Zakk Wylde

Wylde has four children with his wife Barbaranne: Hayley Rae, Hendrix, Sabbath and Jesse.

The song ‘In this River’ was dedicated by Wylde to his close friend Darell ‘Dimebag’ Abott who was murdered in 2004.

He staunchly adheres to his Irish Catholic faith and has done his part to promote the message of Christ.

Zakk Wylde was born as Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt on January 14, 1967, in Bayonne, New Jersey. He was a child prodigy and started playing the guitar at an early age. He would often play the guitar for as much as 12 hours continuously and would sleep in school.

He graduated from Jackson Memorial High School in 1985. He took up his first job at Silverton Music in Silverton, New Jersey when he was just 14.

A young Wylde started playing in New Jersey with his first band ‘Stone Henge’. ‘Zyris’ was the next local band with whom Wylde played for a brief period of time.

His big break came when Ozzy Osbourne selected him to be the lead guitarist and co-writer for his band, in 1987.

He was the lead guitarist for Ozzy’s band and was also the lead guitarist and vocalist for another band called, ‘Pride & Glory’, which disbanded later.

In 1995, he left Ozzy to form his own band ‘Black Label Society’ which went on to become one of the most popular bands of its time. The following year, he released his solo album, ‘Book of Shadows’.

He returned to Ozzy Osbourne’s band in 2001. Five years later, his band ‘Black label Society’ released the album, ‘Shot to Hell’, under Roadrunner Records.

‘No rest for the Wicked’ was his first album in collaboration with Ozzy Osbourne, in 1988. It was his first big break and the album was certified gold and double platinum by the RIAA. At the time of its release, the album was at the number 13 position on the Billboard 200.

In 1996, he released his first solo album ‘Book of Shadows’. The singles ‘Between Heaven and Hell’ and ‘Way Beyond Empty’ were received positively by listeners.