Randy Rhoads‘ family welcome the return of his first electric guitar and a prototype Marshall amp after they were stolen in 2019

Having been stolen in November 2019, a 1960s Harmony Rocket and a signature Marshall guitar amp belonging to Randy Rhoads has been returned to his family. 

They were part of a consignment of gear and memorabilia that went missing when California's Musonia School of Music was ransacked. The institute was founded in 1948 by Rhoads' mother, Delores, and is now run by his brother, Kelle, where it offers music lessons and preserves his musical legacy. 

At the time of the break-in, Ozzy Osbourne offered a $25,000 reward for any information leading to the recovery of the gear. Soon after, most of the stolen items turned up in a dumpster in North Hollywood. 

However, the Harmony Rocket – which was Rhoads' first electric guitar – and a prototype of what would be Rhoads' signature Marshall 1959RR Super Lead MkII head remained missing.

Announcing the return of the gear on Instagram, Rhoads' sister, Kathy Rhoads D’Argenzio, thanked the North Hollywood Police Department and said the news was "beyond awesome," hinting that an investigation was ongoing into finding the perpetrators. 

This has already been a good the week for the Rhoads family, with the late Ozzy Osbourne guitarist to be honoured at the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony where he will be posthumously awarded the Musical Excellence Award. 

Rhoads' virtuosic playing helped Ozzy ignite his solo career after being fired from Black Sabbath in 1979. He recorded two studio albums with Ozzy – Blizzard Of Ozz and Diary Of A Madman – before dying in a plane crash on 19 March 1982, aged 25.