SILEO IN PACIS

A Tribute To Ronnie James Dio

by Ryan Travis

On Sunday May 16th 2010, the world of heavy metal suffered a great loss with the death of Ronnie James Dio. Old metalheads like myself mourn the loss not only as the passing of a metal god, but also as the harbinger of the end of old school metal as we know it.

Ronnie James Dio was born Ronaldo Giovanni Padovan on July 10th 1942 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, but he grew up in Cortland, New York after his family moved there when he was very young. Dio’s formed his first band in high school called the Vegas Kings and Ronnie played bass for them. He eventually became lead singer for the band and changed the name to Ronnie and the Rumblers and finally Ronnie and the Red Caps. In 1961, Ronnie took the name Dio after mobster Johnny Dio and after some lineup changes, the band changed their name to Ronnie Dio and the Prophets. In 1967, Dio started the Electric Elves and then shortened the name to simply Elf. In 1969, Elf became the opening act for Deep Purple. Richie Blackmore really liked Dio’s vocals which spawned the band Rainbow which released their first album in 1975. Dio recorded 3 albums with Rainbow, but left the band due to creative differences. In 1979, Dio joined Black Sabbath, replacing Ozzy as the frontman. The album Heaven and Hell revitalized the band’s career and it was during that time that the now famous “devil’s horns” salute known by metalheads worldwide. Dio recorded 2 studio albums with Black Sabbath as well as a live album, but left the band to pursue a solo career and in 1982, the band Dio was born. The band released 14 albums in their career from 1982 to 2006, but it was his first 2 albums Holy Diver and Last in Line that will forever be etched in metal history. In 1992, Dio returned to Black Sabbath for the album Dehumanizer and once again in 2006, but this time the band had to form under the name Heaven and Hell as per Ozzy’s request after returning to the band. On November 25th 2009, Dio was diagnosed with stomach cancer. In March of this year, Dio’s wife reported that his test results were good and they were hopeful for his recovery. On May 4th, Heaven and Hell canceled all dates for their summer tour and on Sunday May 16th, Ronnie wife announced Dio’s passing on his website.

I am deeply saddened by his death. Ronnie James Dio was a phenomenal frontman and he will forever be a metal god. My heart goes out to Dio’s wife and his family. The metal world will be forever changed with his passing.