Legendary heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio has passed away at the age of 67. In 2009, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. He was a legend of hard rock and heavy metal music. His solo works were very successful, along with his work in the bands Rainbow and Black Sabbath. This year has taken it’s toll on metal, as Peter Steele of Type O Negative.
Ronnie James Dio
Ronnie James Dio was born Ronald James Padovona in New Hampshire in 1942. He attributed his vocal prowess and technique to having played a number of brass instruments in his youth. He played in numerous bands throughout the 60s and formed Elf within the early 70s. After being found by Deep Purple, Elf was taken out on tour with them several times.
Rainbow
Ritchie Blackmore hired Elf, including Ronnie James Dio, as the rest of what would be called Rainbow, after he quit Deep Purple. Aside from his musical contributions, he also is credited for popularizing the "metal horns," otherwise known as "devil horns," which he picked up from his Italian grandmother. The hand gesture is called "malocchio," which gained popularity as "the horns." It was adopted as the sign of The Metal.
Black Sabbath
After leaving Rainbow due to creative differences, Ronnie James Dio auditioned for Black Sabbath, as they had just fired Ozzy Osbourne. Dio was hired, and stayed for two albums, “Mob Rules” and “Heaven and Hell." Despite the firing of the legendary original singer, the albums were quite successful. He struck out on his own after the release of “Live Evil,” a live record.
Holy Diver
A new band was formed, called Dio, and with them Ronnie James Dio recorded “Holy Diver” which is considered a classic. The title track and “Rainbow in the Dark” both were fan favorites and radio hits. He released solo albums until 2006, and even briefly reunited with Black Sabbath in 1992 for “Dehumanizer,” a new album and tour.
Heaven and Hell
Ronnie James Dio and Black Sabbath crossed paths again, while Ozzy Osbourne wasn't working with the band. It was decided they would work under a different name to avoid potential conflicts. Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice would instead tour as Heaven and Hell, recording a live album and in 2009, released “The Devil you Know,” a brand new studio album. The band went on hiatus when Dio was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2009. On May 16, 2010, Wendy Dio posted on the Dio website that he had passed away. It's an untimely and unfortunate end to one of probably the most inspirational, unique and brilliant vocalists of the last 30 years.
Article Resources
Dio website
http://www.ronniejamesdio.com/
The Horns
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sign_of_the_horns
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