'Randy Rhoads' Book Author Discusses Unreleased Footage Of Late OZZY OSBOURNE Guitarist

Lambchops, the admin for the Randy Rhoads Society on Facebook recently conducted an interview with Andrew Klein, co-author of the new book about legendary guitarist Randy Rhoads, simply entitled "Randy Rhoads". A few excerpt from the chat follow below.

Randy Rhoads Society: What did you learn about Randy from your research?

Andrew Klein: He was much more of a romantic than I ever knew or realized. He would go out of his way to do something special for those who he cared about. When he and Jodi [Raskin-Vigier, Randy Rhoads' fiancée] spent their first Christmas in England together, he didn't just want to go buy a tree. He wanted to go and cut down his own tree! It was then that he surprised her with an engagement ring. It was Christmas 1980. He used to mail Lori Hollen little personal items he chose to buy or make for her, rather than just randomly grab something quick in a gift shop. He put a lot of thought into it when he purchased a gift for you or made a gift for you. I never knew how artsy he was. He was an incredible artist. I've seen a lot of the pictures he drew and things he made for people. When he would mail letters, he would draw funny pictures of people he knew. He was amazing at doing those kinds of things with his hands. You look at this stuff and you can see that he had a lot of depth to his soul and he was a very patient person who cared about his friends.

Randy Rhoads Society: We have heard there is a pro-shot Randy show from New Jersey at the Capitol Theatre. Who owns this footage and do you think it will ever be released? If not, why?

Andrew Klein: I don't know who owns it now. I spoke with a guy named John Scher. He was the owner of the Capitol Theatre. He confirmed that every show performed there from 1973-1984 was shot by the inhouse crew. Three cameras in black and white. The last time we spoke, he was preparing his film library for a big sale to either a distribution company or a collector. He wasn't specific. He vaguely remembered the circumstances surrounding the events of the day when Ozzy and Randy were there. He said, "I either filmed it and gave it to Sharon, or we have it put away somewhere — I just don't remember." My thought was, if he had the tapes, and was preparing his library for a sale, he certainly wasn't going to part with them. He would want to maintain exclusivity, which I can understand and respect. They are his and he can do what he wants with them. I feel that if he had given them to Sharon, they would have been released by now. In a letter sent to Jodi the day after the Capitol Theatre show, Randy stated that it was a great show and he was excited that it was filmed. He went into details about the filming and said everyone in the band was aware of the cameras and everyone knew they were being filmed. Randy also said, "Because we were being filmed, I decided to wear the new vest you made for me with the zippers." Many people may not know this, but Jodi made all of Randy's stage clothes for him.

Randy Rhoads Society: There was also a rumor that there is another concert from Arizona in 1982 that was filmed also. Can you confirm this? If it does exist — who owns it and can it or will it be released?

Andrew Klein: There are two brothers who live in Arizona who are big fans of Randy's. They filmed two concerts — one "Blizzard" and one "Diary". They each sat in the front row with a camera and filmed the concerts from two different angles. They have the footage and the last I heard, they have no plans on ever making it available to the public. It is important to note that it is video only — no sound. If something is ever done with it, they will hopefully be able to sync it up with a live audio track. This shouldn't be too difficult. Ozzy's soundman recorded the band through the board nearly every night. Tommy Aldridge has copies of most of those tapes.

Randy Rhoads Society: What were your thoughts on the Ozzy boxset from last year?

Andrew Klein: I like the live audio tracks. I think they represent Randy better than the "Tribute" album does. Overall, I think its great that Ozzy and Sharon are doing their part to keep Randy's spirit and legacy alive. They loved Randy and I'm sure they miss him just as much as the rest of us. When Ozzy performs, he still plays those songs. As long as we continue to listen to the music, Randy will stay near to us. I'm sure if Ozzy and Sharon had more of Randy that they could share with us, they would. I don't believe that anything is being held back. If they had anything else stashed away all of these years, I think it would have been released in the box set. Most people have heard by now that Bob Daisley has recordings that were made during his time with Randy. Lots of cool stuff. Rehearsals, writing sessions, outtakes, demos, jams, and even some songs that never made the records. It's really cool hearing Ozzy and Randy conversing about things and working out the song arrangements. I would venture to say that something historically important such as this doesn't exist anywhere else but on Bob's tapes. From what I understand, all of this material was to be included in last year's box set, but an agreement could not be worked out between them. Bob has the tapes and he can't release them without Sharon. Even if Sharon wanted to release them, she can't do so without Bob's cooperation. So, there you have two people who can't work together to find middle ground. The tapes are gathering dust and the ones who suffer the most are the fans, and Randy's legacy. It’s really a shame.

Read the entire interview from Randy Rhoads Society.

104.1 The Blaze radio Interview with Andrew Klein: