ZAKK WYLDE Says AXL ROSE Is 'The Last Of The Great Frontmen'

Music Radar recently conducted an interview with Zakk Wylde. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Music Radar: So, Zakk, how did the [Christmas] EP come about?

Zakk: Basically, I was asked by the folks at iTunes to do something, and I said, "Absolutely. I love Christmas, and I love Christmas tunes what's the big deal?" So I Googled Sarah McLachlan to see what songs she did 'cause she's amazing, of course, as we all know and I did a couple of the songs that she covered. To me, if they're good enough for Sarah, I might as well have a go at them.

Music Radar: Would these songs be representative of what we might hear in the Zakk Wylde house at Christmastime?

Zakk: Yeah, absolutely. My wife, Barbaranne, she's always buying Christmas records. In fact, that's how I first heard the Sarah McLachlan Christmas CD, 'cause she brought it home. That thing's fuckin' amazing, you know? Barb's always crankin' it in the house. I totally dig Christmas. When I was a kid, between my parents, my grandmother and my aunts, the whole thing was insane. So I try to make sure my kids have super-cool Christmases. Me and Barb do it up killer. When the kids wake up, they go crazy. That's what it's all about.

Music Radar: How's it going touring with JUDAS PRIEST?

Zakk: Couldn't be better. The PRIEST guys are so cool. They're treating us like gold. Plus, they're killin' it every night. Glenn [Tipton], Rob [Halford], the whole band is awesome. I've been friends with the PRIEST dudes since they did Ozzfest, so we go back. They're total legends. They still have it, too. Glenn is slammin' it, the whole band's on fire. And Richie [Faulkner], who's taking over for KK [Downing], he's killin' it, man.

Music Radar: After JUDAS PRIEST, you're going on the road with GUNS N' ROSES.

Zakk: Yeah, that'll be amazing, too. I've been friends with Axl [Rose] for a long time. He's the last of the great frontmen. Seriously, who else is there? You had Elvis and Mick Jagger, then you had Jim Morrison and Freddie Mercury, Robert Plant, Ronnie Van Zandt, and of course you can't forget about Ozzy, David Lee Roth After all them, Axl came out, and it was like, Wow! The ultimate frontman, you know? You've gotta give it up for Axl. Amazing songs, amazing production "Appetite"'s one of the greatest records of all time. The guy's got the whole nine yards. As a frontman, nobody's come close to him since he busted out.

Read the entire interview from Music Radar.