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Dreamers never die
In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new documentary about Ronnie James Dio out. Truly yours ventured to movie theater this past weekend (for the first time in umpteen years), and here are some of my thoughts.
It is fairly well put together. David “Rock” Feinstein, Roger Glover, Glenn Hughes, Wendy Dio, Lita Ford, Rob Halford, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, Vinny Appice, Sebastian Bach, and many others were interviewed for the film. I guess expecting an appearance from His Blackness was too much to ask, and absence of Vivian Campbell who even after all these years is not on speaking terms with Wendy Dio was rather conspicuous. Many an anecdote was shared, a lot of previously unseen footage was shown, and even more of the previously seen, but long forgotten. The film goes into great detail of Ronnie’s early years, but is also quite skimpy on his career between early 1990s and the Heaven & Hell reunion. And from our point of view that includes the glaring omission of his participation in the 1999 Concerto celebrations at the Royal Albert Hall and subsequent tour with Purple.
Verdict: not sure i can recommend going to a theater, but if you have a chance to catch it on a streaming service, do so without hesitation. And if you do end up in a theater, stay put until after the credits finish rolling and bonus outtakes start — they are hilarious.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
RIP, RJD…I’ve heard bits & pieces of his stuff through his many varied & colorful career, & he certainly delivered the goods in the front-man dept. He certainly was not shy, or lacking confidence, & yet seemed appreciative & respectful to his audience. He also wrote quite imaginative lyrics too.
I’m not a massive fan, so I doubt I’ll go to a cinema to view the film, but who knows, maybe once uploaded onto You-Tube, I’ll find some time to watch it & learn something. I certainly appreciate his input with Rainbow’s first 3 x albums.
Peace !
October 3rd, 2022 at 23:03What was wrong with playing a bit of trumpet now and then? I could have very well imagined Ronnie in a Blood, Sweat & Tears type band where he could have sung and added little stabs of trumpet solos.
He became incredibly set in his ways, anything that didn’t go with that lame dragons & dungeons thing was discarded and erased from history.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIrht1KL5SE
October 4th, 2022 at 19:33Nothing wrong with a few brass instruments here & there. John ‘the Ox’ Entwistle played the French Horn & before that as a youngster had learned trumpet also apparently. Cheers.
October 4th, 2022 at 20:32I saw the documentary in the theater. I thought it was great, but of course, I’m a fan of Dio and all of the bands he was in. I was curious to see how the Rainbow era was portrayed and if there was going to be negative comments or stories, but happily everything was positive and complementary. I left the theater glad I made the effort to go, and I definitely learned some things of Dio’s history that I didn’t know.
October 4th, 2022 at 21:11@4 Cool ! Thanks for the heads-up, I’ll keep my eyes open. In a career like RJD’s that at times bounced-around with the “big” players, there’s be lot’s of ups & downs to reveal, & often filmmakers may have a film edited that’s unbalanced so-to-speak, so I’m happy to know that what’s delivered is a good thing.
There’s no doubt he left us too soon, & from a Rainbow perspective, many of us will have the “Munich 1977” DVD, & it’s a great show, & testament to his skills as a front-man & singing.
Peace !
October 5th, 2022 at 10:25Keen to see this ASAP, understand Ronnie didn’t receive royalties from his rainbow days until after his death. Hard to fathom….
October 9th, 2022 at 09:53Related: Holy Diver is now out in a new remix (not just a remaster) and it’s much more wham-bam in your face than the original mix (which was already pretty direct in comparison to either his work with Rainbow or Black Sabbath). The sound now is like you are watching and listening to the band recording from the mixing booth in the studio. That does bring some excitement and intensity to the proceedings.
It will be interesting to see if The Last In Line which I thought was the superior album to the debut will eventually get the same treatment.
October 17th, 2022 at 08:34@ 7
Ow dear, will I again pull out money for this……
October 19th, 2022 at 22:07