Now this was a shock. My wife called and told me that Dio was dead of stomach cancer.
Ronnie James Dio was a musical giant. His instantly recognizable voice has been part of my musical landscape since around 1983. 'Holy Diver' and 'Rainbow in the Dark' caught my interest and 'The Last in Line' made me a fan. I started digging deeper and found out that he sang for Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. I found the three studio albums he sang on and WOW! 'The Man on the Silver Mountain' made me a fan for life.
In 1985, a friend (well, actually he was a Navy recruiter, so I'm not sure how much I would consider him a friend in retrospect) introduced me to Elf, Dio's first band. Elf was very cool blues rock and is still on my 'play often' list. Check out 'Carolina County Ball' and 'L.A. 59.' They are both wonderful songs showing a young Dio developing the trademark voice.
After finding all of this wonderful music, the most startling revelation of all occurred. Dio sang for Black Sabbath. I did not even know that. After Ozzy left, I pretty much ignored Sabbath. My mistake. They may not have had the instantly recognizable Black Sabbath tunes with Dio, but they are very solid albums.
A few months ago I watched 'Metal: A Headbanger's Journey' which is a very good documentary on the heavy metal subculture. Dio was interviewed twice during the documentary and came across as a very pleasant and friendly guy. I also recently watched a concert video that had an interview with him in the special features. He came across as an intelligent, articulate man with a great sense of humor.
Although I only saw him in concert once in the late 80s, Ronnie James Dio's music has been a constant source of pleasure for me and it always will be.
Rest in peace Ronnie, you will be missed.
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