Legendary Heavy Metal Singer Ronnie James Dio Dies At 67
Legendary heavy metal singer lead singer for the bands Rainbow, Black Sabbath and Dio, Ronnie James Dio has died. The singer, who replaced Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath was 67.
According to a statement posted on Dio's website by Wendy Dio, his wife and manager, the singer breathed his last yesterday.
Maureen O'Connor, a Los Angeles publicist, said Dio, whose songs revolved around the struggle between good and evil, died in Los Angeles. The cause of his death is still unknown but the singer had said last summer that he was suffering from stomach cancer.
"Today my heart is broken. Many, many friends and family were able to say their private goodbyes before he peacefully passed away," Wendy wrote.
Dio replaced Osbourne in Black Sabbath in 1979 and his first album with Sabbath, "Heaven and Hell," took the group to new heights. The group sold more than 1 million copies, but Dio parted ways with the group in 1981 after the release of "Mob Rules." Shortly after breaking away from the Black Sabbath, he formed Dio.
However, he returned to Black Sabbath in the 1990s, albeit for a brief period. "Because I've been in and out of a number of bands, people think I'm difficul. That probably comes about because I'm very intense about what I do. I have a really high standard, and I expect people around me to reach that standard as well. That's probably unfair," he told The Times in 1997. "
Dio was born on July 10, 1942, in Portsmouth, N.H., and raised in New York. He was named Ronald James Padavona and was interested in playing for the Yankees more than becoming a musician. He started his career with local bands such as the Vegas Kings and became famous after joining Rainbow in 1975.
