In 1991, when
No More Tears was released, Ozzy Osbourne was in a lot of sh*t. He still hadn’t found a permanent replacement for the deceased Randy Rhoads; Bob Daisley was threatening to quit his band; his relationship with Sharon was in tatters; and his well-known drug abuse problems were starting to get the best of him. So it wasn’t in the most cheerful of moods that he set out to do this album. However, it would prove to be as fine a therapy as the best shrink could prescribe.
For the inception of
No More Tears, two all-around rock’n’roll legends teamed up, since Ozzy had precious assistance from his long time friend Mr. Lemmy Kilmister. Lemmy co-wrote the lyrics to several songs on the album, including apologetic ballad
Mama I’m Coming Home, dedicated to Sharon. Another precious helper, and source of inspiration, was soon-to-be Ozzy bassist Mike Inez. He came up prior to the completion of the album and, in the audition, laid down what would become the title track’s world-famous bassline. As a result, and although Bob Daisley is credited as bassist, Inez earns a slot in the booklet under «bass and creative inspiration».
Another big problem Ozzy solved with this record was the matter of who his next guitarist would be. Since Rhoads had passed away, Ozzy had worked with both Jake E. Lee and Brad Gillis. However, none of them had fully satisfied the Madman, and he was short of a guitarist for his new album. Then along comes Zakk Wylde. Ozzy liked what he saw, and not only was Zakk hired for the spot, he has kept it to this day, with
No More Tears marking the beginning of one of the most solid relationships in contemporary rock history.
So things were definitely picking up for Ozzy, who exorcized all his demons in this album’s songs. Nearly every other track talks about how the world always blames Ozzy and how he feels bad about it all. However, the Madman’s experience and
savoir faire keep these lyrics from sounding like the typical whining that we associate with nu-metal, for example, and instead makes them classy pieces of songwriting.
Musically, this album is as heavy as hard rock gets. Zakk’s multiple influences, ranging from stoner rock to death metal, help him achieve an unique guitar style which greatly helps these songs. His soloing is very technical and his riffs are monumental, helping make songs like
Mr.Tinkertrain (a phaedophile anthem) and
Hellraiser colossal blasts of pounding heavy rock.
However, as good as the heavy tracks are, it’s in the ballads that this album really shines. There are three, all of which top notch material (although
Time After Time is weaker than
Mama, and certainly weaker than
Road To Nowhere. All three are beautiful, introspective, but by no means mellow moments, and once again Zakk’s guitar style adds to this.
But it would be unfair not to mention the other member of the band, drummer Randy Castillo. His steady tempos help give the songs a much-needed consistency, adding to the overall quality of this record.
However,
No More Tears is not without its flaws.
A.V.H and
Zombie Stomp are pure filler, with uninteresting choruses and musical patterns. However, all is forgiven by the scorching solo on
Mama I’m Coming Home.
The recent reissue of this masterpiece comes with two bonus tracks, the midtempo
Don’t Blame Me and the ripping, roaring Mötorheadian romp
Party With The Animals (perhaps influenced by Lemmy). Both fit in well and enhance an already very good album, that every hard’n’heavy fan should definitely look into.
