Classical Vocal Instructor Analyzes Five Metal Singers

The list doesn't surprise me much and it explains why I am a fan of most of the singers that she has good things to say about.

The "she" is question is Claudia Friedlander, a New York City vocal teacher who specializes in opera. Her opinions were solicited from Invisible Oranges a few months ago, a summary of which appears below.

The two vocalists she seems most enthralled with are Ronnie James Dio and Bruce Dickenson.

Of Dickenson: "There is a visceral dramatic intensity driving this singing. Many rock and metal singers are tenors who sustain much higher, much longer than operatic tenors are ever required to." and for Dio, she compares him to Queen's Freddie Mercury, stating "This is another very fine singer. His voice is so naturally resonant...Like the first singer, he performs with perfect legato, clear diction, and a consistent, organic vibrancy."

She offered praise for Rob Halford, but admitted he was "the only one I really wish I could get my hands on. He demonstrates several mad skills, but they aren’t well-integrated. It doesn’t matter so much because he is so committed, expressive, and musical, but I could have helped him do it easier and better."

Ha! The metal god needs a vocal instructor!

Actually, the vocal part she listened to is from Sad Wings Of Destiny, probably Priest's best album, but one that was recorded very early in their career.

I'm sure Halford has been through a few vocal coaches since then when money was hard to come by for food, let alone vocal instructors.

But she offers a bit of hesitation for King Diamond, one of metal's premier screamers, suggesting that some of his technique benefits from studio trickery.

And then there's Ozzy Osbourne, a vocalist she's not familiar with and not a fan of. She exclaims how it made her throat tight when she listened to "War Pigs." "The entire range of his singing is contained within a single octave," she observed, "with the exception of the moment when he yells “Oh Lord!” a little higher, in my opinion the only quasi-free vocal sound on the entire track."

While technically misguided, "War Pigs" is pure, throaty brilliance.

I would have loved to hear her take on "Changes."

A nod to Cousin J for the lead and Invisible Oranges for the article quotes.

Sister Sunshine Confirms That Dio Is In Hell

This kind of nonsense doesn't even bother me anymore, because I have a pretty good idea that hell already has a nice, warm spot reserved for people like Sister Sunshine here. Regardless of your religious beliefs, do you really think God supports people who post garbage like this online after someone has gone through a very painful illness and subsequently passes from it? I mean, was she wearing a "God Hates Fags" shirt as she beat RJD's puppy while he was going through chemo treatments? Because that's the kind of insensitive fuck she appears to be, judging from this righteous little sermon.

Many years ago, and I wish now that I would have taped it, there was a show on a Christian cable station called "The Crows Nest," where they would just make shit up about rock records. They'd play records backwards and tell you what was being said. They'd make up stuff that happened at concerts. And they'd go over cover art in fine detail, identifying every bit of satanic imagery they could find.

And when the ratings and fervor ended (or when people just gave up), the show ended.
This video probably gave Sister Soldier here the most views she's ever done, which will probably lead to more posts just like this.

I love how she pretends not to know any of this shit, but she was obviously a big Dio fan back in the day. I mean, nobody would know about RJD's stint in Elf unless they've done a little research. It's not like they were hugely popular and that this chick was even around when they were in still active. I think she's secretly a little broken up about Dio's death, but had to post some mean and evil video to "look good" around her born again buddies.

Deep down she knows that hell's got all the good bands anyway.
Via Glorious Noise boards.

Ronnie James Dio R.I.P.

You don’t know how sad this is for me-Ronnie James Dio dying today at the age of 67-and for some of you the idea of Dio is nothing but a joke. In reality, we’ve all had are share of laughs at the expense of R.J.D., myself included, but Ronnie also had the ability to laugh at himself too. That would probably make him better than most of us. I know I would probably take offense at some joke lobbied against me, go off and pout or do something else to demonstrate what a lousy sense of humor I had.

Take a radio interview with Eddie Trunk a few years ago, right before Heaven and Hell (known as the Dio-era of Black Sabbath for the rest of us) where Ronnie fielded a question from a caller about his age. You see, there’s a controversy about Dio’s age, for years it was painted in grey colors and it was a matter of debate. Until someone went and checked the copyright documents of some of his songs-a place where you’re required to put proper documentation in order to get compensated-and it was discovered that Ronnie was born July 10th, in 1942.

The caller, attempting to pin Ronnie down on his age and to poke fun at his advacing years, asked Dio "So how old are you

Ronnie, who probably faced the question numerous times and had to endure (good naturedly, too, I might add) a comedic team's song advising him that "You're too old to rock! No more rockin' for you!" understood that the caller really wasn't concerned with the truth. He was just taking a piss at the expense of R.J.D.

Dio's response, while showing some tiredness at the manner in which he was asked, answered bluntly "What do you want to hear? I'm old! I'm really, really old! Does that make you feel better now?"

What got people on this paper trail was that Ronnie was making records as early as 1958, in a rockabilly band called Ronnie and the Redcaps. He floundered around the Buffalo, New York area for many years until the late 60’s when he founded a band called the Electric Elves.

After incorporating medieval imagery into his lyrics, the band shortened their name to Elf and they caught the attention of Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore during a performance where Ronnie’s band opened up for the bigger purple. When Blackmore left Deep Purple in the mid-70’s for greener pastures, the vocalist he called to initiate his new project was Dio. Black Sabbath did the same thing in the late 70’s, before Ronnie understood that he’d logged enough miles fronting some of rock music’s most iconic bands that he should just start one with the obligatory title of his own name.

Yeah, some of those Dio albums were bad. Some of Dio’s lyrics were also pretty abysmal. But a whole bunch of them were awesome, and his voice was unmistakable, even when his age began to distract people from his real accomplishments.

To this day, I would pick Dio’s work with Sabbath on Heaven & Hell and Mob Rules over the last three or four Ozzy-led Sabbath albums. I would pick a few Dio-led Rainbow albums over some of the shit Deep Purple released. And yes, I will confess to enjoying Dio’s Last In Line more than I probably should acknowledge.

Because for every endless mythical reference, to each nod to medieval times, for every tired tale of the struggle between good and evil, there was Ronnie James Dio delivering it like he meant every word.

What’s strange is that his last album with Heaven & Hell, The Devil You Know, seemed to hint at a honest struggle with the topic of good and evil. At some points, he sang like he was truly confounded on his family’s long-standing tradition of religion, holding it up to the lack of humanity that he’d probably seen in all of his years of touring.

I wonder where he ended up on his final days.

I have to believe he ended up in a peaceful place, as Dio seemed to be the ultimate optimist the last few years. The stomach cancer scare showed up at the end of the Heaven & Hell tour last year, but there was nothing in the announcements and follow ups to suggest that, aside from a slight bump to make time for chemotherapy, there was anything to worry about. In fact, Heaven & Hell had booked a bunch of shows for this summer and by March of this year, Ronnie’s wife announced that the tumor had shrunk and that his chemo sessions had been reduced.

But as early as this month, there were hints of trouble when Heaven & Hell cancelled those tour dates because of Ronnie’s health and even Blabbermouth got in touch with Wendy (Dio’s wife) to dispel some rumors of Ronnie’s passing.

She’s denied it, but also admitted that he wasn’t doing too good.

That was just a few days ago.

And now it appears that this last beast he was asked to battle was too much for his slight frame to handle. Yes, Ronnie was not a particularly large man at all-some would say the band name Elf was, in fact, a comparison to his small stature.

Which is what made his voice so incredible; the power and color that came from inside of him easily lay waste to other metal singers and it remains an unmistakable sound in the genre and an immeasurable influence.

His passing may mean that Ronnie James Dio is now the stuff of legends, but at least we still have plenty of worthy documents that show how his voice could slay anything that stood in his way when he was with us.

Heaven & Hell - The Devil You Know

One of my biggest fears in writing this review is the perception that I am the site’s lone Ronnie James Dio and that role puts me in a category of irrelevance. Kind of like the irrelevance that Dio himself faced about ten years ago when he was playing the shtick in clubs and secondary markets. Only the faithful showed up then and I would probably count myself as one of those vocal naysayers, laughing at every one of those few hundred patrons coming to get a glimpse at this tiny old man.
Tenacious D may have resurrected Dio to a pop culture joke, but it was a re-examination of his work with Black Sabbath in the early 80’s that resurrected him to a credible and influential voice in metal.
The reunion shows were supposed to be a swan song, a final glimpse at a band that was on its own deathbed at the time of conception. But there were reports during the tour that the band-now named Heaven & Hell thanks to the endless meddling of Sharon Osbourne-was preparing to record a new album together, the second reunion of this line-up.
Initially, I found myself as a naysayer, rolling my eyes at the notion of a disc of new material, envisioning a slow death of decreasing popularity and smaller venues. The fellas seemed intention on exiting the metal arena in embarrassing fashion, too old to know when it’s time to put away the gargoyles and call it a day.
The Devil You Know should be the sad remnants of that union, the document that tells us that the moment ended decades ago and, while reminiscing among the old farts is fine, the idea that they can translate it into credible new material is silly.
Well Holy Diver, the joke is squarely on me as Heaven & Hell deliver their heaviest recordings closer to the age of seventy than they did at twenty-one. It’s an effort that provides them with a reason to exist-albeit under a new name-and it should provide an inspiring reference point to anyone considering what the shelf life of a metal band should be.
Dio, who’s voice is still impressive at his advanced age, has moved from an egotistical bellower to one that has transitioned his talents into an ominous howl. The end of days is written all over this record, and Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler work each riff like it will be their last with Vinny Appice plodding along at a snails pace. Seriously: the album is more than half over before the band kicks it into second gear with “Eating The Cannibals.” All of this dirge and slow motion head banging begins to sound the same by the end of the album, and repeated listening had me reaching for the remote so that I could program only the best songs on the album.
One of those is “Bible Black.” It begins as a forlorn acoustic number until the ninety-second mark. At which time the band unleashes into a menacing refute of Christianity. “Let me go!/I’ve seen religion, but the light has left me blind!” Dio roars while Iommi delivers another worthy riff underneath the sacrilege.
While not as noteworthy as Heaven & Hell or The Mob Rules, the fourth installment of this Sabbath line-up is most surprising for its consistency. Not even I imagined that these four old-timers would have been album to create an album that matches the releases that are already available, particularly since it’s been over fifteen years since the last installment. It also annihilates practically everything that Sabbath’s more notorious frontman has released during that time. Which begs the question: shouldn’t Sharon be doing more to make sure her husband is contributing to his own legacy than worrying about what his former bandmates are doing? Because, judging from The Devil You Know, Heaven & Hell are doing more to retain Sabbath’s lofty stature than he is.

This review originally appeared in Glorious Noise.

The OCD Chronicles: Rainbow-"Man On The Silver Mountain"

Here’s a riddle: what do you get when you’re a wheel, the sun, black, white, the day and the night?
Answer: you get “The Man Of The Silver Mountain.”
Look, nobody said that Ronnie James Dio was a poet. In fact, the guy has a tendency to use a lot of the same imagery over and over. While most people would be content with writing one song about rainbows, Ronnie has written a couple (“Rainbow In The Dark” and “Catch The Rainbow.”). In fact, Ronnie joined up with awesome Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and formed a fucking band called Rainbow.
And right out of the gate, the duo wrote a song about an imaginary dude whose name everyone screams and who needs to be made holy again.
I have two versions of this song: the original studio album version that everyone’s familiar with and the eleven-minute long live version from On Stage.
It was Brad Company that introduced me to this version, presumably over a few hits of weed some night. That’s really the only way one can fully appreciate Ronnie James Dio’s improvisational wordplay at the end of the track.
You see, it’s a medley, beginning with “Man On The Silver Mountain” until it slows down until Ritchie breaks out a slow blues piece. RJD comes back in and the band breaks into an up-tempo rocker about a bad luck woman that’s “starstruck.” Dio reaches the end of that song and then begins to croon about how we all need some love.
Unexpectedly, Dio then changes gears and then starts singing how he’s the man….you’re the man…hell, we’re all the man on the silver mountain!
It’s as fine a piece of nonsensical vocal scatting as you’ll ever hear and ranks just behind the Guess Who’s drunken ramblings of roast beef.
As stupid as the lyrics to “Man On The Silver Mountain may be, they do speak the truth. The song is good enough that it certainly does “lift your spirit higher.”

Check out the badass rainbow lighting rig they used during Rainbow's 1977 tour.

Speaking of badass: that badass on drums is none other than the late Cozy Powell.

Speaking of dumbass: that dumbass on keyboards is none other than future Planet P Project founder Tony Corey. If you'd like to see to see some passionate comments from Tony Carey fans calling me a dumb-ass, please check out one of Glam-Racket's most popular reviews: Planet P Project's Pink World.

Heaven & Hell Record Signing

Probably the best in-store appearance footage ever. A fat, middle aged dude nearly looses it at a recent record signing in San Bernadino, California featuring Heaven & Hell. While waiting in line, the guy begins screaming, clearly excited at the prospects of meeting his heroes. ("These guys are Gods! I'm gonna friggin' FAINT!")
This immediately draws attention. As a matter of fact, the guy with him was almost as annoying at first, but managed to collect his shit as they got closer for fear of being escorted out of the store His friend, however, can't contain himself and doesn't care who notices or hears him ("I'm gonna fuckin' pass out. Pardon my French!"). You will notice one of the security guys looking a bit anxious as he collects the dude's cd and hands it to Iommi.
The crazy dude gets his disc signed and even manages to get a handshake in at the end. It's obvious that both Geezer and Iommi are used to this kind of zaniness; they barely eye contact and only allow a brief handshake ("Gently! Gently!)
He's clearly coherent enough to know that he's making people nervous, offering a final "I'm leaving now!" as he gets his disc and makes his way to the exit, still yelling every step of the way.

Awesome!
In other news, the New York Post is reporting that Ozzy Osbourne-under mind control from the greedy succubus known as Sharon-is suing Tony Iommi for using the name Black Sabbath after he quit/got fired. He's asking for 50% interest of the name and a percentage of Iommi's profits for Sabbath material after 1980, probably because his piece of shit variety show got cancelled after-what-one fucking episode.

OCD Chronicles: Black Sabbath "Children Of The Sea"

I’ve pretty much exhausted this topic, but I’m still in full R.J.D. mode and “Children Of The Sea” continues to channel itself in my head. Even one of the supervisors of work mentioned “You’re still buzzing with that Judas Priest show, aren’t you?” until I corrected him with “Actually, it’s the Sabbath set that’s still going around.”
So, at the most inappropriate moments, I blurt out “Look out! The sky is falling!” or sing to my daughter “Pooh Bear says that it’s over.”
I swear to God that the lyrics, as hilariously overreaching as they might be, serves as a metaphor for full on rock shows the way the used to be and should be. Look, I have no issues with the current state of metal and even those acts that I find unappealing. But there has got to be a market for big, dumb, over-the-top bands that are sincere in their deliverance of said topics.
Where are the modern-day Sabbaths, Scorpions, Maidens?
Shit, where are the farm-leagues of these bands?
I don’t believe for a moment that Avenged Sevenfold, The Darkness, et all give two shits about the themes they ape. I think that it’s a matter of irony for them, and even the dumbest of metalheads can figure out when you’re making fun of them.
But I’m totally sincere when I say that “Children Of The Sea” is an awesome song that takes on new meaning when one contemplates the future of arena metal.

Holy Diarrhea! Dio Rips On Vivian Campbell

And here I thought that Ronnie James Dio was this tiny, nice dude who always seemed to speak with an important delivery like he was way aware of metal’s perceived retardedness.
So how refreshing is it to see him acting totally metal, dropping f-bombs and publicly ripping ex-Dio band member Vivian Campbell. In case you’re wondering, Vivian Campbell was also the dude that replaced the dead dude in Def Leppard and who shouldn’t be confused with the blonde dude that replaced some other dude who got kicked out after High ‘N Dry.
To clarify again: Vivian Campbell is the brown, curly haired guitarist that currently makes the fair circuit with the rest of the 80’s revival circuit.
I guess there was some bad blood when Campbell lodged the following on October 29, 2003: “Even now I still get these guys coming up to me going 'Duuuuuuuude!', giving me the DIO devil sign and yelling 'Holy Diver!!' and 'Rainbow In The Dark, whoo hoo!!' and it's cool that they remember it, but that music never mattered to me — and still doesn't." Campbell went on to state that Dio was “awful businessman” and called him “one of the vilest people in the industry."
Fast forward to March 30, 2007: after the Heaven and Hell show at Radio City Music Hall, Dio spent time signing autographs with fans outside while someone videoed the moment. In the video, a fan mentions to Dio, "I saw Vivian Campbell about a year ago…" only to have Ronnie cut him off with: "Oh, you poor son of a bitch!” He then throws out some harsh ill-will and gives a few choice words regarding Def Leppard (”There’s a fucking rock band for you to fucking have diarrhea with!”).
It’s wonderful, and I appreciate Dio more after watching it.

Black Sabbath - The Dio Years

There’s nothing quite like a good old fashioned age dispute in the world of entertainment, and for years, Ronnie James Dio has claimed to be born on this day in 1949. But with a few investigative maneuvers, one can easily determine that this year is probably not accurate.
In fact, the general consensus is that Dio was born on this day in 1942, placing him at the ripe old age of 65 today. Wikipedia devotes an entire section on Dio’s entry to this topic, and it even includes a link to Ronnie’s old high school. The school, which has a wall of fame of notable alumni, lists Dio’s graduation at 1960, which would contradict Ronnie’s claim that he was born in 1949.
Here’s a review of Black Sabbath The Dio Years originally published on Glorious Noise.

Black Sabbath
The Dio Years
(Rhino)


There is no debating the enormous impact that Black Sabbath had during their 70’s heyday, and, for those old enough to remember, the stakes were very high for the band when they made the decision to continue on without vocalist Ozzy Osbourne.
Enter Ronnie James Dio, who spent half of the 70’s teamed with Ritchie Blackmore in Rainbow, to breathe some live into Sabbath.
Surprisingly, Dio not only shook the band from their drug-addled slumber, he helped create a pair of stellar metal albums with them (Heaven & Hell and Mob Rules) that devastated the band’s last two albums with Osbourne (Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die!).
I’m one of those old enough to remember. At the tender age of thirteen, Black Sabbath was the musical equivalent of Satan incarnate, which is to say they were a veritable rite of passage for thousands of boys who traded in their Mad magazines for Fangoria.
A record back then (for me) cost more than a week’s allowance and, without the aid of free downloads, you had to manage your purchases wisely. Thankfully, a barely tunable album-oriented rock station broadcasted a weekly show that featured a new release and played the album in its entirety, commercial free. One of the albums they featured was Heaven & Hell, providing me with an opportunity to preview the release and to test my home recording skills as I loaded a blank cassette, ready to capture my own static-riddled copy of the newest incarnation of Black Sabbath.
Within seconds after the start of some familiar Tony Iommi riffing, Dio makes his presence known with the growl “Oh no! Here it comes again!” And with that, Sabbath was reborn.
Never say die indeed.
Ronnie James Dio is also known for a few humorous antidotes that make him common fodder for some of metal’s most infamous jokes. Copyright searches have shown his (disputed) age to be 64 years old (memorialized in the line “You’re too old to rock/No more rockin’ for you!” in the Tenacious D song “Dio”) which does point to the stunning realization that a man older than my own Father is still working the heavy metal circuit.
And if his age and chosen music genre weren’t enough, Dio is notorious for his lyrical Dungeons and Dragons imagery, a fixation that most males grow out of during their teenage years. All of this blatant ammunition comes wrapped in a package that barely scales 5’4”.
Yes, Ronnie James Dio has some image problems.
Black Sabbath may have been the perfect band for him to compliment these shortcomings. They were ridiculed for years for their own juvenile imagery, simplistic musical approach and general lack of critical respect. Black Sabbath has never been a band that apes the critics anyway. No, their primary audience typically fights nocturnal boners when they’re not wearing huge-ass Koss headphones, finger-ready on the pause button of a shitty Craig stereo, listening for the exact moment to steal a copy of Heaven & Hell from a terrestrial radio station.
While a Dio-led Sabbath may have been a match made in Heaven (or Hell), the line up only survived another studio album (Mob Rules) before tensions mounted between Ronnie and the rest of Sabbath during the mixing of Live Evil. Recently, Geezer Butler referred to the album as “Live In The Studio Evil,” a quick jab at an old wound that Dio had re-recorded his vocals and mixed the down the levels of the rest of the band without their consent.
Dio rejoined Sabbath again in 1992 for the frequently overlooked Dehumanizer, which offered the most inspired set since, well, since he was on board a decade earlier.
Rhino Records has recently compiled songs from the three studio albums and the controversial live effort as The Dio Years, an album that actually works well as compilations are concerned, pulling the correct amount of material from the line up’s strongest album and, more importantly, pulling the right material from these sources.
Five of Heaven & Hell’s eight tracks are included, four songs from Mob Rules made the cut, one from Live Evil and three from Dehumanizer can be found. To entice fans that may already own the proper releases, the band regrouped last fall to record new material, three of which are tacked on to the end of The Dio Years.
Of these three, there is nothing revelatory to speak of and they do not match up to the quality of the first two releases. Yes, Dio (who possesses one of the most perfectly matched voices in the history of heavy metal) still manages to deliver vocally and the band sounds notably heavy, the new tracks are unmemorable and suffer from an obvious sense of “I guess we need to fill out the album with some newly recorded material.” They plod along like some of the weaker moments of Dehumanizer and The Dio Years would have been better served by offering the sorely missed “Sign Of The Southern Cross” from Mob Rules, a track that perfectly captures Dio’s full range and Sabbath’s softer versatility.
With this minor complaint aside, The Dio Years serves as a fine introduction to a band in top form even after such a career-ending event like losing a recognizable frontman like Ozzy Osbourne. The band remained relevant and withstood the influx of creativity during the new wave of British heavy metal with their leather in tact.
The compilation actually works better than last year’s anthology of Ozzy-fronted Sabbath, Greatest Hits 1970-1978. With so much glaringly missing from that set, it’s somewhat reassuring that The Dio Years strives to find a balance of quality material with the obligatory unreleased enticements.

Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell Reunion

I totally overlooked another reunion and a recent show on VH1 Classic reminded me of such.
Ronnie James Dio has gotten back together with Black Sabbath to revisit that era's material. The rub: they're not calling themselves "Black Sabbath," instead choosing to avoid a confrontation with the succubus known as Sharon Osbourne by naming the band after the line up's best album, Heaven & Hell.
I've got an appreciation for that record, as it surpasses many of the late-day Sabbath releases when Ozzy was still with the group. Hell, I'll even admit to enjoying some of the Dio-era Rainbow material and the occasional Dio album, particularly if I've had a few beers and feel like going "off to the witch."
Heaven & Hell are embarking on a too brief tour that takes them to the end of May and one that barely scrapes the Midwest. From what I understand, Megadeath is opening for them which would have been cool if it weren't for Dave Mustaine's continual reminders that he's a born again Christian.
Anyway, Heaven & Hell...fuck this shit...the Dio-era Black Sabbath spoke with Eddie Trunk on their special about the event. Apparently taped during the fall of '06, all three members seemed fairly cordial with each other and it was clear that their words (particularly Ronnie's) were carefully considered to the point where they sounded scripted.
Bill Ward is not in the reunion; It was my understanding that he was part of the initial rehearsals but then bowed out to let Vinny Appice take over the drum chair. It's been reported that Ward will be present for the original Black Sabbath reunion scheduled for sometime later.
Throughout the show, Trunk did a good job at trying to get the three parties to speak about their past differences. Specifically, the band was asked about the Live Evil release, and the tensions that arose from it. The story goes: the band got into a fight with Dio about some after hours mixing he was doing without the knowledge of Geezer, Tony, or Bill. When these three listened to the mix, they noticed that Dio's vocals had been mixed higher than what they were before, causing them to believe that he had redone several of the "live" vocals tracks in the studio.
Geezer gets the vote for funniest quote on the VH1 Classic special when he called the album "Live In The Studio Evil."
Ronnie immediately attempted to sway the conversation away from the bad memories by suggesting that all of those days were in the past. Geezer seemed to be bored during the entire interview and the member most likely to tell the truth on what really went down during Dio's sudden departure back in '82 after the Mob Rules tour.
Perhaps because of Dio's reluctance to spill the beans on Live Evil, Trunk never got around to asking about the events during the Dehumanizer tour from '92. Ozzy asked Black Sabbath to open for him during his final two shows of the No More Tears tour (incorrectly dubbed the "No More Tours" tour). Ronnie threw a fit, claiming that Black Sabbath wasn't an opening act for anyone and abruptly left the group.
The silver lining? They got Rob Halford to sing lead for them on those two shows and if anyone has a copy, you'll be my best friend if you send me one.
The VH1 Classic special showed some rehearsal footage of the band who seemed to be in fairly good form, despite Dio's frightening age. Seriously: the dude is like 65 years old and I don't care how many times he disputes the year of his birth, he looks over 60 regardless of how much make up you throw on him.
So yeah, I would totally be up for seeing Black Sabbath with Dio, regardless of how old Ronnie is, who's drumming, and what Sharon Osbourne is making us call them. You wouldn't get me to come early to see Mustaine's Bible Show or get me to buy the recent Black Sabbath compilation The Dio Years (which doesn't even have "Sign Of The Southern Cross" on it...Fuckers).
And for anyone that wants to dispute how good Sabbath was when R.J.D.'s little shrimp ass was singing for 'em, just pick up a copy of Heaven & Hell (the album, not the band, Jesus Christ I'm confused) and get back to me.