Diary of a Madman is the second studio album by Ozzy Osbourne. It was recorded from the 9th of Feb to the 23 of March 1981 inclusively - the end of winter in the UK and recording ending just into spring equinox. It was released on November 7, 1981, and re-issued on August 22, 1995. An altered version appeared in 2002. This was the last album with Randy Rhoads before his death in 1982. Although bassist Rudy Sarzo and drummer Tommy Aldridge are credited in the liner notes and pictured on the inner sleeve, it was bassist Bob Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake who performed all bass and drum parts on the original release. They were not given credit for their contributions. According to a 2005 interview with Daisley, even though Don Airey is credited for having played keyboards on this record, it was in fact a musician named Johnny Cook (who had worked with Bob Daisley in Mungo Jerry) who recorded the keyboard parts, as Airey was on tour with Rainbow.[1] The album features several songs with acoustic/classical guitarintros, including "You Can't Kill Rock and Roll", "S.A.T.O.", "Tonight", and the title track. The album is Osbourne's personal favorite of all his releases. To date, the album has sold over 3.2 million copies worldwide.
Diary of a Madman was re-released in 2002 with the original bass and drum tracks, recorded by Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake, respectively, removed and replaced by new recordings by Robert Trujillo and Mike Bordin.
In 2010 Sony announced new re-releases of Diary of a Madman and Blizzard of Ozz, featuring Randy Rhoads, with the original bass and drum tracks restored. These will be Deluxe 30th Anniversary Editions with demos, rarities and previously unreleased live material. The release date had been delayed,[2] but was later announced to be 31 May 2011.[3] Two versions of the album will be released: a two-disc 'Legacy Edition' containing the original album on disc 1 and a live concert featuring Osbourne and Rhoads on disc 2, and a single disc remastered version containing only the 8 tracks from the original release.[4] A box set featuring both re-issued albums, the Blizzard of Ozz/Diary of a Madman 30th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set, will also be released, featuring both CD re-issues, 180-gram LP Vinyl versions of both albums (original album only), the "Thirty Years After The Blizzard" DVD Documentary, over 70 minutes of additional rare live performances and interviews, a replica of Ozzy's iconic cross, and a 2 sided poster.[5]
Controversy
The 2002 Diary of a Madman reissue was derided by fans due to its replacement of the original bass and drum tracks by Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake. Osbourne's 90s touring band (bassist Robert Trujillo and drummer Mike Bordin) replaced Daisley's and Kerslake's original instrumentation. Fans and critics generally felt the move was dishonest and resulted in a far inferior product. In 1986 (see 1986 in music), Daisley and Kerslake had sued Osbourne in court, eventually winning songwriting credits on Diary of a Madman. Osbourne's wife and manager, Sharon, said in a press conference that "because of Daisley and Kerslake's abusive and unjust behaviour, Ozzy wanted to remove them from these recordings. We turned a negative into a positive by adding a fresh sound to the original albums."[6]
The "re-recorded" versions of the album released in 2002 contained no disclaimer stating anything had been changed on the album. The record company eventually began putting a "featuring re-recorded drums and bass parts" sticker on the cover.
A promotional insert packaged with Scream advertises upcoming 30th anniversary deluxe editions of Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman, "restored to their original performances."
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