Dio Biography
Ronald Padavona, 10 July 1940, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, USA. Dio was raised in New York, USA, and served his musical apprenticeship in the late 50s with school-based bands such as the Vegas Kings, Ronnie And The Rumblers and Ronnie And the Redcaps (one single, "Lover'/'Conquest", in 1958). From 1961-67 he led Ronnie Dio And the Prophets, not solely as a vocalist, but also playing the piano, bass guitar, and even trumpet. A multi-talented musician, he also acted as a record producer. During that time, the Prophets released at least seven singles, including a gimmick version of "Love Potion No. 9" that featured the same song on both sides, plus an album. In 1967, with his cousin, David Feinstein, he formed the Electric Elves, who, in 1970, changed their name to Elf. The same year, the entire band was involved in a car crash, in which guitarist Nick Pantas died. Dio took over lead vocals in Elf and played the bass. Elf were discovered by Roger Glover and Ian Paice of Deep Purple in 1972, and they went on to support Deep Purple on two American tours as well as signing to their Purple label in the UK.
In 1975, Glover gave Dio the opportunity to appear on his The Butterfly Ball, and the widespread recognition that ensued helped to persuade Ritchie Blackmore, who had already recorded one track, "Black Sheep Of The Family", with Elf, and recently left Deep Purple himself, to link up with Dio. The remnants of Elf, with the exception of the ousted Steve Edwards, became Rainbow. This saw Dio develop from the honky-tonk influence of his former band to the harder rock of Blackmore and Rainbow. Dio's penchant for writing about supernatural events, thoughts and fantasies also began to emerge at this stage, combining with the succession of often excellent musicians in Rainbow (the former members of Elf had been rapidly discarded) to produce four albums of high quality and enduring appeal. In 1978, Dio left Rainbow, taking his gift for singing and songwriting to Black Sabbath, where he built on the previously phenomenal, but now waning, success of the band, doing much to rejuvenate the flagging supergroup. Heaven And Hell arrived alongside the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, outclassing most of its rivals with its tight, solid, bass-dominated sound and science fiction-themed lyrics. After an acrimonious disagreement over the mixing of Live Evil, Dio left in November 1982 to form his own band, Dio, which comprised Vinnie Appice (drums), Jimmy Bain, former bass player with Rainbow and Wild Horses, Vivian Campbell (b. 25 August 1962, Belfast, Northern Ireland; guitar) and Claude Schnell (keyboards). Together, they recorded four albums, with Dio taking on all the lyrics and songwriting himself, allowing his creative muse a completely free rein. While the subject matter remained other worlds, times and beings, the style ranged from anthemic to epic. A lack of direction led to stagnation, and by 1987, when Craig Goldie replaced Campbell, the band was failing. In 1991, Dio renewed his acquaintance with Black Sabbath, joining them for a UK tour and recording Dehumanizer with them the following year. However, November saw Judas Priest's Rob Halford stand in for Dio when he refused to appear with the band in California after hearing of Ozzy Osbourne's intention to re-form the original Sabbath line-up as part of his solo farewell tour. Dio, whom some commentators had described as "the Cliff Richard of heavy metal", simply returned to the studio with yet another incarnation of his eponymous band. He has continued to release further albums and tour extensively.
Source: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music by Colin Larkin. Licensed from Muze.
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