ZAKK WYLDE: Original Demo Recording Used To Land OZZY Gig Posted Online

Zakk Wylde fan site SDMFworldwide.com has uploaded the 1987 recording that got Zakk the job playing for OZZY OSBOURNE. Here's the story of the demo tape, by the man who recorded it, Jim Matlosz:

"Back in the summer of '87, I was hanging with Zakk and [his previous band] ZYRIS. I used to work as Zakk's guitar tech at the time, my plan was to trade the work for guitar lessons, problem was I didn't have the discipline and again the money to buy a real guitar, still cant play to this day. Anyway, every Saturday night, we would go to Close Encounters where ZYRIS would headline, Playing at times with EDGAR CAYCE (side band for PROPHET) along with some other acts, I remember them playing with SKID ROW before Sebastian, (I think it was Dave Feld who put SKID ROW and Sebastian together).

"Anyway, the story on the demo… Zakk calls me one night and says Ozzy is looking for a guitar player and he needs to put together a demo. We borrowed a 4-track cassette recorder from Zakk's friend Rich (can't remember his last name) we got together on a rainy night (on the classical piece what sounds like noise is actually rain on the outside basement metal door, which we actually put a mic on to add to the mix) and went over to the basement where ZYRIS rehearsed and recorded the demo.

"After Zakk got the Ozzy gig, Barb (his wife) told me he wanted me to be his guitar tech. Many others would have jumped at the opportunity, but I had to decline, I had one opportunity to go to college and fulfill my dreams and I had to pursue it. Who knows where I would be now if I had taken the opportunity, but I have no complaints. I would stay in touch with Zakk and Barb, over the next 5 years or so, driving Barb to LaGuardia airport to pick up Zakk at some crazy time of night when he would return from England...meeting up with them whenever we had the time. After college graduation, I packed up my bags and moved to California... Zakk and Barb offered me a place to stay. When Zakk returned from tour, I went off and got my own place, and began working as a cameraman in visual effects for feature films. I worked some crazy hours and had no time to socialize, so our lives drifted apart. I ran into Barb at a show Zakk was doing at The Troubadour in LA a few years ago and that is the last I have seen or heard from them. His life and career have been pretty easy to track, I've been listening to the music he's been making over the years, and can't believe how far he has come and changed.

"So 17 years go by, I had the master tape in a box the whole time with about 100 other cassettes. A good friend of mine asked me one day what a 4-track cassette recorder was worth on eBay, I said I don't know, about 10 bucks, but can I borrow it before you sell it. So I dug up the tape and asked a friend of mine who works as a recording engineer for movie trailers, if he would mind digitizing the demo in Protools and remixing it. He agreed and a few months later handed me the mixdown on CD as well as the Protools stems. I saw the bootleg page on Zakk's site, and figured the fans would be interested."

To download Zakk's original demo recording that landed him the gig with OZZY OSBOURNE, visit SDMFworldwide.com.