabbath and he was thinking of putting a band together his first choice was Gary Moore. Gary Moore didn’t want to work with Ozzy because of Ozzy’s reputation with drugs and booze being unreliable and unprofessional. Gary said I will help you find a guitarist or if you find a guitarist that you want my opinion on I will help you that way. ”
When asked about which Ozzy guitarist Gary Moore preferred
“One thing I would like to add is that Gary rated Jake E Lee very high he said, Saying I think Jake E Lee is one of the best guitarist Ozzy ever had. ”
When asked about his and Lee Kerslake’s induction into The Hall of Heavy Metal History Gala in January 23 2019 for their contributions to Ozzy’s Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman
“That is great it really puts the icing on the cake. I spoke to Lee Last week about it and he is over the moon because Lee is not having a good time at the moment he has some bad health issues and we don;t know how much longer Lee is going to be around, he can go in a few months we don;t know. So for this to happen for Lee it means a lot for him and it means a lot for me. it’s something that’s really really nice to have. ”
John Sykes (ex-THIN LIZZY, WHITESNAKE) does a rendition of “Still Got The Blues”, with the soulful vocals by Daniel Bowes (THUNDER) complementing each other.
“Parisienne Walkways” is played by Steve Morse (DEEP PURPLE, DIXIE DREGS) and Ricky Warwick (THIN LIZZY, BLACK STAR RIDERS, THE ALMIGHTY).
Gary’s friends are here — his rocking keyboard / guitar / vocal sidekick Neil Carter sings “Empty Rooms”, which he co-wrote with Gary. Don Airey (DEEP PURPLE, RAINBOW) and Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE) had joined forces with Gary on numerous occasions, together with Eric Singer (KISS) and Darrin Mooney (PRIMAL SCREAM). .
Doug Aldrich (WHITESNAKE, DIO), r Steve Lukather (TOTO), Joe Lynn Turner (RAINBOW), Jeff Watson (NIGHT RANGER), Damon Johnson (BLACK STAR RIDERS, ALICE COOPER) and Stan Webb (CHICKEN SHACK).
Gary’s sons Jack and Gus are also involved, playing guitar and singing on “This One’s For You”, showing that the “Blood Of Emeralds” still runs their veins.
Moore Blues for Gary – A Tribute To Gary Moore” track listing and personnel details:
01. That’s Why I Play The Blues
02. The Blues Just Got Sadder
03. Empty Rooms
04. Still Got The Blues (For You)
05. Texas Strut
06. Nothing’s The Same
07. The Loner
08. Torn Inside
09. Don’t Believe A Word
10. Story Of The Blues
11. This One’s For You
12. Power Of The Blues
13. Parisienne Walkways
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to former Ozzy Osbourne, Uriah Heep drummer Lee Kerslake. Kerslake spoke about his time with Ozzy Osbourne writing and recording the albums Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman, his new solo record that will be released in 2019 called Eleventeen his recent induction into The Hall of Heavy Metal History 2019, his illness with prostate and spinal cancer and his race against time to fund and finish his autobiographical documentary.
Watch the interview here:
When asked how he joined Ozzy Osbourne’s Blizzard of Ozz band
“I left Uriah Heep because I had a big argument with the management and I was sick and tired of the band politics so I left and started doing a solo album. I then got a phone call from Ozzy’s agent and said would you fancy joining Ozzy Osbourne’s band and I said no, I’m not interested in joining any band unless I am part of the band. I’ll join if I am a member because I’ve had enough arguments and politics in bands over the years. So Ozzy’s people said okay, so I went to the auditions and I told them I will audition you and you will audition me.”
“At the audition it was just Randy Rhoads, Bob Daisley, Ozzy and me. I’d never heard of Randy Rhoads before I never knew of him or any of his playing but I knew Bob Daisley from Widowmaker. In rehearsal we played the song ‘I don’t know’ and Randy Rhoads jumped and yelled We got a drummer! And the Bob said this guy’s incredible and so I joined. Nothing more was discussed because we had to go in the studio right away and record an album . I didn’t know the songs because most of the tracks were already written and in the end I wrote only a couple of songs. The first album was suppose to be called the Blizzard of Ozz as the name of the band but Sharon changed that and turned it around to Ozzy Osbourne . The album did very well in America.”
When asked about the pros and cons of recording The Blizzard of Ozz
“Only pros, no cons, the wonderful thing about recording The Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman was everyone left the band alone to do the albums. They just left us to it and that was what we wanted, we had a fabulous engineer in the studio, who was Max Norman. We had me and Bob’s studio knowledge and of course Randy Rhoads talent and Ozzy that’s why the album came out so well.”
When asked about his memories U.K. tour, performing between recording the two albums
“Everything was great, every gig was sold out, everybody was coming to see us and we were playing really really well. Ozzy as his normal self was a bag of nerves before he went on, always so frightened going onstage but when he got on stage he was fine and a professional.”
When asked about his songwriting contributions to Diary of a Madman Album
“I co-wrote, Flying High, Over the Mountain, S.A.T.O. I had seven songs that I co-wrote.As an example basically Randy Rhoads came up with a riff I listened to it with Bob and we worked it, I then started playing the drums and singing the vocal melody and then Bob Daisley would come on the bass and we build it bit by bit and it just came out. I did vocal melodies and I helped Randy do certain solos as well because I had them in my head.”
When asked about who came up with the opening drum intro on Over the mountain, himself or Frankie Banali from Quiet Riot
“Frankie Banali’s a liar because we never met. I wrote it. I did it and I take credit for it because it was my idea. It was that triple quadruple triplets that was me.”
When asked about his current illnesses
“It’s prostate cancer but it’s moved to rest of my body I have now have bone cancer which is nasty one, so the Doctor gave me about eight months to live. But I’ve been fighting all the way. Five years ago they gave me four years to live and so that gives you an idea. Not only have I got bone cancer I’ve got psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and two heart murmurs. As I said to you I’m fighting it and there’s no telling what can happen and they might have a new drug come out and I’ll experiment with it if it keeps me alive. I survived this long and all this time I have had this terminal cancer but I have defied it because the music kept me fighting.”
When asked about his autobiography documentary that he is trying to raise funds to complete
” I want to finish this documentary which I feel is so important to educate and inspire the people in the world who have illnesses, so that they can overcome them. I don’t know from one day to the next what’s gonna happen to me at the moment every day it’s getting worse and worse and it’s hard to fight because one minute you’re up, then one day later you’ve got five days of agony. You want to give up but you don’t.The one thing I’m doing is keeping myself going with the documentary but we need help we need financial help. I put my last pennies and the producer had put her money, as much as she can and bless her heart she deserves a break. So we would love if people would donate even, if it’s a six thousand people giving a couple of bucks. This money is going to help us get to do the interviews in the documentary with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley in California and the money would get me there. Also Nicko Mcbrain from Iron Maiden wants to help. I wanted people to realize there is camaraderie in the music industry between all the musicians even when we don’t speak to each other for maybe 20 years . I went to Joe Elliot’s house from Def Leppard and he did an interview, I went to Ian Pace’s house and it was bloody wonderful we played drums together. The name of the documentary is called, right now ‘Not On the HEEP’
When asked about his new album that he is shopping around that will be released in 2019
“My new album is called Eleventeen the reason it’s Eleventeen is when I was a kid and I was at school I used to count and I used to go why isn’t there an Eleventeen in the numbers? It sounds right you have 18 19 but no Eleventeen, So that’s all the name of the album Eleventeen because it’s silly and it’s all about you know my craziness. I’ve done some serious heavy songs, I’ve done a ballad song about my mum, there is a pub song, it has a lot of variety on the album and it is completed mixed and finished and now we are shopping it around.”
When asked about his thoughts on being inducted into The Hall of Heavy Metal History with Bob Daisley for their work on the first two Ozzy albums
“I felt proud, someone has acknowledged us, it’s fantastic. That’s like having a platinum album on the wall which I never got to this day for those albums.”
When asked if he made peace with the whole Sharon and Ozzy litigation and fights over the years
“Yes I have made peace, it’s all forgotten and forgiven. I’ve written to Sharon and Ozzy recently, a personal letter basically asking them to kindly send me a platinum album certifications for Blizzard of Ozz and or Diary of a Madman to hang on my wall before I die, it’s on my bucket list. I really wrote a nice letter to them and I hope they will come to terms with it and say yes. I went belly-up bankrupt when I lost the case to Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne in the courts it costs me hundreds of thousands and I had to sell the house and then starting to get ill. I never managed to get back up but a platinum certification on my wall for these albums would be fantastic and it would say I help create those album.”
Bassist Bob Daisley and Drummer Lee Kerlake both played and wrote on Ozzy Osbourne’s Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman
Daisley says that he and Kerslake were fired because of disagreements with Sharon over a number of things, including refusing to do two shows in one day out of worry that Ozzy would blow out his voice.
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to former Ozzy Osbourne, Bandlands and current Red Dragon Cartel guitarist Jake E Lee about his new album Patina. Lee spoke about his set list on upcoming tour, his short Dio days, an in depth discussion on his contributions on Bark at the Moon and The Ultimate Sin, why he was fired from Ozzy Osbourne, as well as his opinion on Ratt today.
Watch the interview here:
When asked about the musical direction between the Red Dragon Cartel’s debut and the new album Patina
“This new album is a little more what people were probably expecting from me initially. The first record was a little out of my wheel house. just the way it was done which was the more modern way of recording, more individually. You put the click track down and then anybody can play against that click track. I didn’t need a drummer or bass player or singer because I had a click track. Then the songs were sort of pieced together at the end. This new album was done the way I have always done it in the past, with Ozzy, in Badlands, where I would come up with the riff with the band present and we would jam on it and figure out the right parts for everything together. So I think this new record sounds more cohesive, more organic, more like there was actually a band involved in the whole process and there are no guest spots on it. In terms of sound the first album was more in the metal vein this one I am exploring different musical genres. I like basic rock format and then I love to see how kinky I can make it. I like to put twists and turns under the umbrella of Rock.”
When asked what his set list on his upcoming North American tour and will he be playing an Ozzy and or Badland songs
” I have decided I am not going to do any Ozzy Osbourne songs live, I had to play these songs on the first Red Dragon Cartel tour because of lack of material but playing those Ozzy songs was not fun as I thought it would be, it almost felt dishonest for some weird reason I know I wrote the bulk of the music and played on those albums but it felt like those songs belonged to Ozzy. They are Ozzy’s songs. I would only do Ozzy songs live unless it was with Ozzy, if we can work that shit out? (laughs) I will however play some Badlands songs and I will change it up every night if I can. ”
When asked about his short time in Dio and if he wrote any Dio songs at the time
“I was in Dio for about 4-6 weeks, Dio was the first big band that I was playing with and it was just fun because it was in his garage and Vinnie was set up with his drums and Ronnie was playing Bass. The most interesting thing was that Ronnie Jame Dio was not using a PA and we played loud and Ronnie would just sing without a mic no PA, sing into the air and you could hear him belt those songs out it was so impressive. We worked on a couple of songs one of them was Holy Diver, however I didn’t write anything and towards the end Ronnie just didn’t like my style of playing and preferred a more European style of playing. And most of all i just want to make this clear, on the record, I did not write the Dio song ‘Don’t talk to Strangers’. ”
When asked why he did not get credit for writing the music on Bark At the Moon and why was it only Ozzy Osbourne who got credit
“I was young and back in those days there was little information about how the music business works and I trusted people. I was told from the beginning I would get my fair share of the writing credits and publishing and I took them at my word which was a mistake but it was never about the money. When I first joined the band I’m pretty sure I got paid about $100 dollars a week but it would incrementally go up because they weren’t sure about me. Then it doubled and it would keep doubling and so on until I proved myself and I didn’t care. I went from having no money and no band to being in Ozzy I didn’t give a shit about the money and I didn’t even give a shit about getting paid on Bark at the Moon album I just wanted credit. I remember I was going to get $5000 to record Bark at the Moon and get writing credit and publishing. But when I finally got the contract they threw in another $10,000 to make up for the no having writing and publishing. In regards to not having publishing on that song Bark at the moon, just low balling, for my portion would have been $250,000 just for that song not having publishing on it. Which means there was about $250,000 that Ozzy got that instead of me. It’s a lot of money but I am not bitter about it. ”
When asked how much did Ozzy contribute to the writing of Bark at the Moon
“Ozzy was not there too often in the writing sessions but Ozzy was really good at melodies, Ozzy would pop in when we were working on songs, ‘Bark at the Moon’ for example, we would work on the songs and Ozzy would pop in towards the end of the night and he was amazing at how fast he would come up with a melody, the melody would just come to him, he didn’t have to work on it, he never did work on it. He heard the music he grabbed the mic and he had a melody and a catch phrase on what we could build on, he wouldn’t have any lyrics just hum and Bob Daisly would write the words. ”
Why was he fired after the Ultimate Sin Album and tour
“It was a combination of reasons. First me and Ozzy never clicked on a personnel level, there was never any conflict or arguments but we never bonded or clicked on a personnel level. Ozzy did not get my sense of humour, it’s very dry and sarcastic. But he got that bond with Zakk Wylde later on. Second me and Phil Soussan (bassist) did not have a good relationship. Also when we were writing for the third record I felt a little constrained musically because there were parameters you have to write in for it to fit with Ozzy and basically it has to be metal and I was getting a little bored with that I was trying to push it musically. Last I know at the same time Randy Castillo (drummer) told me that Phil wanted to be the main songwriter because the song Shot in the Dark that he wrote was the big hit on Ultimate Sin and Phil Sossan was whispering in Ozzy’s ear we don’t need Jake we will just write a bunch of hits now. As far as Phil is concerned I know he was partially instrumental in getting me fired he lasted after in the band after I was out maybe 3 months before he got fired. I saved his ass prior twice on tour because of his stage antics and Ozzy wanted to fire him and I talked Ozzy out of it. So the fact that Phil helped me get fired in the end and then he only lasted a couple of months. Karma, Karma Mother ***er. “
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke with Greek Guitarist Gus G (Firewind, Ozzy Osbourne). Gus G spoke about trying to make it in music business in Greece, his audition and contributions in his time with Ozzy Osbourne and his new album “Fearless”, which was released April 20 via AFM Records.
Watch the interview here:
When asked about his audition with Ozzy after the departure of Zakk Wylde
“I ended up being a touring guitarist for Arch Enemy, so there I was at Ozzy Fest with Maiden and Sabbath my first big American tour. What happened that summer there was an announcement that Ozzy was parting ways with Zakk Wylde and he was looking for a guitar player. So I popped in the production office on one of those days on the tour and I just left a Firewind CD on the desk and I said hey I’m on the second stage with Arch Enemy and I heard you were looking for a guitar player. But nothing came out of it and I didn’t hear anything because Zakk continued with Ozzy they made another record Black Rain. Fast forward into 2009 I was having a little bit of success with Firewind. I got an email from Sharon’s Management and they asked me to audition for Ozzy. It was crazy I couldn’t sleep for 3 days I couldn’t believe it . At that point I was thinking I didn’t really expect anything would come out of it. I didn’t think of myself being that good for the band and for the part of guitarist for Ozzy. I thought if anything else it will be a thing to remember for life, that will be a story to tell. I got nothing to lose.”
When asked what songs he played during the audition for Ozzy
“We played ‘Bark at the Moon’, ‘I don’t know’, ‘Suicide Solution’, ‘Paranoid’, ‘I don’t want to change the world’. Five or six songs. Ozzy looked impressed right from the get go, I guess somebody showed him some video of me before and it was like this is the guy! Ozzy even told me before the audition don’t have any stress I saw some videos of you and I have a really good feeling about this so if you make mistakes don’t worry about it . The audition went well.”
When asked what was Ozzy reaction after the audition
“Ozzy turned around and said you are fuckin great and his people went into a room and they chatted for a few minutes and came out and asked me if I wanted to come back and play a gig. They never said anything after that gig they seemed to be pretty pleased. Then I did another gig, after that Ozzy invited me to his house to listen to some of the new material on Scream, I ended up staying for a few days and played some solos, it was a little bit of a trial period Then I went back home and didn’t hear anything for about a month and then I got an email from Sharon asking me to come back to play on the whole album to play all the guitars. “
When asked if he was allowed to contribute to the Scream recordings?
“They had already done the record, they were already happy with the songs. It’s wasn’t a situation where we were going to go in and rewrite the whole thing. There is two ways about this you can try and stand up and say I would like to bring in my songs and they can either listen to you or like go home we will get somebody else. That was not the gig not the requirement. “
When asked if he wrote any material after Scream for a new album for Ozzy
“I wrote a lot of ideas preparing for a possible next album. At some point Ozzy even texted me and asked me to send him a bunch of riffs, think I submitted like ideas for 12 or 13 songs. Nothing came out of that. We even wrote a couple of songs together on the road on the Scream tour. Actually one of them I ended up using on my new solo album Fearless, it’s called Don’t Trend on me. Not with his lyrics or melodies.”
When asked about his new albums ‘Fearless’ musical vibe
“Just a good hard rock metal songs. Taking what I have already started on the first two solo albums and taking it further and making it sound like a band effort rather than an experimental record. Because that is what the first two records were. But this time I had a solid co-writer/ producer Denis Ward. It sounds more cohesive compared to the first two records. My style fits into the whole 80’s scene. When I say 80’s I don’t mean Hair metal and Sleaze rock. I mean the classic 80’s metal , you can hear those influences all over the record.”
‘(Bernie) did me a great favour. If it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t be doing it now. I’d have given up’. – Ozzy Osbourne, 2018
World-renowned guitar legend Bernie Tormé will be heading out on tour for the final time in the U.K. later this year.
With a new studio album rumoured to be in the offing, the celebrated Irish six-stringer will hit the road for a string of dates in November/December.
A man whose CV is as impressive as his six-string dexterity, Tormé has lent his enviable skills over the years to Gillan, Ozzy Osbourne, Dee Snider, Atomic Rooster and many others whilst maintaining an acclaimed solo career alongside.
Prior to the final U.K. tour Tormé and his band will be heading to the prestigious Sweden Rock festival, playing alongside the likes of Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Helloween, Rose Tattoo and a certain Mr. Osbourne…
“Elegantly crafted music based around the man’s electrifying blues, with a kick.” – Classic Rock
Bernie Tormé ‘The Final Fling’ UK 2018
22nd Nov – Facebar, Reading
23rd Nov – Queen Vic, South Shields
24th Nov – Winterstorm Festival, Troon
25th Nov – Bannermans, Edinburgh
27th Nov – Robin II, Bilston, Wolverhampton
28th Nov – Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes
30th Nov – The Lounge, London
1st Dec – The Bear, Weston-super-Mare
“Bernie delivers a solid and accomplished set that showcases his musical prowess.” – Planet Rock
More on Bernie Tormé;
Guitar legend, blues rock psychedelic shredmeister, glam punk sleaze rock frontman: Bernie Tormé has enjoyed a long and remarkable career. Hit records, world tours and international acclaim came as lead guitarist in Gillan. After which, Bernie stepped in for Ozzy Osbourne in the aftermath of guitar legend Randy Rhoads’ tragic death before going on to front Electric Gypsies and Tormé. Teaming up with Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider and Iron Maiden’s drummer Clive Burr,
Bernie put together Desperado and later reunited with ex-Gillan colleague, John McCoy and drummer Robin Guy in GMT.
Returning to the stage in 2013, Bernie also began working in his favoured trio format once again, releasing three critically-acclaimed albums; ‘Flowers & Dirt’ (2014), ‘Blackheart’ (2015) and the 3CD ‘Dublin Cowboy’ (2017) package (comprising a live, an acoustic, and a new electric studio album). All three were crowdfunded, connecting Bernie directly with his fans.
Bernie states: “In the past you were pretty distant and separated from your fans with a record label in between. Making these albums with pledge campaigns has been a great experience. I like having the connection with fans and getting the feedback direct on making an album.”
2018 will see the release of Bernie’s latest, as-yet untitled, studio album.
Bernie Tormé has recorded over 24 albums in his career to date as a solo artist or band member.
