Former White Lion guitarist Vito Bratta recently opened up about his appreciation for Randy Rhoads and the deep connection he felt with the late guitarist in an interview with Guitar World, where he shared 11 guitarists who shaped his sound. Reflecting on those times, Bratta, discussed how Randy Rhoads’ plan to leave Ozzy Osbourne’s band inspired his own musical journey.
Bratta said that early in his musical development, he became fascinated with the classical guitar, and spent numerous hours improving his classical guitar talents after being inspired by guitarists like Andrés Segovia and Julian Bream. However, according to the musician, the great Randy Rhoads’ desire to leave Ozzy’s band had a significant influence on Bratta’s own musical career.
Vito Bratte stated:
“I identified with Randy was because he once said in an interview that he wanted to quit playing with Ozzy [Osbourne] and go study classical guitar. And if I’m being honest, that was me in a nutshell. Rock is my base; it all begins there for me, and I venture off when I feel like it. But I’m basically a classical guitar nerd who played in a rock band. So, when I heard what Randy said, I was like, ‘Yup. I could definitely go for that,’ and I eventually did.
Let me put it this way, if I were friends with Randy back then, I’d have said, ‘Ok, I’ll do it with you. Let’s go. I’m up for getting a degree in classical guitar.’ And I was all about classical guitar until recently. But I’ve since returned to playing rock music, because I’m now able to again without the levels of pain I used to have. But that’s another story. So, I identified with Randy from a mental standpoint, and it did go on to affect me in that way down the road.”
In addition to discussing his connection with Rhoads, Vito Bratta named other influences that helped shape his sound further in the interview.