#leekerslake #uriahheep #ozzyosbourne#rockfileradio
Lee Kerslake (born 16 April 1947 in Winton, Bournemouth, Hampshire now Dorset, England) is an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and backing vocalist for the rock band Uriah Heep and for his work with Ozzy Osbourne in the early 1980s.
In the late '60s to early '70s Kerslake played with a band called the Gods, releasing three albums. He then joined Uriah Heep in November 1971, left the band in October 1979, and rejoined them in April 1982. He also played on David Byron's and Ken Hensley's solo albums, among other efforts.
In 1980, Kerslake met ex-Black Sabbath vocalist Ozzy Osbourne by chance in a lift at the Kings Cross Hotel in Australia. "He was in one corner with his bodyguard and his manager, and I was in the other corner with mine. Rather funny". According to Bob Daisley, many drummers were auditioned before Lee, and once they heard Lee, Bob looked at Randy Rhoads and said 'Where the fuck's he been. There he is, this is him'. They would soon form the band Blizzard of Ozz with bassist Bob Daisley and guitarist Randy Rhoads, though the band soon became an Ozzy Osbourne solo project. Kerslake's work can be heard on Osbourne's first two solo albums, Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman. Kerslake left Osbourne's band in late 1981 to care for his mother, who had fallen ill. On the Diary of a Madman notes, Kerslake and bassist Bob Daisley were not credited, with drummer Tommy Aldridge and bassist Rudy Sarzo instead receiving credit. Aldridge has stated of the Diary of a Madman album, "I think it's pretty obvious that it's not my drumming on that album. I have never taken credit for that recording and have always given Lee Kerslake, whenever asked or interviewed, the credit he rightly deserves."
In 1998, Kerslake and Daisley filed suit against Ozzy Osbourne and his manager/wife Sharon Osbourne, seeking royalties and songwriting credits for their contributions to the Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman albums. Osbourne subsequently erased Kerslake and Daisley's playing contributions on both albums, replacing their performances with newly recorded tracks by bassist Robert Trujillo and drummer Mike Bordin. Kerslake is unsure why the Osbourne camp has treated him so negatively. "The only thing I could ever recall was once Ozzy had asked me to speak to her on his behalf regarding the two shows in New York in one night as Ozzy said 'I can't do two shows in one night - not with my voice!' He told me to tell her. I did as he said. I would have died for Ozzy as we were a band and I loved him as such. Because I broke the news to her, she's hated my guts", he recalled in 2011.
In 2003 Kerslake became involved in 'super group' Living Loud, a hard rock project also featuring bassist Bob Daisley (formerly of Uriah Heep, Gary Moore, the Ozzy Osbourne band, Rainbow and Black Sabbath), guitarist Steve Morse (Dixie Dregs, the Steve Morse Band, Kansas, Deep Purple) and singer Jimmy Barnes. Keyboards player Don Airey (ex-Rainbow, currently with Deep Purple) made a guest appearance. The group released a debut self-titled CD, featuring covers of several Daisley/Kerslake penned Ozzy Osbourne tracks.
In 2003, Kerslake and Daisley's lawsuit was dismissed by the United States District Court in Los Angeles. This dismissal was upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Lee now performs with his own band the "Lee Kerslake Band", guests with various bands and regularly joins ex-Heep members Ken Hensley and Paul Newton in "Uriah Heep Legends"
In early 2007 it was announced on the Heep website that Kerslake left the band 'due to ongoing health problems'. Kerslake is currently semi-retired because of illness.
source: wikipedia
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