Flying High Again (Riff · Distorted) — Guitar Tone
by Ozzy Osbourne · riff
The Flying High Again by Ozzy Osbourne guitar tone is built on a Marshall 1959 Super Lead, dialed in at gain 7/10, bass 3.5, mid 6, treble 6.5, presence 5 (community-researched baseline). Full breakdown below — then adapt every knob to your exact guitar and amp, free.
Community-researched baseline. Your rig is different — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials every knob for your specific guitar, amp and pickups.
Original gear
Amp: Marshall 1959 Super Lead (Non-Master 100W Plexi)
Pickups
bridge humbucker
Effects / signal chain
distortion, eq, chorus
Tone character
mid-forward, articulate, singing lead, tight low end
Recording context
studio
How it’s played
mid-forward Plexi + Distortion+ overdrive distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the Flying High Again sound.
What makes the Flying High Again part tricky
fast harmonic-minor runs, classical-influenced phrasing, precise alternate picking. GuitarToneAdapt gets the tone right so you can focus on the playing.
Note: Flying High Again is upbeat and riff-driven — same Plexi + Distortion+ recipe, low bass, mids present, let the pick attack and the harmonic-minor runs do the talking., Randy Rhoads' Ozzy-era tone is a Marshall 1959 Super Lead (Non-Master 100W Plexi) pushed by an MXR Distortion+ for the extra gain, with a Gibson Les Paul Custom (and the famous polka-dot Flying V live). It's a mid-forward, articulate, classically-influenced hard-rock/metal tone — not a modern scooped high-gain., His documented Plexi settings are unusual: Presence ~5, Bass VERY LOW (~2), Middle ~5.5-6, Treble ~6.5-7 — the low bass keeps the fast riffs and harmonic-minor runs tight and clear. An MXR 10-band EQ (after the drive) boosts the mids (500Hz/1k); an MXR Stereo Chorus livens the clean sections., Settings are community-researched starting points, not official recall sheets — keep the bass low and the mids present, and remember most of Randy's sound was his pick attack and note choices.