“Bark At The Moon“, the third OZZY OSBOURNE solo album was requested here in its remastered version pressed on high quality Blu-Spec CD2. But we are posting as well this ’80s Japanese CD edition, just from the original tapes, for those who prefer a warmer sound, not bombastic as the remasters.
Ozzy was in a bad place back in ’83. Still hurting from the death of Randy Rhoads, Ozzy was forced to audition players again, a process he hated. Jake E. Lee – original member of Mickey Ratt who became Ratt after a name change in the early ’80s – was selected, perhaps due to his ability to meld white hot riffs with melodic heavy shredding.
Legendary bassist Bob Daisley returned, as did drummer Tommy Aldridge, who had played on the last tour. Don Airey also returned for keyboard duties, creating a spooky atmosphere for the Ozzman to prowl.
And prowl he did. This is a hard rocking album, probably harder than the two previous with Rhoads. It is also a darker sounding album. The great ‘Now You See It (Now You Don’t)’ is an example of a song that has all these qualities. It has a hard, almost Sabbathy guitar riff, but is cloaked in a mysterious darkness.
‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Rebel’ is the most upbeat song; who doesn’t like a song about rebellion in the name of rock and roll? It also has obvious references to the TV preachers who were out to get Ozzy at the time, so the song is like a big middle finger from Ozzy.
Then you have the jokey weird ballad, ‘So Tired’. At least that’s how I heard it then, and still hear it now. The video seems to emphasize the jokey aspect. Who doesn’t love to see Ozzy dressed up as monsters? As far as the song goes, I have no idea what they were thinking at the time. Maybe it was the drugs? Another weird thing — even thought I think the song is a joke, I love it!
Ozzy did it again with “Bark At The Moon”: modernized the sound while retaining his essence. And allowed us to discover that great guitar player in Jake E. Lee.
A Classic
01 – Bark At The Moon
02 – You’re No Different
03 – Now You See It (Now You Don’t)
04 – Rock ‘n’ Roll Rebel
05 – Centre Of Eternity
06 – So Tired
07 – Slow Down
08 – Waiting For Darkness
Ozzy Osbourne – vocals
Jake E. Lee – guitar, backing vocals
Bob Daisley – bass, backing vocals
Tommy Aldridge – drums
Don Airey – keyboards