Zakk has amazing riffs... I'd easily pick out a dozen or so and hold them up against anything Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page and Angus/Malcolm Young have done.
However... the solos are just not on the same level.
But there have been some good ones.
In particular ...
DEMON ALCOHOL... great fucking tune and a very good heavy metal solo. Fits really well with the song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVOtwHc3 ... re=related
DEVILS DAUGHTER... an ok song, I thought the solo was well done. I think this solo is very reminscent of Randys concept in Over The Mountain, in particular the repetition of each lick. In fact I think this might be my favorite Zakk solo, just wish it wasn't proceeded by the gawd-awful sheep bleeting and lame sound FX.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6isjvjvbms
S.I.N ... great bluesy intro solo... probably my favorite Ozzy tune with Zakk, dunno why... just feels like Ozzy to me. The sollo isn't anything special... but it fits well within the song - which is the most important criteria for a great solo in my opinion. It's not about notes or flash. The one thing I learned from Randy as a player is that every part of the song is a composition within a composition. The moment a bridge, intro or solo sounds like it can be lifted and placed in another song you have missed. I think that's why Zakk's solos don't connect with me.... too many of them feel like they could be from any Ozzy, pride & Glory or Black Label song.
This song also has a great outro solo.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3_TCmDx ... re=related
ZOMBIE STOMP... I think this this could have been OZZY's best song... if not for the absolutely horrible chorus of "Hey, hey, do the Zombie stomp". OISH, what were they thinking. Totally killed it for me.
This is pure rock n roll and vaguelly similar to Van Halens "Everybody Wants Some" which build the same kind of way.
The entire song is like a riffing guitar jam... with really no solo, but theres a lot of fills.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7L9hZzYlGQ
... and thats about where it ends for me... nothing else Zakk has done really stands out to me.
Great riffs.... kick ass heavy metal songwriting.... but soloing falls short.