The first rock concert I ever went to was on August 3, 1989 at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater in the town to which I would move a year later to attend college, Irvine, California. I, a high school senior, went to this concert with a recent grad friend of mine, Nick Gozdiff and another friend of his, whose name eludes me but who I can remember got drunk at the show and hit on a 12-year-old before passing out in the back seat of my car. In retrospect, my willingness to drive was probably a big reason why these seasoned 18-year-olds were willing to go to a show with a lowly high schooler, in dumb awe of just about everything he witnessed that night. Nick had been a school band member, a trombonist in fact, and a metal fan, so perhaps our similarities made it possible for him to tolerate my woeful lack of experience and sophistication. The lineup for the night included openers, all-female hair band Vixen, all-male hair band White Lion and finally, headliner Ozzy Osbourne. There are a handful of memorable stories from that fateful, magical night, but most memorable was the performance of another youngster, the then-22-year-old and relatively unknown guitarist in Ozzy's band, Zakk Wylde.
Zakk was (and is) a ridiculously good player with an enormous, crushing sound, unique approach to scalar soloing, impeccable technique, and that irresistible wailing harmonic squeal. While his style certainly descends from legendary guitarists Randy Rhoads and Duane Allman, until 1988's No Rest For The Wicked album, no one had heard playing quite like his.
In 1991, Zakk started a side project with two guys from that tour that I was lucky enough to attend, bassist James LoMenzo and drummer Greg D'Angelo from White Lion. They went on to produce one eponymous album in 1994 and a couple of contributions to compilations under Zakk's name prior to that, far too little output for what was truly a unique and highly talented band. Their style was one I really haven't heard anywhere else, a sort of southern metal reminiscent simultaneously of country blues and classic heavy metal. I can't recommend the album highly enough; Zakk's playing is top-notch and his vocals are surprisingly soulful, nuanced and capable. He even plays banjo, mandolin and harmonica on it, and there are a couple of string orchestra accompaniments performed by the Seattle Symphony. I'm including my favorite from the album, "Shine On", mainly my favorite because it features a monster jam with guitar solo for the second half of the track. I'm also throwing in, as a bonus, "Farm Fiddlin'" from the Guitars That Rule The World compilation of 1991 because it's so much fun.
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