Robert John Daisley (born 13 February 1950) is a retired Australian bass guitarist. He has collaborated on several occasions with
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
, for whom he contributed bass, backing vocals, co-production and songwriting. He has also worked with prominent rock acts including
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
,
Rainbow
A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
,
Gary Moore
Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz ...
,
Chicken Shack and
Uriah Heep, among others.
Biography
Early career
Daisley began playing guitar at age 13 and went on to bass at 14. His rapid progress won him local acclaim especially through his work with guitarist Dennis Wilson with The Powerpact and Mecca; Mecca's only single release "Black Sally" became an underground hit and was covered by
Human Instinct on their ''
Stoned Guitar'' album. Daisley and Wilson then formed
Kahvas Jute
Kahvas Jute were an Australian rock band formed in July 1970. Mainstay of the line-up was Dennis Wilson on guitar and vocals. Other founder members include Bob Daisley on bass guitar and Tim Gaze on lead guitar and vocals. Their debut album, ' ...
with Tamam Shud members Tim Gaze and Dannie Davidson. They released one album, ''Wide Open'', on Infinity Records in 1971.
Daisley came to international notice as a bass player and member of the English blues band
Chicken Shack in 1972, before going on to play with
Mungo Jerry
Mungo Jerry are a British rock band, formed by Ray Dorset in Ashford, Middlesex in 1970. Experiencing their greatest success in the early 1970s, with a changing lineup always fronted by Ray Dorset, the group's biggest hit was " In the Summer ...
in 1973 and on their 1974 album ''Long-Legged Woman Dressed in Black''. After this he co-formed
Widowmaker, contributing to two albums – 1975's
self-titled debut and ''
Too Late to Cry'' in 1977. The same year he joined
Ritchie Blackmore
Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guitar ...
's band
Rainbow
A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
and later played on tracks of the ''
Long Live Rock 'n' Roll
''Long Live Rock 'n' Roll'' is the third studio album by the British hard rock band Rainbow (rock band), Rainbow, released in 1978 and the last to feature original lead vocalist Ronnie James Dio.
Background
Recording of the album commenced in ...
'' album. He remained with Rainbow until 1979 when he was replaced by Blackmore's ex-
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...
bandmate
Roger Glover
Roger David Glover (born 30 November 1945) is a Welsh bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the member of the hard rock bands Deep Purple and Rainbow. As a member of Deep Purple, Glover was inducted into the Rock and R ...
.
Ozzy Osbourne
In October 1979, Daisley met
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
at a venue called the Music Machine in
Camden Town
Camden Town (), often shortened to Camden, is a district of northwest London, England, north of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Camden, and identified in the London Plan as o ...
, and Osbourne soon suggested they form a band with former
Quiet Riot
Quiet Riot is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band founded in Los Angeles in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads and bassist Kelly Garni.
The original lineup featured Rhoads and Garni with lead vocalist Kevin DuBrow and drummer Drew F ...
guitarist
Randy Rhoads, whom Osbourne had recently met in Los Angeles. The trio hired ex-
Uriah Heep drummer Lee Kerslake and settled on the band name ''The Blizzard of Ozz'', though a record company billed the act simply as "Ozzy Osbourne".
Daisley contributed bass and backing vocals as well as songwriting and co-production on the group's first album, ''
Blizzard of Ozz
''Blizzard of Ozz'' is the debut solo studio album by English singer Ozzy Osbourne, released on 12 September 1980 in the UK and on 27 March 1981 in the US. The album was Osbourne's first release following his firing from Black Sabbath in 1979. ...
'', and co-wrote all of the material on the follow-up album ''
Diary of a Madman'' but both he and drummer
Lee Kerslake
Lee Gary Kerslake (16 April 1947– 19 September 2020) was an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and backing vocalist for the rock band Uriah Heep and for his work with Ozzy Osbourne in the early 1980s.
Biography Early life a ...
were fired before the album was released.
Rudy Sarzo
Rodolfo Maximiliano Sarzo Lavieille Grande Ruiz Payret y Chaumont (born November 18, 1950) is a Cuban American hard rock/ heavy metal bassist. He remains best known for his work with Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne, and Whitesnake, and has also played ...
and
Tommy Aldridge
Tommy Aldridge (born August 15, 1950) is an American heavy metal and hard rock drummer. He is noted for his work with numerous bands and artists since the 1970s, such as Black Oak Arkansas, Pat Travers Band, Ozzy Osbourne, Gary Moore, Whitesna ...
appeared in their place in the artwork and credits of that album. Daisley and Kerslake successfully sued Jet Records and Don Arden in 1986 for performance royalties and to have their performance credits added to ''
Diary of a Madman''. Litigation with regards to these albums continued in 1998 when Daisley and Kerslake sued the Osbournes (who unknown to Daisley and Kerslake had purchased the early albums' publishing rights) for unpaid performance royalties and accreditation. However, Sharon without Ozzy's knowledge responded to this by deleting the original recordings and re-issuing new CD versions with the bass and drum tracks re-recorded by
Robert Trujillo
Roberto Agustín Miguel Santiago Samuel Trujillo Veracruz (; born October 23, 1964) is an American musician, best known as the bassist for Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Metallica since 2003. He first rose to prominence as the bassist of cr ...
and
Mike Bordin
Michael Andrew Bordin (born November 27, 1962) is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Faith No More. He has amicably been known as "Puffy", "Puffster" or "The Puff", in reference to the afro hair style he wore in ...
in 2002. In 2003, Daisley and Kerslake's lawsuit was dismissed by the United States District Court in Los Angeles. This dismissal was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In 2011, Sony Legacy released both first albums with the bass and drum parts by Daisley and Kerslake restored.
Daisley continued to write and record for Osbourne throughout the 1980s, playing on and/or writing for ''
Bark at the Moon
''Bark at the Moon'' is the third solo studio album by British heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, originally released in December 1983. The album marks Ozzy's change to a synth infused pop-metal sound, with both its "sonic production, and in ...
'' (1983), ''
The Ultimate Sin
''The Ultimate Sin'' is the fourth solo studio album by British heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. It was released on 10 February 1986, and was remastered and re-issued on compact disc on 22 August 1995. It is the second and last of Osbourne ...
'' (1986), and ''
No Rest for the Wicked'' (1988). He maintained his working relationship with the Osbournes up until 1991's ''
No More Tears
''No More Tears'' is the sixth studio album by English heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. Released on 17 September 1991, the album charted at number 17 on the UK Albums Chart and number seven on the US ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. ''No Mo ...
'' album, which featured his bass playing on all tracks.
Mike Inez (who later joined
Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...
) appeared in the album's promotional videos.
Uriah Heep
After leaving Osbourne's band the first time, Daisley joined the reformed
Uriah Heep in 1981 alongside Kerslake and remained with them until the following year, recording two albums, ''
Abominog
''Abominog'' is the 14th studio album by British rock band Uriah Heep, released in March 1982 by Bronze Records in the United Kingdom, and in September 1982 by Mercury Records in the United States. It was their first album without keyboardist K ...
'' and ''
Head First
Head First or Headfirst may refer to:
Music
* ''Head First'' (The Babys album) (1979)
* ''Head First'' (Badfinger album) (recorded 1974, released 2000)
* ''Head First'' (Goldfrapp album) (2010), or its title track
* ''Head First'' (Uriah Hee ...
'', both of which helped to rekindle some interest in the band.
Gary Moore
During his on-off involvement with Osbourne, Daisley also recorded many albums with
Gary Moore
Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz ...
and toured extensively with him.
Black Sabbath
In 1986, he was approached by producer
Jeff Glixman
Jeff Glixman is an American record producer. He has produced, mixed or remastered artists such as Kansas, Magnum, Gary Moore, Yngwie Malmsteen, The Georgia Satellites and Black Sabbath. Combined sales of his projects exceed 30 million units.
Ca ...
to play on the
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
album ''
The Eternal Idol
''The Eternal Idol'' is the thirteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, released on 23 November 1987 (UK) and 8 December 1987 (US). It is the first Black Sabbath album to feature vocalist Tony Martin. It spent six week ...
'', as the band's actual bass player
Dave Spitz
Dave "The Beast" Spitz (born February 22, 1958) is an American musician best known for having played bass guitar for the heavy metal group Black Sabbath from 1985 to 1987, appearing on the albums ''Seventh Star'' and being credited for (but not ...
had personal commitments to attend to. However, Spitz was credited on the final release along with him. Daisley was offered the bassist's spot in Black Sabbath but turned it down due to his commitment to Gary Moore, with whom he continued to work from time to time until the guitarist's death in 2011.
Other contributions
Since the 1980s, Daisley has contributed to a wealth of recordings as bassist, lyricist and producer, including albums by
Yngwie Malmsteen
Yngwie Johan Malmsteen ( ; born Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck, 30 June 1963) is a Swedish guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical playing style in heavy metal, and has released 22 studio albums in a career spanning ov ...
,
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
,
Bill Ward,
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
and
Jeff Watson of Night Ranger. Daisley and Watson teamed up again and formed
Mother's Army
Mother's Army was an American hard rock supergroup founded in 1993.
Their original line-up consisted of vocalist Joe Lynn Turner, guitarist Jeff Watson, bassist Bob Daisley and drummer Carmine Appice
Carmine Appice ( , born December 15, 19 ...
with vocalist
Joe Lynn Turner
Joe Lynn Turner (born Joseph Arthur Mark Linquito, August 2, 1951) is an American singer known for his work in the hard rock bands Rainbow, Yngwie J. Malmsteen and Deep Purple.
During his career, Turner fronted and played guitar with pop ro ...
and drummer
Carmine Appice
Carmine Appice ( , born December 15, 1946) is an American rock drummer. He is best known for his associations with Vanilla Fudge; Cactus; the power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice; Rod Stewart; King Kobra; and Blue Murder. He is also Vinny Appice's ...
. In 2003, following his second and unsuccessful suit against Ozzy Osbourne, he teamed up with Lee Kerslake,
Steve Morse
Steve J. Morse (born July 28, 1954) is an American guitarist, best known as the founder of the Dixie Dregs and as the lead guitarist of Deep Purple from 1994 to 2022. Morse has also enjoyed a successful solo career and was briefly a member of ...
of
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...
and Australian rock singer
Jimmy Barnes
James Dixon "Jimmy" Barnes (née Swan; born 28 April 1956) is a Scottish-born Australian rock singer. His career, both as a solo performer and as the lead vocalist with the rock band Cold Chisel, has made him one of the most popular and best- ...
to record an album under the name Living Loud. Six of the album's eleven tracks were covers from ''Blizzard of Ozz'' and ''Diary of a Madman''.
Don Airey played keyboards on the Living Loud album. On 7 February 2003 Daisley recorded a live show at The Basement in Sydney with Australian blues band The Hoochie Coochie Men, for a live DVD and CD release. Featured were former Deep Purple organist
Jon Lord
John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...
and Jimmy Barnes. In 2007, The Hoochie Coochie Men released the studio album ''Danger: White Men Dancing'', also featuring Jon Lord. In September 2014, Daisley was hired to produce the debut album of Adelaide-based hard rock band Cherry Grind.
Book
Daisley's autobiography ''For Facts Sake'' was published in August 2013.
Gear
Daisley uses Mark Bass heads, and
Picato Strings since 1972. He recorded Ozzy Osbourne's solo debut ''Blizzard of Ozz'' with a white
Gibson EB-3
The Gibson EB-3 is an electric bass guitar model produced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation.
Origins and history
The Gibson EB-3 is a bass guitar introduced in 1961 and discontinued in 1979. It was produced at Gibson's plant in Kalamazoo, MI. It ...
from 1960 or 1961, through one of Randy Rhoads'
Marshall stack
Marshall is a British company that designs and manufactures music amplifiers, speaker cabinets, brands personal headphones and earphones, drums and bongos. The company also owns a record label called Marshall Records. It was founded in Lond ...
s, and continues to use a red 1960 EB-3 to this day. However, the follow-up to ''Blizzard'', ''Diary of a Madman,'' (and most of the other albums he recorded on) was recorded with a
Fender Precision Bass
The Fender Precision Bass (often shortened to "P-Bass") is a model of electric bass guitar manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrum ...
. ''No More Tears'' was recorded with a P-bass as well, but an early '50s model with a single coil pickup (in sunburst).
Discography
Session and guest appearances
*
The Tyla Gang – ''Tyla Gang'' (1991)
*
Bill Ward – ''
Ward One: Along the Way'' (1990)
*
Jeff Watson – ''Lone Ranger'' (1992)
*
Jeff Watson – ''Around The Sun'' (1993)
*
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
– ''
Taste of Heaven
''Taste of Heaven'' is the second studio album by hard rock band Takara (band), Takara released in May 1995 on Long Island Records.
Upon its release, the album was selling so well that Long Island Records brought the band to Germany for a promo ...
'' (1995)
*Various artists – ''In From the Storm'', a
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
tribute album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...
(1995)
*
Carmine Appice
Carmine Appice ( , born December 15, 1946) is an American rock drummer. He is best known for his associations with Vanilla Fudge; Cactus; the power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice; Rod Stewart; King Kobra; and Blue Murder. He is also Vinny Appice's ...
– ''Guitar Zeus'' (1995)
*Vertex – ''Vertex'' (1996)
*
Warren DeMartini
Warren Justin DeMartini (born April 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist for glam metal band Ratt, which achieved international stardom in the 1980s.
Early life
DeMartini was born on April 10, 1963, in Chicago, ...
– ''Crazy Enough To Sing To You'' (1997)
*
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
– ''
Eternity: Best of 93 – 98'' (1998)
*
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
– ''
Blind in Paradise
''Blind in Paradise'' is the third studio album by hard rock band Takara released in 1998 on Point Music & Saraya Recordings.
Track listing
# "Take U Down"
# "Your Love 2night"
# "Fly 2 Your Arms"
# "Love Is Gone"
# "What Do U Want From Me"
# "Ti ...
'' (1998)
*Stream – ''Nothing Is Sacred'' (1998)
*Various Artist – ''Humanary Stew: Alice Cooper Tribute'' (1999)
*Various Artist – ''Forever Mod: A Tribute to Rod Stewart'' (1999)
*Silver – ''Intruder'' (2003)
*Karl Cochran – ''Voodooland'' (2004)
*The Legendary Zarsoff Brothers – ''Mixed Business'' (2005)
*Planet Alliance – Self Titled (2006)
*Jorge Salán – ''Chronicles of an Evolution'' (2007)
*Thomas Tomsen – ''Sunflickers'' (2010)
*Last Temptation – ''Last Temptation'' (2019)
Video – VHS edition
*Gary Moore – ''Emerald Aisles'' (1985)
*Gary Moore – ''
Live at Issstadion Stockholm: Wild Frontier Tour'' (1987)
*Gary Moore – ''The Video Singles'' (1987)
*''Guitar Gods – Ritchie Blackmore'' (2008, interviewee)
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daisley, Bob
1950 births
Living people
Musicians from Sydney
Australian Buddhists
Australian rock bass guitarists
Male bass guitarists
Australian heavy metal bass guitarists
Rainbow (rock band) members
The Ozzy Osbourne Band members
Uriah Heep (band) members
The Gary Moore Band members
Black Sabbath members
Mungo Jerry members
Chicken Shack members
Widowmaker (U.K. band) members
Mother's Army members
Living Loud members
The Affair (band) members
Yngwie J. Malmsteen's Rising Force members
Australian male guitarists
The Hoochie Coochie Men members