His stage name was inspired either by that influential grandmother, who thought he had a gift from God - Dio in Italian - or else by notorious Fifties Mafioso Johnny Dio, depending on the story. Death has nothing on him.ĭio was born Ronald James Padavona in New Hampshire, USA, in 1942. It’s engraved onto ornamental urns at each end of his marble tomb. It’s just a symbol but it had magical incantations and attitudes to it.” The gesture is now integral to heavy rock, and indeed to the late, great Ronnie James Dio.
It’s to ward off the Evil Eye or to give the Evil Eye, depending on which way you do it. It’s an Italian thing I got from my grandmother called the malocchio. He explained: “It’s not the devil’s sign like we’re here with the devil. While never claiming to have created the sign - “that’s like saying I invented the wheel” - he did admit to popularizing it. a raised hand with only the index and little finger extended.
Dio was indeed one of the great dark overlords of heavy metal, with album sales topping 47 million, but his greatest legacy may not be something that’s audible at all.įor Dio is rightly credited with bringing into popular use the metal gesture, the Sign of the Horns, i.e.
It’s no surprise that he grew up listening to another marvellously over-the-top musical form, opera and that he was a fan of the great tenor Mario Lanza, with whom he shared an American-Italian background. He dominated every stage he chose to stalk, and he drew admiration and deep respect from fans and fellow musicians alike. His platinum-selling fantasy-themed band followed his impressive stints as the leather larynx for mighty trailblazers Rainbow and Black Sabbath - almost impossible acts to follow, but Dio pulled it off with charismatic gusto. Ronnie James Dio (1942-2010) was possessed by one of the most powerful and expressive voices in rock. Dio the band was the personality of Dio the man writ large. Dio was one of the great heavy metal acts of all time, renowned for amazing explosive live shows when the cranked-to-eleven amplification supercharged events as much as the pyrotechnics.
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