b. Jeffrey Phillip Wiedlant, 14 January 1967, Bayonne, New Jersey, USA. Wylde rose to fame as Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist and co-writer in the late 80s. An enormously talented player, Wylde learnt his trade around the Asbury Park district of New Jersey, including a stint in Bruce Springsteen's old hangout, the Stone Pony. He sent a demo tape to Osbourne in 1987, and was hired by the ex-Black Sabbath vocalist after only one audition. He subsequently featured on No Rest For The Wicked (1988), No More Tears (1991), Live & Loud (1993) and Ozzmosis (1995). By the time the latter album appeared, Wylde had already left the Osbourne fold to form his own power trio, Pride And Glory. Following the break-up of this band, Wylde released his solo debut, 1996's Book Of Shadows, a largely acoustic set featuring former Pride And Glory bass player James Lomenzo and drummer Joe Vitale.
Wylde's latest venture is Black Label Society, which has seen the guitarist return to the traditional heavy-riffing style of his work with Osbourne. Originally released in Japan in 1998, Sonic Brew was recorded with the help of drummer Phil Ondich and was released in the USA by Spitfire Records. Wylde returned to the Osbourne band in the late 90s but continued to record and tour with an ever-changing cast list of musicians under the Black Label Society name, releasing a series of hard-hitting southern rock albums including Stronger Than Death (2000) and 1919*Eternal (2002). The band got heavier on The Blessed Hellride but turned down the noise for 2004's largely acoustic Hangover Music Vol. VI. The following year's Mafia proved to be the unit's most successful recording to date, breaking into the upper regions of the US charts on the strength of the radio play success of the single "Suicide Messiah".
