How a Malfunctioning Pedal Helped Inspire Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train”
We explore the story of how a malfunctioning guitar pedal helped inspire Ozzy Osbourne's 1980 debut solo single, "Crazy Train."
A malfunctioning piece of equipment in the studio could spell disaster for the day’s session, but in 1980, it helped inspire one of Ozzy Osbourne’s biggest hits of his solo career, “Crazy Train.” From the British heavy metal pioneer’s opening all aboard cry to Randy Rhoads’ screeching guitar riff, it was as successful and enduring of a debut single as Osbourne could have hoped for after getting the boot from his former band, Black Sabbath.
Indeed, everything about “Crazy Train” seemed to stem from something not quite working right, whether between bandmates, a guitar riff sped up, or Randy Rhoads’ effects pedal going on the fritz.
Most classic rock lovers could at least sort of sing the tune to Randy Rhoads’ iconic opening riff in Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train.” You can practically see the wheels of a train slowly picking up steam on the tracks as the riff jumps from note to note, eventually giving way to the driving major feel of the verses. The song seemed to signal that, Black Sabbath or no Black Sabbath, frontman Ozzy Osbourne wasn’t going anywhere. Rhoads helped define this sound with his distinctive guitar parts, albeit inadvertently at times.
During a 2025 appearance on the Talk Louder podcast, bassist Bob Daisley recalled working with Osbourne and Rhoads in the studio that fateful spring of 1980. “Randy had an effect pedal, and it sort of chugged a bit, even when he wasn’t using it,” Daisley remembered. “If it was switched on and it was going through his amp, it made almost like a train sort of sound. Or it reminded me of that, anyway. I knew Randy was a fan of model trains, and so was I.”
“And I said, ‘Randy, it sounds like a train, listen!’” Daisley continued. “It had a sort of psychedelic, kind of trippy thing about it. I said, ‘It sounds like a crazy train.’ So, I wrote the lyrics to “Crazy Train” about world events and the threat of World War III, and…people living in countries that are opposing each other for what reason, for nothing. It doesn’t even make sense.”
The true origins of Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” are somewhat murky. The former Black Sabbath frontman has credited himself and Randy Rhoads as the song’s sole writers before later confirming that bassist Bob Daisley contributed the lyrics. According to Greg Leon, a fellow guitarist who replaced Rhoads in Quiet Riot, he had a part in building the now iconic riff, too. “We were hanging out, and I showed him the riff to Steve Miller’s Swingtown,” Leon recalled to Classic Rock. “I said, ‘Look what happens when you speed this riff up.’ We messed around, and the next thing I know, he took it to a whole other level and ended up writing the “Crazy Train” riff.”
Regardless of who originally came up with the riff—Steve, Greg, Randy, Bob, or Ozzy—it stands to reason that without Osbourne’s encouragement, Rhoads might not have been confident enough to push through a malfunctioning pedal like Daisley described. “Before I met Ozzy, I was very insecure on stage,” Rhoads once said. “If my amps acted up or the sound system wasn’t good, it really affected my playing. Being with Ozzy has given me a great deal of self-confidence. He pushed me into trying new things and doing things I never would have done on my own.” That included willingly jumping onto a runaway crazy train.
Photo by Fin Costello/Redfern
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