My favorite Dio song is Stargazer. To me, it is the perfect combination of his incredible ability to tell stories and a mesmerizing instrumentation. One of the best songs ever written imo.
Stargazer is definitely it for me. Ritchie Blackmore deserves a lot of credit for it along with Dio. Cozey Powell too. Neither Stargazer nor Gates of Babylon could possibly have been made without all three of them.
Elisabeth of The Charismatic Voice once said that she thought all opera singers should study Dio, how he uses his vowels, how he starts and ends phrases, his story telling, etc. I think we can all agree!
Dio originally thought this song was "too commercial and pop culture". He was afraid is wasn't heavy enough compared to his songs with Black Sabbath and he was gonna destroy the master tapes until Vivian Campbell stopped him and convinced him to get more outside opinions of the song.
Haha ridiculous, considering he'd do stuff like "Sacred Heart" and "Mystery" later (even more commercial, but still good and certainly better than all the glam metal Dio co-existed with).
Phew... Neon Knights, The Sign of The Southern Cross, Mob Rules, Gates of Babylon, Kill The King, A Light in The Black, Long Live Rock'n'Roll, Stand Up And Shout, Holy Diver, Heaven And Hell, Tarot Woman, Lady of The Lake, ... So many to chose from, so little time... After so many decades, he and the bands he has been part of are still part of my daily playlists... 🤘🏻🤩🤘🏻
I know a lot of artists have said he was incredibly humble and friendly, all while just dominating the stage with confidence. I'm glad you recognise him here. 🙂
My favorite Dio performance is his cover of mistreated (live in Munich). He put so much emotion into that performance it made you feel like he was your own heart singing to you.
I was at this show. They killed it great concert . The Spectrum was a awesome place to see a concert in. One of the last shows to play there was the Heaven and Hell show to support the Black Sabbath The Dio Years CD .
Awesome...it's difficult to put into words just how amazing Ronnie Dio's talent is! whether it's natural ability, learned talent, or a merging of both, he is just the ultimate showman! He doesn't just sing the songs, he performs the songs...to perfection! My favourite male vocalist, by far...Thank you for another wonderful insight in this "vocal God" as you so succinctly put it...never a truer word was spoken! :)
What he has always sounded to me is a well trained Opera singer that got drunk one night and went to karaoke , just to let it loose . And then left the phantom and became DIO 😳
I absolutely love Stargazer, but actually, I'm a huge fan of the song Sitting in a Dream from the Butterfly Ball too. It's a side of Dio we don't hear so often in his later work, but really nice! Rainbow Eyes is another similar one
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Love you Beth. Dio IS a vocal god. I live in Syracuse- 30 miles from his Cortland upbringing. As a musically diverse individual- I gravitate to singers that can move me vocally but most importantly- perform with passion. Our local, recently deceased hero Benny Mardones was one- see his LIVE performances not the corny Video for Into the Night which hit the top 20 2 times! Also Barry Manilow live- incredible talent that brings the listener to tears when they wish. Keep up the great diverse reactions- wonderful 💪❤
since you asked; my initiation to Dio was in the early 90's when a friend lent me the ELF album, Hoochie Koochie Lady grabbed my throat! Dio's voice and the incredible piano[keyboards] of Mickey Lee Soule are a fantastic experience.
I saw this concert tour when it eventually arrived in Australia. Unfortunately Vivian Campbell had left the band over financial conditions, and Craig Goldie was playing lead guitar. I eventually got to see Vivian Campbell live when he was touring with Def Leppard. Both Vivian and Gary Moore were doing such great things at the time: Vivian with Dio, and Gary Moore with albums like Corridors of Power and Victims of the Future. Never got to see Gary though. Growing up in awe of Dio's vocal talent, I, like many like-minded others, were labelled 'Head Bangers' and were marginalized because of the music we loved. It is so refreshing, and validating, seeing people like yourself acknowledging the talent of Dio, an entertainer that has been a hero to so many 'Head Bangers'. 'Don't Talk to Strangers' from this concert is a great example of Dio's masterful delivery, and Vivian Campbell's nitro-charged soloing.
I was fortunate enough to see Ronnie James Dio on the Sabbath Bloody Sabbath Tour on September 5, 1980 at the Lakeland Civic Center in Lakeland, Florida. Definitely the best rock singer ever.
I had the good fortune to see Dio in a small club outside of Seattle back in 2000 on his Magica tour, before he started blowing back up again. There couldn't have been more than 60 people there. It was incredible. Right up close, loud as hell, not a single note out of place. I even traded the horns with him at one point. Easily my most favorite show I've ever been to. As a guitarist, it was exciting to see Craig Goldie, and I believe it was Simon Wright on drums (who I believe is playing here?), just a monster.
Seen this tour, amazing. Guitarist, Vivian Campbell was 22 or 23 at the time. As for a favorite Dio song, like asking if I have a favorite son. It is either Don't Talk to Strangers or Lost in the Middle.
I had heard recently that Ronnie had no training which is incredible and his dad made him practice the trumpet for hours what a talent he was he's one of my favorite rock and metal singers I miss him a lot I regret that I never got to see him live in concert
For many many years when this songs comes around my friend and I share it. We used to try to one up a rainbow in the dark. Lighting when it snows, typhoon in a cave etc.....those make as much sense as a rainbow in the dark.
RJD to me was "The Man On The Silver Mountain" what a song to start it all for me, ever since that day? I needed more Dio lol. There are too many songs that were amazing by DIO, From Rainbow, Black Sabbath, to Dio. He had that voice that not only can tell a story or a ballad, he got you into the whole song. His voice? second to none. If a singer puts a smile on your face, you get the message and that's what made RJD great.
And this song is not easy to sing, no matter how much he makes it seem like it is; I remember when I heard Bruce and Ronnie performing this song in 2000 in Belgium and it happened practically at the end of Dio's show, save my mistake Dio had a flu that day but he remained well controlled, with the same power and with the same naturalness but Bruce Dickinson, oddly enough, had certain difficulties with the percussion of the performance, he was raising his larynx quite high and he was clearly putting some subglottic pressure on the treble and sounding shrill, and I was quite surprised and realized that this song is difficult to play singing in general and just like many of Ronnie's songs but they both Bruce and Dio were fantastics in this performance.
You are spot on. Dio is the best vocalist ever. And Vivian Cambell is one of the best guitarists ever, along with Blackmore and Iomi. Dio was never short on guitarist.
I used to go to a weird bar in college where 6 days out of the week it was all nu metal but for some reason on Tuesday’s they played a whole lot of Dio
Favorite Dio songs for me include Rainbow in the Dark, Last in Line, Stargazer,, Heaven and Hell, Still I'm Sad, Kill The King, Mob Rules, Children of the Sea.... To name a few.
RONNIE JAMES DIO was the epitome of heavy metal front men. Beginning with ELF, THEN RAINBOW, BLACK SABBATH, DIO, AND FINALLY, HEAVEN HELL, right before his passing in 2010. He will always be one of the GREATEST!
What's incredible is that even at his "lows" when it comes to a performance you just don't care because it still sounds great. Ronnie was and always will be one of the greatest voices to ever bless our ears and souls. And in terms of when you were talking about learning to sing like him. You're right, you really can't learn that. In his Dreamers Never Die documentary there was a clip of an interview he did where he talked about how he was a trumpet player and he sees his voice as such considering with the trumpet it comes from the diaphragm. You really just have to understand how that works to have any sort of control over an instrument such as ones voice. However, Ronnie was just born to be a singer plain and simple. The fact he was already a very talented brass player only helped him in the grand scheme of things
To me Dio truly belongs in the Pantheon of singers and showman. You can't take your eyes off him, your ears are tuned in and you get this sense of witnessing a deity. It's kinda like watching Messi in football or Marco Pierre White in gastronomy. They're just lightyears ahead of everyone in their world. Grandmasters of their art. *bows and hands down*
I can't be the only one that sees Dio going number one and it's a magical rainbow...in the thumbnail for this video. I can't unsee it. ETA*Love some Dio, absolute legend.
At age 15 in 1985 when I first heard this song I was forever a Dio and Metal fan! Pure Magic🤘. No other singer in Metal and Hard Rock comes close to him!!!
First, I would like to make some remarks. I'm Brazilian and I saw DIO in two shows and the second time was on his last tour. It's really cool to see your excitement when talking about him. Congrats on the job! The songs I like the most are extremely emotional and literally bring me to tears. Lonely is the World Heaven and Hell (especially the final part) The Sign of the Southern Cross.
Saw Dio at a pool in Vegas in the 80s. He was chilling in a lounge chair wearing a bathing suit and a leather jacket, looking Metal af. My favorite Dio song is either Heaven and Hell, or The Mob Rules.
Picking just one favorite is IMPOSSIBLE, never gonna happen if you keep exploring his massive catelog. You have just GOT TO check out some of his earlier bands like Ronnie & The Prophets or Elf
It's said that Richie Blackmore was the Muse for this song, Ronnie had said singing for Rainbow was the worst job that he ever had. His voice was amazing!
My absolute favourite song is One Night in The City. It's wonderful storytelling. Also, you should check out his song An Angel is Missing, which he recorded in about 1969 when he was a crooner, long before his Rainbow/Sabbath/Dio days. It's quite good.
Favorite Dio song(s): Holy Diver Rainbow In The Dark Don't Talk To Strangers Hungry For Heaven The Last In Line Time To Burn Eat Your Heart Out Heaven and Hell (Sabbath) Mystery Pluss many more... He has so much passion, so much to tell, I find it impossible to choose a single song...
My favorite Dio song is "Children of the sea", if you want to see how amazing was Dio even when he was much older watch this song live from 2007! Pretty amazing!
Great song that she’s already reacted to. Actually it was the first Ronnie Dio she listened to. It was live in Holland 1983 or 84. I’m still puzzled when people suggest songs from Ronnie later in his career when there are generally two or three live options of the same songs from earlier in his career. Something happened to his voice around 2002-2003 (60 yrs old) and it was just never the same. Nothing was ever said and no one ever asked and maybe it was just time but there was a big change around 203. So again, there’s nothing wrong with post-2003 Dio at all, in fact i enjoyed later shows (saw him 6 times after 2003) just as much as shows from earlier in his career (saw hi six time prior to 2003). I just think if you’re wanting to introduce someone who has heard little to no Ronnie Dio you should suggest songs performed when he was at his best. That’s all.
One of the best metal vocalists of all time, that probably could have been an opera singer. Don't talk to stranger's is my favourite Dio song, as well as Holy Diver.
I saw the man in a hotel elevator in New Orleans years ago and he was short (compared to average) and I was stunned that all that power and volume came from that human. He was one of, if not THE GREATEST, rock vocalists I've ever heard.
Favorite Ronnie James Dio songs: Stargazer, Gates of Babylon, Heaven and Hell, Sign of the Southern Cross, The Last in Line, Egypt (The Chains Are On), Rock "n" Roll Children, All the Fools Sailed Away, and Computer God.
So probably the trolliest thing my band has ever done...we played a show a week or two after Dio died. Halfway through our set, during a tuning break, we let the intro to "Holy Diver" play, and then just as the guitars would come in, we launched into one of our original songs. Then, we get to the end of our set, where, for the last couple shows, we would cover "The Final Countdown" so, we still have it start with a similar automated "5,4,3,2,1" that we used to launch into that song, but now, once it got to "1" rather than hearing that synth riff of "The Final Countdown"...we launched into "Rainbow in the Dark" and the crowd went wild. Sadly, in all these years, we've never played that one again and I have no idea why.
