In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, Alex Skolnick opened up about Ozzy Osbourne wanting him to replace Zakk Wylde.
“I don’t know why their separation happened, but I guess Zakk [Wylde] was doing other stuff and there was this search for a new Ozzy Osbourne guitarist,” the musician recalled. “I was just honoured to be in the running because I’d heard about some pretty well-known players that never got past the audition phase.”
Skolnick continued, “I actually got to the point of doing a show and Ozzy hired me – he said he wanted me to do the gig. It was an unannounced show at Nottingham Rock City and it was great.”
“I didn’t get the role full-time, which I think was a management decision, but it was a great motivation at a time when I didn’t really know what to do next. That was when I enrolled in the university called The New School in New York and studied with these greats like [jazz musicians] Cecil McBee and Reggie Workman,” the Testament guitarist added.
Skolnick also talked about his 1995 attempt to replace Wylde in Osbourne’s band in a 2024 chat with Eonmusic. He explained why he didn’t make it. He spent a week rehearsing and even played live with Osbourne in Nottingham.
He shared his thoughts on how it went, “It’s kind of a long story. I’ve told it before, but it seemed like it went really well, and the crew and everybody said he looked really happy on stage. But I just always got a sense from Sharon [Osbourne] that, you know, she was really looking to replace Zakk Wylde.”
“And, you know, she made suggestions about how low, how to hold the guitar and lowering the guitar, because Zakk, and Slash and other players, they play with the guitar down, and that’s never been my thing. And just knowing what I know about the entertainment business now, I think, yeah, I think she was used to that,” Alex revealed.
Many famous guitarists, including Richie Kotzen, auditioned to replace Wylde. In the end, Joe Holmes was chosen.
