''Tribute'' is a live album by British heavy metal vocalist

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 ...

, featuring his work with hard rock guitarist Randy Rhoads, in whose honor the album was released. The album was released in May 1987, five years after the death of Rhoads, then it was reissued on 22 August 1995, and again remastered and reissued in 2002. It peaked at number 6 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart.

Background

The album was released in memory of Randy Rhoads, guitarist for Osbourne's band between 1979 and 1982 who died in a

plane crash An aviation accident is defined by the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft, which takes place from the time any person boards the aircraft with the ''intention of fl ...

while on tour in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in 1982. The album also includes studio outtakes of Rhoads recording the classical-influenced acoustic guitar piece " Dee", which Rhoads wrote for his mother Delores and which was originally included on Osbourne's debut solo 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. ...

''. A live album consisting entirely of renditions of

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 ...

songs was originally planned to be recorded at Toronto's

Maple Leaf Gardens Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was initially constructed in 1931 as an arena to host ice hockey games, though it has sinc ...

in mid-1982 with Rhoads. Rhoads and drummer

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 ...

felt that they had established themselves as recording artists and an album of cover songs would be a step backwards artistically, and they refused to participate. Bassist

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 ...

was uncomfortable with refusing to perform, not having the same recording pedigree of his bandmates, but he stood with them and the trio informed management of their decision. Osbourne felt betrayed and his relationship with Rhoads never fully recovered.Sarzo, Rudy (2017). Off the Rails (third edition). CreateSpace Publishing. Plans for this proposed live album crumbled upon Rhoads' sudden death weeks later, though the plan was resurrected with the release of ''

Speak of the Devil "Speak of the devil" is the short form of the English-language idiom "Speak of the devil and he doth appear" (or its alternative form "speak of the devil and he shall appear"). The form "talk of the devil" is also in use in England. It is used ...

'' later that year with Sarzo and Aldridge joined by

Night Ranger Night Ranger is an American hard rock band from San Francisco formed in 1979 that gained popularity during the 1980s with a series of albums and singles. Guitarist Brad Gillis and drummer Kelly Keagy have been the band's only constant members, ...

guitarist

Brad Gillis Bradley Frank Gillis (born 15 June 1957) is a guitarist most famous for playing with the band Night Ranger. He was in the band Rubicon during the 1970s before Night Ranger. Since forming in 1979, Gillis and drummer Kelly Keagy are the only me ...

Overview

The majority of ''Tribute'', from "I Don't Know" through to "Paranoid", was recorded live in Cleveland, Ohio on 11 May 1981. "Goodbye to Romance" and "No Bone Movies" are taken from an earlier English gig in support of the ''

'' album, possibly from

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

on 2 October 1980. These two tracks feature bassist

Bob Daisley Robert John Daisley (born 13 February 1950) is a retired Australian bass guitarist. He has collaborated on several occasions with Ozzy Osbourne, for whom he contributed bass, backing vocals, co-production and songwriting. He has also worked wi ...

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 ...

. The versions of "Iron Man", "Children of the Grave", and "Paranoid" featured on ''Tribute'' were originally intended to be included on the 1982 live album ''Speak of the Devil''. In the months following Rhoads' death, these three songs were intended to be released in tribute to the guitarist, but a record company decision was made to save them for a full album to be released at a later date. The recording of "Crazy Train" that appears on this album was also released as the album's only single on 10 February 1987, along with an accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

. The album's cover photo was taken at a performance in

Rosemont, Illinois Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located immediately northwest of Chicago, as of the 2010 census it had a population of 4,202. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that. Whi ...

on 24 January 1982, by photographer Paul Natkin. The operatic music which opens ''Tribute'', as well as all of Osbourne's live shows of that era, is "

O Fortuna "O Fortuna" is a medieval Latin Goliardic poem which is part of the collection known as the ''Carmina Burana'', written early in the 13th century. It is a complaint about Fortuna, the inexorable fate that rules both gods and mortals in Roman an ...

" from the ''

Carmina Burana ''Carmina Burana'' (, Latin for "Songs from Benediktbeuern" 'Buria'' in Latin is a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces are mostly bawdy, irreverent ...

'' scenic cantata by

Carl Orff Carl Orff (; 10 July 1895 – 29 March 1982) was a German composer and music educator, best known for his cantata '' Carmina Burana'' (1937). The concepts of his Schulwerk were influential for children's music education. Life Early life Carl ...

. This introductory music was omitted from the 1995 remaster, with opening track "I Don't Know" subsequently being shortened to 4:43.

Track listing

Personnel

- vocals, executive producer * Randy Rhoads - guitar *

- bass *

- drums *Lindsay Bridgwater - keyboards *

- bass on "Goodbye to Romance" and "No Bone Movies" *

- drums on "Goodbye to Romance" and "No Bone Movies"

Production

Max Norman Max Norman is a British record producer and recording engineer active since 1973. He produced many acclaimed heavy metal releases. While Norman was resident engineer at Ridge Farm Studios in London, Ozzy Osbourne was recording his debut solo ...

- producer, engineer *Brian Lee and Bob Ludwig - 1995 remastering *Bruce Dickinson - 2002 edition executive producer *Chris Athens - 2002 remastering

Charts

Album

Singles

Certifications

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1987 live albums Ozzy Osbourne live albums Albums produced by Max Norman Live albums published posthumously Collaborative albums Epic Records live albums Columbia Records live albums Randy Rhoads Albums in memory of deceased persons