There are three performers I regret never having seen live: Sammy Davis Jr. because he was unsurpassed as an entertainer in his generation; Antonio Carlos Jobim, probably the greatest songwriter of the final quarter of the 20th Century; and Ronnie James Dio, unsurpassed as a rock & roll singer.
Dio wasn’t just a singer, he was as package. Both a singer and a performer, because his mastery of his voice and of stage presence has yet to be equalled. Don’t believe me? Listen to the reactions of professional singers, meaning voice teachers and coaches, more than one opera singer, and others.
Apologies are due regarding the quality of the videos. Dio died in 2010 (no, not drugs) and these are all live videos so the quality doesn’t always comjpare well with the quality of more recent live videos, like the ones I’ve been putting up of The Warning.
That said…
Dio singing The Last In Line for Elizabeth Zharoff (aka The Charismatic Voice):
Dio singing Heaven and Hell for Rebecca Rey (aka Rebeccs Vocal Athlete):
Dio singing Children of the Sea for Beth Compson Bradford (aka Beth Roars):
Dio singing Stargazer for Bethany Hickman (aka The Vocalyst):
I once had tickets booked months in advance for a rock concert. Sabbath were on the line up and Dio was with them at the time. However by the time the gig happened Ozzy had returned when Dio left over musical differences. They played a bit of Heaven and Hell during Paranoid for the encore………Motorhead were next and then Twisted Sister. Over 40 years ago! Yikes!! And I still have Heaven and Hell on my running playlist…..
I think Dio and Iommi wrote Stargazer (or maybe it was Children of the Sea) the first night they met in L.A. when Dio was being ‘interviewed’ 🙂
I’m before your time, Reg. I’ve seen my share of rock royalty live as well. The Beatles and Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, and Cream (from side stage, BTW), among them.
Here’s one more. Elizabeth Zharoff again reacting to Mistreated:
BTW, if there’s any doubt about whether she actually IS an opera singer, here’s proof:
Of course, all of the videos the reactions are based on are easily found on Youtube without the reactions and comments.
Of course, all of the videos the reactions are based on are easily found on Youtube without the reactions and comments.
Good point. I wish all reactors would include a link to the original performance. So… in case our topics live a long time (or eventually get indexed better), I’ll try to remember to include links in each post to the original performances.
I wasn’t familiar with Dio, and I’m not a fan, yet. My ideas of who’s “best of all time” haven’t solidified, yet, although TW and Ren are near the top for me, right now. (I know, Ren’s not Rock, but multi-genre.)
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