Time flies doesn’t it? Perhaps I said that last year when the first anniversary came to pass. I think that I might have and while I was initially on the fence about posting a two year reflection about the passing of Ronnie James Dio, when the day started out I decided that I should. Let’s face it. Ronnie James Dio became one of the most important figures in Heavy Metal music ever. Without question or controversy, he was the man, and one of the most visible champions of the genre that we have ever had in our corner. His death crushed many and he is missed every single day by his worldwide legions of fans. Since he passed away a whole lot of stuff has popped up in terms of releases or bands touring in his memory. We’ve found unreleased classic shows and limited edition vinyl releases along with special edition versions of some of his work with Rainbow, Elf and of course Dio. A Tribute To Dio band called “Dio Disciples” tours with Ripper Owens at the helm and now a new band that features members of Dio’s first solo touring band are working on unleashing their own thing and I am sure that we have not seen nothing yet.

Ronnie James Dio (1942-2010)

Since Ronnie’s death another interesting development was the proposed reunion of the original members of Black Sabbath but now that seems to be a questionable project since it no longer involves the founding Bill Ward. I know that Geezer and Tony didn’t want to continue on with Heaven And Hell without Ronnie at the helm, but I so wish they would have just opted to find someone who would do proper respect to the man and his memory and let these tunes be heard night after night in live concert instead of only being pulled out of the DVD cabinet every now and again. Still I am glad I own the catalog items that I have and I was so glad to have taken photos of him in concert a few times when the means allowed me to do so. Those are my memories. What are your own?

Clicking the photo above will take you to the original memorial blog posting that ran on PiercingMetal Musings the day that Ronnie passed away. I chose to present it to you in this manner as opposed to just making it a “sticky” on the top of the other posts. Please note that the comments have been closed on this particular posting but you can leave any thoughts you might have about Dio on the original memorial piece if you so desire. We welcome your own thoughts about his memory and his continuing influence upon the Heavy Metal scene. So many of us miss him still and wonder how the last two years in Metal might have been had he not been ill or at least been able to recover. Oh well. There is nothing we can do to change the outcome that we got, but let’s blast the Metal music a little bit louder today and never ever forget what Dio gave to us for so many decades of his life.

Has it been a year already?

Well yes I guess it has and its probably safe to say that the worlds Metal and Hard Rock fans will forever remember where they were and what they were doing when they first learned that singer Ronnie James Dio had passed away. This comes from the amazing importance that his very being meant to the music community and just how vital he was to its positive growth with not only his music and creativity but also in the way that he carried himself in the public eye. I have yet to meet a Metal head who didn’t love almost everything that Dio stood for. One cannot question this stance because the musician was nothing short of prolific in his body of work and he impressed everyone again and again.

The Metal Republic had already been having a bad year as only a month before Ronnie died we had lost Type O Negative’s Peter Steele.  Recovery had slowly begun from that news but when word was made official about Ronnie being gone there was not a Heavy Metal fan anywhere in the world that didn’t feel a cold numbness taking them over.  For many fans this man was the pre-eminent legend and his being taken from us was a cruel reminder of just how human our idols truly were.   The realization that the same ills that befall us all can even take away those who bring us peace of mind stung like nothing ever felt before.   Of course Ronnie would leave us with an amazing body of work with Rainbow, Dio, Black Sabbath and Heaven & Hell so he would live forever on in our musical mind.  His passing would lead to the formation of a record label by his wife Wendy and through this the Metal world would be able to enjoy historical releases and material never before seen or heard before.

On the day of his passing I composed a memorial narrative in his honor.  I touched upon all the aspects of his career that I experienced as a fan and featured many photos that I had taken when seeing him in action.  Clicking the photo of Ronnie above will take you to that original piece and its bevy of comments from the Metal community.  We welcome your thoughts to those words and ask that if you are compelled to add your own views that you do it on that original memorial so they can add to what is already present and give it the maximum power.   I’m sure Ronnie is rocking out with the likes of Steele, Hendrix and Moon and probably comparing notes with Morrison, Harrison and Lennon.  The great beyond was already rocking based on its populace but for a year now it has been getting a healthy dose of Metal input from the master.  I’d like to think that he was there to welcome the other Metal names that passed on after him as well.

\m/ Long Live Dio \m/

I can hardly believe the words myself, but yes, the news is indeed true and the Metal world has lost one of its most inspiring titans as Ronnie James Dio, The Godfather Of Heavy has died at age 67.  Back in November of 2009 it was reported that Ronnie had been diagnosed with stomach cancer and he quickly began to get treated for it and according to most reports was on the mend if not a little worse for wear from the treatments.  Sadly, the battle that this brave warrior king would fight would not be all that long and he would succumb to the illness and pass from this plane on Sunday morning 5/16/2010.

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Heaven and Hell has been enjoying an incredible ride for the last couple of years and it is richly deserved based on its members overall importance to the Heavy Metal genre. The reunion show at Radio City Music Hall and its subsequent DVD showed that this grouping of players were legends and soon we would find the crushing power of their new work on “The Devil You Know”, the new CD of music. Now on a hot summers night Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice came a calling and the Metal faithful were all listening. To see our report and enjoy the massive amount of presented photos please click the logo below to be taken to our item on the main PiercingMetal.com site. Horns up!

A little pre-show wandering around found me seeing this cool graphic on one of the many trucks that haul the band’s elaborate stage and equipment around.  The need to be timely made using the PiercingCamera an impossibility so the powers of the PiercingPhone were instead employed.  I love technology when it helps me do this better.

The Metal Masters Tour was an event that found the might of Judas Priest and Heaven and Hell combining forces with both Motorhead and Testament and we were sure to be on point to bring this story to the masses. It was one of the best shows of the year and for readers to see our comments on all of the performers and photos of each please click on the logo below to be brought to our main PiercingMetal.com article. Keep the horns raised high legions.

Heaven and Hell have been kicking ass since the decision to reform the mark 2 version of Black Sabbath and now they would continue to smite the unbelievers with the Metal by taking both Queensryche and Alice Cooper on the road with them. We headed down to Jones Beach Ampitheatre to enjoy this one and those Metal heads who wish to learn more can click the logo to see our item on the main PiercingMetal.com site.

There is an additional coolness to the concerts that happen in this particular region and that is the fact that you never know who you are going to run into at a show.  During this show we happened to run into the Metal Queen herself, the one and only Doro Pesch.  It’s always a pleasure to see her rocking the stage and of course rocking to the sounds of Metal bands that she loves.

The singer graced us with a candid shot and we see her giving the Heaven and Hell performance a rating of “two horns up”.  She also let some of the other fans that caught sight of her take some photos as well.  That’s a performer who really appreciates their audience in my opinion.  Thanks Doro, we hope to be covering one of your shows soon.

Before the show began I tried my best based on the angle and proximity to snare a shot of the dramatic and oh so impressive stage setting.  As you can see, it looks like some sort of Gothic Cathedral with stained glass windows above and massive iron gates surrounding it.  Soon Heaven and Hell would take the stage.  Can you feel the excitement?  I know I can.

This was lauded as one of the biggest concert events of the year and how could it be anything less when it it the reunion of the Dio era Black Sabbath who are now touring under the moniker of Heaven and Hell. Tonight we were present as a fan and while not on official Metal Reporter duty, we made sure to document the evening and present it for you via the article that the logo below will bring you to. Don’t worry about the lack of photos from us because the show was recorded for release on DVD and that will come out later in the year.