Zakk Wylde: The Better Things
February 21, 2007 by Jo Minor
It’s only fair that I give the man credit where it’s due. Zakk Wylde has made himself into an icon, a modern guitar hero, and a musical inspiration to countless of people around the globe.
Guitar Playing
Zakk is a monster on the guitar – there is no doubt about that. For someone who only picked the instrument up at the age of 15, he used to practice vigorously for about 12 hours a day, every day – and used to sleep through the school day just so he can make it back home to practice some more.
All his hard work paid off when Ozzy Osbourne picked him to be his guitarist. Zakk now has signature guitars, guitar electronics and other hardware to his name – including his own signature Les Paul guitar from Gibson and signature overdrive and wah pedals from Dunlop – and continues to appear on instructional videos and lessons.
Zakk’s blistering Pentatonic scale runs and heavy-as-balls riffs are famous throughout the guitar playing world, as is his artificial harmonics (also called “squeals” or “pings”) and tendency for Southern rock-tinged hard rock and metal songs. He also enjoys playing acoustic songs and piano ballads – if you can imagine a Viking warrior behind a piano, that is.
Choices in Life
He might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he has made some notable decisions that have resulted in him keeping afloat in the cold and brutal music business of today. Firstly, he never left Ozzy’s side – although he gives any of his band members in Black Label Society the freedom to leave the band anytime they see fit – and his decision has made him one of the biggest (and richest) rock guitarists the world has ever seen. He rode on the wave of success built by Ozzy’s notorious reputation and gained him a lot of fame and wealth – Zakk is currently a millionaire (or even a multi-millionaire) and still earns big bucks from shows and endorsements.
Secondly (although we have to thank his management for screwing this up) he wasn’t invited to join Guns ‘N Roses – even though he once went to audition for them. That would’ve been a mistake of epic proportions, and would have sent a fatal bullet to his music career – look at the bunch of clowns that claim to be Guns ‘N Roses now, and are going to tour the world in support of the Chinese Democracy album that hasn’t seen the light of day.
Endorsements
Zakk Wylde can sure sell some swag.
To this day, he has a ton of equipment to his name – all bearing his name and the familiar bulls-eye motif that is synonymous to the man. Zakk is an endorsee of Gibson Guitars, Marshall Amplifiers, Jim Dunlop, GHS Strings and EMG Pickups.
Here’s a list of some of the stuff in his name:
Zakk Wylde Gibson Les Paul Custom guitar
GHS Zakk Wylde Boomers strings
Marshall Signature JCM800ZW Amplifier with EVM12L-Black Label guitar speakers
MXR ZW-44 Dunlop Overdrive pedal
ZW-45 Zakk Wylde Signature Crybaby wah pedal
EMG-ZW Set pickups
That’s a mouthful, ain’t it?
Friends
Zakk Wylde seems to have the coolest bunch of people as his friends – he was a good friend of the late Dimebag Darrell since 1993, and is close with the guys from Slayer, Yngwie Malmsteen, among other rock celebrities.
Achievements
Having been a part of over 20 albums – including in 10 of the Prince of Darkness’ albums – isn’t a small feat. Zakk was immortalized at the Hollywood Rock Walk of Fame in recognition to his successful career as a musician and contribution to music industry in 2006.
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