Helluva band

We went out last night to the Rod Laver Arena to see the reformed Dio-era Black Sabbath (also known as Heaven and Hell) in concert. The band rocked - what more needs to be said?

Ronnie James Dio must be about 65 these days - he's coy about his date of birth, but the best theory seems to be July 1942, and he's been around seemingly forever. He looked to be in terrific shape, sang with all the extraordinary power and range that he's famous for, and worked the stage (and the audience) with consummate ease and confidence. Surely Dio can't go on doing this for many more years, so I'm glad to have had this chance to see him fronting a version of Black Sabbath. But except that his mane of hair looked a bit thinner, he appeared not to have slowed down at all since I last saw him live on stage back in 1985. Maybe he really has made a pact with the devil.

Like Ian McKellen, whose body looked muscular and rock hard in his brief nude scene in King Lear, Dio is a good role model for those of us confronting the prospect of ageing. I wish I was in that sort of shape. Actually, plenty of teenagers could wish as much. Oh well, something for me to work on over the next decade or two.