NIGHT RANGER's BRAD GILLIS Explains Why He Wasn't Part Of OZZY OSBOURNE's Final Concert

In a new interview with Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon of Canada's The Metal Voice, NIGHT RANGER guitarist Brad Gillis — who the pressure-packed job back in 1982 of replacing Randy Rhoads after Ozzy Osbourne's virtuoso guitarist died in a plane crash — was asked why he wasn't part of Ozzy's final concert, which took place on July 5, 2025 at Park Villa in Birmingham, United Kingdom. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I couldn't go. I was on tour with my band [NIGHT RANGER]. I couldn't put everybody out of work. And everybody wanted you to pay your own way, whatever, but here I'm paying my own way, I'm on tour. What do I do? Do I cancel the tour and put 15 people out of work? So I couldn't do it. I couldn't do it."

After Kay noted that Gillis must have been asked to be part of Ozzy's final gig, Brad said: "I got an e-mail inquiring if I was interested in coming. And I thought about it. And I thought, 'I can't do this.' I'd wanted to. We [NIGHT RANGER] were on tour. And the place we were playing the night of the actual show was a big festival. We had 8,000 people there. It's what it was. And I would've loved to make it and been a part of that, but that's what it was."

Gillis filled in as Rhoads's replacement in Ozzy's solo band following a short stint by Bernie Tormé. Rhoads tragically passed away at the age of 25 on March 19, 1982 in a plane accident in Florida. Gillis was part of Ozzy's lineup — which also included Rudy Sarzo on bass, Tommy Aldridge on drums and Don Airey on keyboards — that played on the 1982 live release "Speak Of The Devil".

Filmed at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater in California on June 12, 1982, the "Speak Of The Devil" video release was a snapshot of Osbourne's performances in the 1980s, with dramatic staging and a setlist based on his first two solo albums and a few BLACK SABBATH classics.

NIGHT RANGER has been playing "Crazy Train" regularly in recent years as a nod to the time when Gillis was a member of Ozzy's band.

In a 2004 interview with the Contra Costa Times, Gillis spoke about how he landed the Ozzy gig. While a member of an early version of NIGHT RANGER, Gillis was also playing with a club band by the name of ALAMEDA ALL STARS. After a Friday-night gig early in 1982, at which the band covered two Osbourne songs, Gillis was approached by friend Preston Thrall, the brother of guitarist Pat Thrall, who'd turned down the chance to replace Rhoads. Preston offered to get an audition for Gillis, who said okay, but didn't think much of it.

Sunday morning he was on the phone with Ozzy, who simply gave him a list of songs to learn. Tuesday he was in New York, with a one-way plane ticket and $150. The promised room at the downtown hotel wasn't there, so Gillis ponied up $135 and went upstairs and waited. He finally got the call at midnight to come to Ozzy's suite, where a party was happening.

"Ozzy says, 'Go get your guitar,'" Gillis said. "You remember those E.F. Hutton commercials? Everyone just stopped. He says, 'Play 'Flying High Again'. ' By the time I get to the solo, he stands up, puts his arms around me, and says, 'Bradley, pull me through this (ordeal).' He takes me out and says, 'I've got a new guitar player.'"

In 2021, Gillis told Guitar World magazine about his time with Osbourne: "You have to realize that after the sad death of Randy Rhoads, the band was going through a lot of emotional stress throughout the rest of the tour. So, when I joined the band, it was quite a heavy situation. Bernie Tormé was playing guitar at that time in the interim, before a permanent replacement was added. And when I flew to New York for the audition, I basically found out it was just me. So, I did the best I could practicing in my hotel room every day, with a small amp, a boombox and a live board cassette with Randy that had been recorded a few months earlier.

"At night, I would go to the shows to watch the live performance from the soundboard. I was amazed at the large castle, fire, explosives, and the hanging of the dwarf — realizing that in a few days, I was going to be up on stage. I'll never forget the sound man looking over at me and laughing, saying, 'You're next, buddy!'

"My first night was quite a horrendous experience — because not only was I scared to death, at soundcheck, we only played seven out of the 18-song set, and Ozzy didn't even show up. My first gig was sold out in Binghamton, New York for 8,000 people. That was basically my entrance into Ozzy's world. I ended up botching 'Revelation (Mother Earth)', as I ended up coming into the fast section too early, and the whole band looked at me, like, 'What the hell are you doing?' I stopped playing, regained my composure, and finished out the song and the set — with no other major mistakes. The next night before we went on stage, Sharon [Osbourne, Ozzy's wife] came up to me, saying, 'Bradley, you're doing a great job. But tonight… don't fuck up.'"