🎸 Brad Gillis, the long-standing guitarist for Night Ranger and a former occupant of the highly scrutinized lead guitar spot in Ozzy Osbourne’s band, recently offered his highly qualified opinion on who was the better guitarist from the post-Randy Rhoads era.
Gillis is uniquely positioned to comment on this debate, as he was the first guitarist brave enough to fill Rhoads’s massive shoes (after Bernie Tormé’s short stint), featuring prominently on the 1982 live album, Speak of the Devil. This experience grants him firsthand insight into the demands of the role.
During a recent appearance on the That Rocks! Podcast, Gillis was asked to settle the rivalry between the guitarists who followed him: Jake E. Lee (known for his shredding on “Bark at the Moon”) and the man whose fills defined “No More Tears,” widely known to be Zakk Wylde.
Gillis Chooses Zakk Wylde
Gillis immediately sided with Zakk Wylde, basing his choice heavily on the iconic track, “No More Tears.”
“I gotta tell you man, ‘No More Tears.’ That song is so awesome,” Gillis explained. “Him [Zakk] doing the slide on there and getting those squeals on his guitar, I mean that blew me away.”
While admitting the orchestral mid-section of the track was debatable, Gillis remained firm in his admiration for Wylde’s execution. He called it one of his favorite Ozzy songs of all time (excluding the two original Randy Rhoads records).
> “So, I gotta go with Zakk. I’ve met him a few times, hung out with him – nicest guy in the world.”
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Gillis emphasized that Wylde’s signature tone and unique slide work were the deciding factors: “But that tone and the stuff he did along with his great solos and the slide work that Zakk did, it’s just awesome. So I gotta go with Zakk.”
A Nod to Jake E. Lee and the Image Game
Gillis did acknowledge Lee’s talent, referring to his contributions as “great records” and praising him as a “great player.” However, the sheer impact and sonic identity of Wylde’s work ultimately sealed his vote.
Podcast co-host Eddie Trunk added a final layer to the discussion, noting that Jake E. Lee was arguably the winner in the “image department” and also highlighted Lee’s success in beating out another future shredder to land the Ozzy gig after Gillis.