#Pantera . 1984. Dimebag Darrell when he was a 17/18 yr old kid. Listen to these licks — sound familiar? A mashup of Randy Rhoads era Ozzy & some Quiet Riot [I hear some Revelations, Crazy Train, Battle Axe] and of course he was an EVH fan too⚡️

As I reminisce about the likes of Cliff Burton, it didn’t occur to me that his intro to “Damage Inc” was based on Bach’s “Come, Sweet Death” — for years I never even realized the intro was the bass — and that it’s the last track on his final album makes it all the more melancholy

#QuietRiot . “Laughing Gas.” 1979. If you haven’t seen this before, it’s Randy Rhoads in his QR years before joining Ozzy — you can tell even when it’s just him playing how much of a command he had of melody & harmonies 🎼

#Ozzy . “Over the Mountain.” 1982. Irvine Meadows, CA. So we have pro shot footage of Ozzy in ‘78 with Sabbath, and then again in ‘82 with Brad Gillis — but somehow every concert camera was turned off between ‘79 to ‘81 when Ozzy had Randy Rhoads on stage. Anyhoo, here’s Brad… 🦇

#BlackSabbath . “Electric Funeral.” 1978. Hammersmith Odeon, London. Another thing the Paranoid album gave to the world in 1970: the birth of the weed-incensed, stank face riff 😠

#ThinLizzy . “Holy War.” 1983. Regal Theater, Hitchin UK. It’s impressive just how consistent TL’s catalog is — this is on their 12th & final album, and usually bands start to crap out after their 3rd or 4th release. John Sykes here right after his stint with Tygers of Pan Tang 🐅