In this episode, we have one of the greatest heavy metal vocalists of all time, Ronnie James Dio. At the time of the interview in 1985, Dio was 43 years old and was promoting his Sacred Heart album and tour.
In the interview, Dio talks about filling Ozzy Osbourne’s shoes in Black Sabbath, a mystical experience that almost killed his wife, his thoughts on Ritchie Blackmore’s playing, and his metal all-star project Hear ‘n Aid.
The interview is conducted by a new Tapes Archive contributor, Canadian music journalist and author Steve Newton. During his four decades as a freelance music writer, he has interviewed everyone from AC/DC to ZZTop. We highly recommend that you head over to his Patreon page patreon.com/earofnewt and check out over 340 of his exclusive interviews. For only $5, you get full access. We are not paid for this endorsement; we truly feel it’s money well spent.
Link to Newton's Patreon page: https://bit.ly/3WQBr9S
For zero money, you can head over to Newton’s website, earofnewt.com, where he has posted more than 3,000 of his interviews, album reviews, concert reviews, and horror movie reviews.
Link to Newton's website: https://bit.ly/3ij9GIa
00:00 - Intro
01:41 - Start of the Ronnie James Dio interview
01:53 - The Sacred Heart tour
02:42 - His project Hear ’n Aid and whose playing on it
04:05 - How he writes music while watching sports
04:33 - What his first instrument was and if he liked it
05:10 - His love for classical music and how it relates to guitar players
06:21 - Why anyone can like classical music
07:15 - What other singers he admires
08:12 - How well Sacred Heart is doing sales wise
08:58 - If the PMRC has affected him
09:24 - If he’s interested in the occult
09:53 - His strange mystical experience while recording Rainbow’s “Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll”
10:15 - An evil spirit who tried to kill his wife, Wendy Dio
10:55 - Filling Ozzy Osbourne’s shoes in his former band Black Sabbath
12:50 - What he thinks of Ozzy’s solo music
13:37 - If he thinks Heaven and Hell paved the way for a resurgence of heavy metal
13:49 - His favorite tunes he did with Black Sabbath
14:19 - If he wants to produce other bands
14:55 - If it’s true he has a degree in Pharmacy
15:05 - If he’s still friends with Ritchie Blackmore and what he thinks of his guitar playing
15:41 - His thoughts on Yngwie Malmsteen
16:05 - His kindness to Steve Newton
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