Zakk Wylde has defended Yngwie Malmsteen against claims that he is difficult to work with, suggesting that his colleague’s demands come from a desire for quality and control. Wylde discussed his experience working with Malmsteen as part of Generation Axe during an appearance on Go with Elmo Lovano.
Wylde was asked to reflect on the legendary stories surrounding Malmsteen and what it was like to collaborate with him as part of the supergroup.
Question: “What was it like working with Yngwie? Because there are all these legendary stories about him.”
“We all got along great with Yngwie,” Wylde said. “People have got an opinion about him; these legendary stories. It’s just [with] Yngwie, he knows what he wants. I look at it [like], I come into the kitchen, I’m tired, I asked for a margarita pie with garlic and more basil. And it always comes with the wrong pizza. So he’s like, ‘You know what? I’ll just make it myself now.'”
“If they can’t do it, you gotta do it yourself. And people can take it as a bad rep. We all got along great with Yngwie.”
Wylde went on to explain how Malmsteen’s reputation for being demanding stems from his attention to business and financial matters. “And the ‘Spinal Tap’ stories, he’ll tell ‘ya… And then you know why Yngwie just ends up being Yngwie, because he’s like, ‘I’m done with this! Where’s all my money?’ And it’s like, ‘Well, we used it on this, and this…’ And he’s like, ‘That’s enough now. I need to see that sheet.’ He’s like, ‘I gotta be an idiot to let this continue happening.'”
“So, that’s when people go, ‘Why does your friend need to be so difficult?’ Well, he’s not being difficult. He’s like, ‘Zakk, I’m telling you, they ain’t gonna get it right.’ So, yeah, it’s that. Yngwie’s great.”
Wylde’s comments came as he reflected on his time with Malmsteen in Generation Axe, the project that brought together multiple generations of guitar players.
Generation Axe was formed by Steve Vai in 2016 and has toured internationally since then. The supergroup brought together Vai, Wylde, Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt and Tosin Abasi for performances across multiple continents. Malmsteen’s reputation for being demanding has followed him throughout his career, though he has explained that his approach comes from knowing what he wants and standing by his creative vision. When offered to join Alcatrazz early in his career, he made his conditions clear: “I write the songs, and we get a new drummer.” Malmsteen stated: “I know what I want. I know what I’m going for, and I don’t need someone to tell me what to do, and I’m still here 40 years later.”
Other musicians have offered different views on what it is like to work with Malmsteen. Tim “Ripper” Owens, the former Judas Priest frontman who collaborated with Malmsteen on two albums including Perpetual Flame in 2008, said that while Malmsteen’s reputation for difficult behavior is not unfounded, he was never treated badly. Owens described his time working with Malmsteen as easy and enjoyable, noting his colleague’s sense of humor and amicable interactions in the studio.
Wylde’s defense of Malmsteen aligns with these varied accounts. Both Wylde and Owens suggest that what outsiders perceive as difficult behavior may actually reflect Malmsteen’s commitment to his craft and his financial interests. What appears as demanding perfectionism, in this view, is really an artist protecting his work and his livelihood from compromises he does not accept.
