Don Airey told Rolling Stone about Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhoads’ state of mind before he died, “I don’t think he was a very happy guy towards the end. He wasn’t happy with the way things were going. I used to say to him, “Don’t worry about it, man. In 10 years’ time, you won’t think anything of this. You’re young. You get ups and downs and disappointments. You’ve just go to ride it.” It was hard work being on the road with the Ozzy Osbourne band. It was five or six gigs a week.”
“He used to carry a little portable television with him. If there was a lapse in the conversation, he’d just take it out and plug it in and start watching cartoons or something.”
As for their professional relationship, the keyboardist noted how Randy could seem “imposing” despite being fundamentally good-natured:
“If Randy liked something when I played it on the tape, he’d let out this laugh. I knew I was doing alright. He was a lovely guy to work with, but he was also a very imposing figure. He knew what he wanted, and he was a force to be reckoned with.”
“I think about Randy every day. I can still hear him. I remember the last time I spoke to Ozzy, I said, ‘I can still hear his guitar in my head.’ I can still hear his laugh. He had a very infectious giggle if he liked something. He’d have this laugh.”
