The New Jersey native may reside in California now, but Wylde’s East Coast roots have clearly served him well. Incorporating his visceral songwriting, intelligent and pensive playing style, and the ability to not take himself (or the band) too seriously, he has managed to carve out a career that is entirely true to who he is. While Wylde evokes an image of draconian strength, the free-spirited frontman simultaneously possesses a wisdom and tenderness, evident in moments behind the piano on songs like “In This River.” Surely, he could have lived well into eternity with the title of ‘Ozzy’s Guitarist’ listed on his resume. Never one to rest on his laurels, Wylde has collaborated with various artists, contributed songs on the hit series Sons of Anarchy, appeared in movies such as the cult favorite Rockstar and created his own signature Gibson Les Paul with a bullseye design (he’s named his custom axe “The Grail”) that has become a ubiquitous image slung across the bodies of guitar players all over the world. In addition, his two solo albums, Book of Shadows I and Book of Shadows II, showcased a more reflective side within his songwriting. The latest of which, Grimmest Hits, was released last year. Within the past two decades, Wylde has released ten studio albums with his band Black Label Society. Though he’d spend some twenty years with “the boss,” as Wylde refers to Ozzy, the Jersey-born musician would go on to burn a path of his own, one melodic, shredding guitar solo at a time. When Ozzy Osborne chose Zakk Wylde to be his right-hand axe man in 1987, one could wonder if he’d predicted how wildly multi-faceted his talented young player would become.
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