BOB DAISLEY: 'Flying High Again’ Was A Bit Of A Drug Song"

[metalrockx]

http://www.bravewords.com/news/163108

BraveWords.com: I heard an interview with Ozzy where John Sykes was auditioned and how Ozzy said he was disappointed he didn’t bring any gear.

Daisley: “Oh I didn’t know that.”

BraveWords.com: Ozzy should put out a compilation of his best B-sides. Another song that does not get mentioned is ‘One Up The B-Side’ which was the flip side to Bark At The Moon. Another great track that’s been forgotten.

Daisley: “It was during the recording of Bark At The Moon and Sharon called me and said they needed a B-side. Jake and I already had written the music and so I thought, what a great title, ‘One Up The B-Side’. (laughs) So I wrote it about anal sex.”(laughs)

BraveWords.com: So how did the HOOCHIE COOCHIE MEN and LIVING LOUD come about?

Daisley: “I used to have a little blues band called the Hoochie Coochie Men and we used to gig around the local clubs here in Sydney. Jon Lord came into town and my manager called me and told he was in town. So I went to see him and we had dinner. Jon had received a minor injury to his hand and didn’t feel he could do his classical engagement at the Sydney Opera House. So instead, we decided to play together and did a few shows. One was the Basement, which was filmed and became a DVD and a live album. It all came together very quickly. One rehearsal and then we did the show. It turned out really well. My manager suggested doing an album with Jon Lord and having Jimmy Barnes sing on it and have some guest guitar players appear on it. Lee Kerslake would be the perfect drummer. That’s how Living Loud started. Lee and I thought about doing our own tribute to Randy Rhoads years earlier with some of the songs from Blizzard and Diary and getting people to guest on it. Brian May was going to do it, as was Gary Moore. I was going to get Ronnie James Dio to sing on it. Jon Lord was going to play on it as well as Don Airey.”

BraveWords.com: That would have been incredible to hear Ronnie James Dio sing those classic Daisley / Rhoads songs.

Daisley: “Jon had just come out of DEEP PURPLE. So it would have been Jon, Steve Morse, Lee Kerslake, Jimmy Barnes and me. We were going to get some other singers on it and some more guitarists but when we got to Steve Morse’s place in Florida it was just me, Lee and Steve and we started playing together and we said, ‘wow, this feels really good.’ Some things look good on paper but the proof of the pudding is in the eating when you start playing together. Steve Morse was working very well so we didn’t feel the need to have additional guitarists. Then Jimmy Barnes came in and worked out well also so we felt we didn’t need any additional singers either. So we were writing and arranging and then re-arranging some of the Blizzard Of Ozz songs. When it came time for keyboards it was going to be shared between Jon and Don but Jon was no longer available. Don did them all in 3 days in London. The versions we did of the Blizzard Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman songs were quite different. I mean, we weren’t trying to re-create what we had already done.”

BraveWords.com: I read once that because those Randy Rhoads songs are sacred no one should cover them. However, it was quickly pointed out that Lee and Bob had co-wrote them. The fact that they were being done is in itself a tribute to the genius that was Randy.

Daisley: “We had been removed from both Blizzard and Diary by that time anyway, but it was not in retaliation as we talked about doing those songs for years.”

BraveWords.com: So, we should have Bob Daisley on bass, Don Airey on keyboards, Jake E Lee on guitar, Lee Kerslake on drums?

Daisley: “You mean if we did another Ozzy album?”

BraveWords.com: No, if you did a Bob Daisley album.

Daisley: (laughs) “Lee and I always worked well together. Jake is very hard to get a hold of. I haven’t spoken to him in ages. I tell you who thought very highly of Jake and that was Gary Moore. I contacted Jake’s daughter and I told her to tell him to drop me a line. I got one email back from his daughter and that was it.”

BraveWords.com: That’s too bad as he is an amazing player with a unique style and those BADLANDS albums are classics. The album Dusk in particular is incredible.

Daisley: “I recently saw a small clip of him playing in a bar with a band.”

BraveWords.com: He did put out a covers album called Retraced a few years back.

Daisley: “Oh ok.”

BraveWords.com: So you would like to work with Jake again?

Daisley: “I would certainly work with Jake again if he was about.”

BraveWords.com: What is your favourite lyric that you ever wrote?

Daisley: “I have heard a lot of good comments about the song ‘Diary Of A Madman’, which was really about me. I always try to make lyrics unusual and not cliché or predictable. Too many lyrics fall into the category of love songs. Like ‘I love you baby’ or ‘I want you baby’ or ‘don’t leave me baby’ or ‘I’ve got a new baby’. (laughs). Or ‘please don’t go’ or ‘you broke my heart’. I tried to make mine philosophical and thinking songs. I also hear good comments about ‘Believer’. There are explanations in the book about all the songs, where they came from and what they mean. They could be about life experiences or maybe something I was reading at the time. ‘Little Dolls’ features lyrics about voodoo without actually mentioning it. ‘Pricking the skin of little dolls and the little doll is you’, like an effigy, which is how voodoo works. I don’t know where I got that one from.”

BraveWords.com: Definitely some clever lyrics on that album. Not predictable. Like for example – ‘you’d see that black and white is read’.

Daisley: “Yeah, because it sounds like you are saying the color red, but it’s not. It’s r-e-a-d. I read a lot. That song ‘Flying High Again’, is from a term I heard from an old guy when I was a teenager. Ozzy and I had done a little coke so ‘Flying High Again’ was a bit of a drug song. I didn’t want to sound like I was promoting drugs or anything, it was just my experience. I say,- ‘if you could see inside my head, you’d see that black and white is read’. In other words, my head is not empty and I am not just doing drugs for nothing, this is the thinking mans way. It means reading.”

BraveWords.com: I was told to ask you what your favourite bass line was as you have a gift for writing them.

Daisley: (laughs) “I suppose one of them according to the comments I get, is from the song ‘Tonight’ (from Diary Of A Madman). I do particularly like that one. That idea came to me while we were writing for the Diary album late at night and Ozzy was there and I remember Sharon was at the hotel and Randy and I were working on the music of it and I came up with that riff. To me it sounded like a dove coo-ing. (Bob mimics the riff) I remember Ozzy calling Sharon at the hotel saying ‘you got to hear this, come round.’ I remember Sharon saying it did sound like a dove when I told her. That’s one of my favourites for sure.”

BraveWords.com: I once asked if I was to introduce someone to Blizzard or Diary, which song would I pick? I suggested ‘Tonight’. The reason being is that rockers like ballads but not all those who love ballads love rock, so I thought it was the perfect choice.

Daisley: “Really? It is a good song.”

BraveWords.com: Except they faded out some great playing by Randy at the end of that song.

Daisley: “Lee contributed to the vocal melody of that song. Ozzy was singing ‘just a kiss before we say goodnight’. I said ‘that’s too fucking soppy, I don’t want that.’ People tend to gravitate towards love songs all the time. But not for a band like this. I made it more of a street song, like someone having a hard time.”

BraveWords.com: ‘You Can’t Kill Rock And Roll’ is a great anthem.

Daisley: “Ozzy came up with that line and I wrote all the lyrics for it. People have asked me if it was about Don Arden or Jet Records. It wasn’t about anyone in particular. It was just a general statement. Very often you get these people in management trying to tell you what to do and they don’t know what they’re talking about. They are telling you, the artist, what to write, how to play or how to sing or what you should or should not do. Then when they’ve done that, they fuck you or rip you off. It was about being controlled and screwed in the music business. Just in general, no one in particular. That’s why I said ‘I can’t believe what empty heads can achieve.’ I mean, you’re telling me what to do? You don’t fucking know. You don’t tell me.” (laughs).

BraveWords.com: What is your favourite album that you have appeared on?

Daisley: “Ah God. One of them is from when I was a young lad and that was the first album that I had played on with a band called KAHVAS JUTE. I liked the songs, I liked the way I played and I liked that album. It was done in 3 days on a 4 track machine. It was like, get in the studio, play like a band and be recorded. It’s got some rough edges and that but it really captures something of the time. It was done in 1970 and released in early 1971. Diary Of A Madman for sure. If I had to say one all time album? I don’t know. The Hoochie Coochie Men with Jon Lord is one of them. Some very good stuff on there. That album came out in 2007. It was called Danger: White Men Dancing. It’s more progressive rock blues and it has some great moments on that one. Ian Gillan sang on a few tracks. Jon Lord plays on all of it. I was really pleased with that album. The Uriah Heep stuff was good but sounds a little dated now. Another good one that I liked the playing on was Ozzy’s No Rest For The Wicked. I like a lot of the lyrics I wrote on that as well. The song ‘Miracle Man’ was about Jimmy Swaggart who got caught with a hooker in a hotel after telling everyone they are going to go to hell if they sin. (laughs). I like my lyrics in that one. ‘Demon Alcohol’ is another good one. Musically and lyrically ‘Demon Alcohol’ was good. ‘Bloodbath In Paradise’ was another one. Ozzy had the title and I wrote it was about the Manson Family. I won’t go into it now but it’s all in my book how I came to write about that.”

BraveWords.com: Did you write the lyrics for No More Tears?

Daisley: “No I didn’t but I did play on the whole thing. Ozzy had a bass player at the time, a nice bloke named Mike Inez. He was only ever complimentary and respectful. He was a good player and all that. Ozzy just didn’t feel the album was going the way he wanted it so he had me do it. I was going to be writing some lyrics. Then they decided they were going to do it themselves. The one thing about that album whether they used my lyrics or not is that it could have been better lyrically. Ozzy tried his hand with Lemmy and Randy Castillo. I don’t think it turned out very well. I had written about 6 sets of lyrics and none were used.”

[AceVader]

Always love reading Bob's interviews. Thanks

[sytharnia]

for him to say the lyrics on no more tears aren't any good is beyond belief...I think i'm starting to see why sharon hates him, I think his heads up his own arse as much as her's is .....but hey it will all be in his book...blah blah blah.....

[Remedylane]

That was a cool interview. But I agree, for him to say the lyrics on No More Tears aren't any good is ludicrous. I guess thats his opinion though.


Matt

[AndrewT1976]

Yeah, Bob's a great lyricist, but let's face it - he's no Dylan or Lennon. The lyrics to Songs like Little Dolls and SATO are not that far off from No More Tears. "The light in the window is a crack in the sky." That sounds right on par with something Bob would write. As a matter of fact I believe Blizzard of Ozz and No More Tears are neck-in-neck as far as album sales. I believe they are both around 5 million. So, while Bob is a total monster on bass and musical arrangements, I don't believe his lyrics had much to do with the success of BOO and DOAMM as much as the fact that Ozz had a band that kicked total a** and all of the Sabbath fans dug it. If Ozzy would have had a lame line-up and weak songs and lyrics you can probably bet he would have only made one album. But it was the chemistry of everything that gave it such a cool vibe.

I was thinking about it the other day, and all of the tunes on BOO are totally different from each other. Nowadays you get bands with the most homogenized albums where literally every album track is just like the other tracks. It's actually been this way since the late 90's.

BOO was the real deal. Just 4 guys bangin' away at what they do best.

[Remedylane]

Great post Andrew. And right on the money.. I enjoy good lyrics as much as the next guy, but NO ONE goes out and buys an album because it has "great lyrics" Its all about the music. Always has been, always will be.


Matt

[axeman_12656]

the music and melody

[sytharnia]

Great post Andrew. And right on the money.. I enjoy good lyrics as much as the next guy, but NO ONE goes out and buys an album because it has "great lyrics" Its all about the music. Always has been, always will be.


Matt

can't agree with the NO ONE buys albums because of the lyric's...really its the total package music and lyric's and melodies. A few bands that I buy largely because of the lyrics are

WASP - blackie lawless is my favourite lyricist. yes the early albums are equal parts music/lyrics, but since headless children its more to do with the lyrics
Cradle of Filth - pure poetry. It is totally about lyrics and melodies
Motorhead - lets face it, all the songs sound the same but a lot of the lyrics are brilliant

there are more but you get the idea

[Remedylane]

I do enjoy good lyrics. But at the end of the day, if the music is terrible, and the melodies are terrible, but it has great lyrics, who would buy it? Im betting not very many people.

But on the flip side, if an album has great music, great melodies, and crappy lyrics, people will still buy it. Plenty examples of this in mainstream music. Just my opinion though!

Matt

[GUITARIDOL5682]

I can see Bob's point about the lyrics on NMT. I know Lemmy wrote a couple of the songs and he is a very clever lyricist. But one song that is just corney as hell and i just don't get it is Zombie Stomp. I think that was wrote while Ozzy was 'pinching a loaf'. All about Ozzy's hypochondriac state of mind. But some great tunes on the album S.I.N, Desire, I Don't Want to Change the World, Mama I'm Coming Home. The demo of S.I.N (Won't Be Coming Home) on the Ozzy Prince of Darkness album, that track is a perfect example of how a track can sound shit. But if the lyrics are rearranged and swapped about, they can make all the difference. It would of been interesting to hear any of Bob's contributions to the lyrics to make a comparison. An important album for Ozzy's career,this album put Ozzy back out there, this is definately one of his better albums.

[Geo Sav]

Great interview. Thanks for putting it up.when does Bobs book come out does anyone know?

[whoopiecat]

While NMT is a good album, from what I've read, it took a very long time to make, with the writing process hitting a brick wall and the sessions stagnating.
Ozzy seemed once again to be having a rough go with his demons, which is evident in the studio session footage seen in the Don't Blame Me documentary.
This was also Ozzy's first album to enlist the help of outside writers in Lemmy and John Purdell, who also produced the album.
The bass role went from Geezer Butler to Terry Nails, then Mike Inez was hired as Ozzy's new bass player, but it would be Daisley who actually recorded the tracks.
Bob had also written the lyrics for the album, but at the eleventh hour, they scrapped them in favor of Lemmy's. Like Shaun said, Lemmy is credited on 4 of the 11 tracks, so I'm not sure who wrote the rest of the lyrics.
The gap between NRFTW and NMT was one month shy of three years (!). The largest gap between albums before that was the two years and two months between BATM and US, which was largely due to having to audition and hire a drummer, bassist and keys.

~T.

P.S. Bob hopes to have the book out by year's end. Supposedly, he is making final decisions on photos, then it's off to the publisher.

[Geo Sav]

Thanks bro