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Australian philosopher, literary critic, legal scholar, and professional writer. Based in Newcastle, NSW. My latest books are THE TYRANNY OF OPINION: CONFORMITY AND THE FUTURE OF LIBERALISM (2019) and AT THE DAWN OF A GREAT TRANSITION: THE QUESTION OF RADICAL ENHANCEMENT (2021).

Monday, May 17, 2010

Death of Ronnie James Dio

Terrible news - Dio had been suffering stomach cancer for some time, but last I'd read it was said to be in remission.

There's another of the gods of rock 'n' roll lost to us, though at least he made it to a, well, sort of reasonable age, 67. Of course, that's still far too young. I was privileged to see him perform live on two occasions, once back in the '80s, when he was touring with his own band, and again very recently when he was fronting the reunited Dio-era version of Black Sabbath (officially known as Heaven and Hell). Even in his sixties, Ronnie James Dio was an exciting performer and still the quintessential heavy metal vocalist. I'm so glad I had the opportunities to attend his performances.

My sympathies to his loved ones.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

His music brought me a lot of pleasure, esp in my teenage years. To paraphrase Mr Anderson, he never was too old to rock'n'roll, but he was much too young to die.

Steve Zara said...

I have to say, Russell, I have never heard of him, being a fan of softer rock.

But as I get older, and drift into middle-middle-age, I notice those musicians whose music I adored in my youth are close to old age.

I love so much new music, but there is nothing that stirs the emotions so much as the sounds and rhythms of our teens and twenties.

It's sad when someone like Dio leaves us, but what an achievement to have so many mourn his passing.

386sx said...

Love his singing, and he was a true showman and stage personality. (Don't care much for Vivian Campbell. An unfortunate choice, IMO. Coulda done better.)