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Zakk Wylde (born Jeffrey Phillip Wiedlandt on January 14, 1967 in Bayonne, New Jersey) is an American musician, who is best known for his roles as a guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne and founder of Black Label Society. He was lead guitarist and vocalist in Pride & Glory, who released one self-titled album in 1994 before disbanding. As a solo artist he released Book of Shadows in 1996.
CareerWylde started playing the guitar at the age of 15 and worked at Silverton Music in Silverton, New Jersey. He grew up in Jackson, New Jersey, and went to Jackson Memorial High School there, where he graduated in 1985.[1] Wylde has stated that he would practice playing the guitar as much as 12 hours per day and often would play the guitar almost non-stop between coming home from school and leaving for school the next morning, then sleeping through the school day.
Wylde's then-girlfriend (now wife) Barbaranne heard Ozzy was looking for a new guitarist on the Howard Stern radio show. While playing at a local gig, a photographer (Mark Weiss) spoke to Wylde urging him to audition for Ozzy, and offered to send a press kit along to Osbourne; Wylde, who at the time was working at a local Getty gas station, decided he had nothing to lose. Ozzy dismissed the tape among thousands of others as "just another Randy Rhoads clone". But a couple of weeks later, Randy Castillo, Ozzy's drummer at the time, told him he'd found a great guitarist from New Jersey. Wylde recalled how he received a phone call from Sharon Osbourne (thinking it was one of his friends' mother) telling him there was a ticket for him to fly out and audition for Ozzy. Wylde has said that he was hired on the spot before even playing, while he was still tuning his guitar. The truth of this is unknown as Wylde is known for joking with interviewers. The first material he released with Osbourne was No Rest for the Wicked in 1988. Zakk Wylde's guitar-playing style is characterized by his use of pinch harmonics and wide/aggressive vibrato. His guitar soloing technique is usually characterized by use of the minor pentatonic scale, playing rapid box-pattern licks using strict alternate-picking, creating a very distinctive, choppy style of playing. Another notable feature of Wylde's playing is his liberal use of "chicken pickin' ," a technique which is usually associated with country music, and which is (comparatively) rarely seen in heavy metal; a technique he has stated as being picked up from watching Albert Lee. He is known for his use of Gibson Les Paul Custom model guitars with a "bulls-eye" graphic on them, a design he used to deliberately differentiate himself visually from Randy Rhoads - who was also frequently identified by his white Les Paul Custom. Interestingly, one of Wylde's favorite stage guitars of late is a replica of Rhoads' Flying V. The "bulls-eye" paint job was originally supposed to look like the spiral from the movie Vertigo, but when it came back incorrect from the luthier, he liked the result and stuck with it.
Wylde and The Grail were only reunited years later, after a fan bought it at a pawn shop and realized he may very well have the missing guitar after checking the initials "Z.W." on its back and the serial number marked on the headstock. He then contacted Wylde's former webmaster Randy Canis to arrange its return. Ozzy has always left the option open to his band members to leave if they wish, but Wylde has stayed faithfully by Ozzy's side ever since he was a teenager (although Zakk was replaced in Osbourne's band by Joe Holmes from 1995 until his return in 2001). Wylde has stated that he has no respect for musicians who release material "not true to themselves". Randy Rhoads is probably his biggest influence.  On January 17, 2006, Zakk Wylde was immortalized at the Hollywood Rock Walk of Fame located at 7425 Sunset Blvd, featuring his hand prints and signature, in recognition to his successful career as a musician and contribution to music industry. The event was open to the public and many rock celebrities were present, including Osbourne. Ozzy Osbourne was auditioning new guitarists for future material in 2005/2006 but announced Wylde as the official guitarist for his new album, "Black Rain." Black Label Society's new album, "Shot To Hell", was released on September 11th (UK), 12th (US) through Roadrunner records with production by Michael Beinhorn (Soundgarden, Ozzy Osbourne, Red Hot Chili Peppers). Black Label Society headlined the 2nd stage at the 2006 Ozzfest, with Wylde playing double duty with Ozzy on certain dates. Ozzy's new album, Black Rain, was released in May 2007. Zakk Wylde is currently working a new film called The Berserkers, with Zakk taking on responsibilities for script and production. Personal lifeWylde and his wife, Barbaranne, have 3 children; a daughter, Hayley-Rae, a son, Jesse John Michael (named after Ozzy Osbourne), and another son, Hendrix Halen Michael Rhoads (named after Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, Mike Piazza, and Randy Rhoads). He and his family live outside of Los Angeles. He and Barbaranne both attended Jackson Memorial High School in Jackson, New Jersey. Zakk was a close friend of Dimebag Darrell since 1993, exchanging guitars in admiration for one another as fellow guitarists. Wylde had given Dimebag one of his custom Gibson guitars with the trademark "bulls-eye" design on it shortly before the guitarist's untimely death. Likewise, Dimebag had a customized Dean Razorback painted with the bullseye design for Wylde. Zakk dedicated the song "In This River" to Dimebag, citing that although the song wasn't originally written for him, the lyrics were fitting to the situation. The song gained a new importance and was changed from its original format during the live performances to make it more of a "Free Bird" type ballad with the addition of more solos, with Zakk playing with the Dean Razorback guitar Dime had given him. He dedicates each live performance of the song to Dimebag and, several times, he even cried on stage when playing the song. He has also stated it will be played at every Black Label Society concert as long as he is touring. Zakk is Irish Catholic.[2] AppearancesWylde has made guest appearances on many albums, such as the debut album for Damageplan as guest vocalist and guitar on the tracks "Soul Bleed" and "Reborn." He has also worked on four of Derek Sherinian's solo albums: "Inertia", "Black Utopia", "Mythology" and "Blood of the Snake" alongside Yngwie Malmsteen among others. On August 1st, 1993, Zakk appeared on stage with the Allman Brothers on lead guitar since Dickey Betts was unable to make the show, and they needed a guitarist at the last minute. This show is documented on the bootleg "Zakk Goes Wylde." Wylde's film credits include Rock Star (As "Ghode", guitarist of the fictitious band Steel Dragon) and the concert DVD Boozed, Broozed, and Broken-Boned (Certified Platinum), recorded at Harpo's in Detroit, MI. It was the first time in the concert hall's history that all of the alcohol had been consumed on one night (Wylde's favorite beer is Sierra Nevada). It should be noted that his next concert DVD The European Invasion: Doom Troopin' was released in 2006. He has also done a comedy skit show alongside Jim Breuer, titled "Crapshoot", which is now available on DVD. Zakk Wylde also appeared on the TV show Angel in the season 4 episode The Magic Bullet where he plays acoustic on the song "Mandy" while Angel and Conner sing along. Wylde has also appeared as a guest star on the TV show Aqua Teen Hunger Force. In it, he plays guitar on a track produced by Master Shake that is supposed to become the next big birthday song, which is called "Spirit Journey Formation Anniversary." Wylde becomes irate when he finds out that Master Shake cannot pay him for his input on the project. Later in the show, Wylde is killed when caught between the crossfire of two robotic banjo-playing scorpions that apparently were, for some reason, armed with laser cannons. He is a New York Yankees fan. He performed the National Anthem on the electric guitar during a New York Rangers game in October 2005. He has also played the anthem at Los Angeles Kings and Dodgers games. A video of a Kings performance is included as an extra feature, on the DVD Boozed, Broozed, and Broken-Boned On February 1, 2007 Zakk & Nick Catanese began a tour of acoustic shows at the Hard Rock Cafe in various cities across North America. Although Nick had to leave mid-tour due to unspecified personal reasons, Zakk continued to play shows alone. Zakk performed several songs, on both the acoustic guitar and keyboard. The tour was eventually cancelled due to unspecified reasons. On February 2, 2007 Zakk Wylde guest hosted on Seattle's 99.9 KISW on the afternoon program The Men's Room On the May 18 edition of WWE Smackdown, Zakk appeared with Ozzy Osbourne to play the hit single "I Don't Wanna Stop". Zakk also performed alongside Ozzy Osbourne on the 2007 VH1 Rock Honors, playing "I Don't Wanna Stop", "Bark At The Moon", and "Crazy Train". GearZakk Wylde uses all of the following guitars on and off stage:
His guitars are all outfitted with his GHS Zakk Wylde strings and his signature set of active EMG 81 and EMG 85 pick-ups with the exception of the Razorback. He usually gives preference to Marshall amplifiers such as the JCM800 2203. He has his own Signature JCM800ZW Amp with replaced tubes (GT 6550) and cabinet loaded with EVM12L-Black Label guitar speakers, he also has a signature MG15MSII Microstack, used as a practice amp. Jim Dunlop worked with Zakk to design two effects pedals, the Dunlop Zakk Wylde CryBaby, and the MXR Zakk Wylde Overdrive pedal. Also on his pedal board is a Dunlop Rotovibe, an MXR EVH Phase 90 and a BOSS CH-1 Super Chorus/MXR Stereo Chorus. In the past, his pedal board consisted of a Dunlop Jimi Hendrix Crybaby, a Dunlop Rotovibe, a BOSS SD-1 Super Overdrive and a BOSS CH-1 Super Chorus. 357 Customs controversy and lawsuitIn December of 2005, a promotional offer was posted on ZakkWylde.com, stating that anyone who bought a $100 merchandise gift certificate and a miniature model of a chopper would receive an $800 Epiphone guitar. The offer was posted by custom chopper company 357 Customs, through the then webmaster of ZakkWylde.com. On June 2, 2006, Bob Ringe, Zakk Wylde's manager, stated on the website that "357 Customs ran a promotion directed toward Zakk's fans, and [...] 357 has not delivered merchandise ordered during the promotion. Zakk has not authorized or otherwise been involved with this promotion, and has not received any compensation from it." Ringe went on further to state that he has instructed his lawyers to "contact 357....monitor this situation and follow up with 357." During and after the timeframe in which the 357 Customs offers were being advertised, numerous conversations, both via email and telephone were held with then current and former members of Zakk Wylde's management team, including Tim Bolin and Bob Ringe, and also Zakk Wylde's wife, with all parties confirming and supporting the promotion. A number of statements, both from the webmaster and Wylde himself, posted on ZakkWylde.com repeatedly stressed the legitimacy of the offer, and even went as far as placing blame on guitar maker Epiphone and electronics manufacturer EMG for the shipping delays. Of course, no order had ever been placed, and these statements were offered simply as a means of placating the increasingly concerned customers. It is important to note that staff from 357 as well as Zakks management staff all verified the veracity of this deal. Zakks manager went so far as saying that he was sure that the fans taken in this scam would be taken care of. This corroboration was ostensibly validated by a several telephone call recordings that were capture by the individual that broke the scam open to the public, as reported on a forum whose records no longer exist. Some of these recordings made it to the internet, and are said to have included the exact statements that laid blame at the feet of EMG and Epiphone, as well as repeated assurances from 357 Customs and Zakk Wyldes management that the deal would conclude; and everyone would get what they paid for. This never, in fact, happened, and later releases by Zakk's team did little to clear the air.[citation needed] One week later, on June 9, 2006, Zakk Wylde corroborated Ringe's statement and the involvement of his lawyers in "address[ing] the situation." On June 14th, 2006, Zakk Wylde's attorneys filed suit against 357 Customs Inc. in the Superior Court of the State of California. The suit alleges trademark infringement, false designation of origin, unfair competition, false advertising, breach of contract, as well as several other counts. The text of the lawsuit indicates that it was brought about to prevent any preying upon of Zakk's loyal fans in the future and to recoup unpaid royalties as 357 Customs failed to deliver on its agreements with Zakk Wylde. There is nothing in the suit thus far to indicate any kind of specific damages to be recovered on behalf of fans who have not received their merchandise other than as-yet unspecified damages pertaining to this suit. Text of Lawsuit On July 5, 2006, Black Label Society's webmaster, Chad Dyer, resigned from the website. He admitted being hired by 357 Customs as their webmaster and claimed that he wasn't aware of the conflict of interest. [2] To this date, reports are that he has not been paid for the work on 357customs.com, even after it cost him his position with the Black Label Society camp he held in 2003-2004 and 2005-2006. Various reports note that Dyer was a paid employee of Black Label Society, which was not the case. The posted resignation letter on www.zakkwylde.com that was written by Dyer and signed off on by Zakk's manager Bob Ringe confirmed that he provided webmaster services at no-charge on account of his friendship with Zakk. On May 8, 2007, Zakk Wylde's Attorney filed a Request For Dismissal of the case, ending any hope that 357 Customs Inc would be held to account for their actions. DiscographyWith Pride and Glory
Solo
 With Derek Sherinian
With Black Label Society
With Ozzy Osbourne
Other appearances
(The "Other appearances" section was taken from the SDMF World-Wide Website). References
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