Wayback Machine Article on the Dio Years

[Zzzptm]

While looking up stuff about Heaven and Hell, I found this link:

https://web.archive.org/web/20090124161532/http://images.radcity.net/6340/2165303.pdf

Interesting read about the Dio years, including a bit on how Bill Ward left the band:

"I'm off then, Ron."
"That's nice Bill, where are you going?"
"No, I'm off mate. I'm at the airport now."

While I don't see myself ever leaving a job that way, when I look at the tour schedule - on the road every day for a year, go everywhere and see nowhere - that could make me bug out and burn a bridge to make sure I don't go back. Bill was also dealing with alcoholism and the loss of his mother, so his head was not in a good space at all.

[Charger]

Yeah I remember the story going something like that. Not sure he would have called Ronnie mate though...as far as can remember Bill didn't really think too highly of Ronnie...

[Zzzptm]

Hmm... I'd read that they got along well personally, but Ward didn't like the musical direction they'd taken with Dio.

I also read about how Born Again came to be: it was intended to be a supergroup album, not a Black Sabbath one. Then Don Arden told them all it was going to be a Black Sabbath album, deal with it. If Tony Iommi had stopped using the Black Sabbath name after Ozzy left, then we'd have instead a "Heaven and Hell" band and a bunch of Iommi solo/group projects instead of all that material being under the name "Black Sabbath".

That then begs the question about what would have been different in choice of music/lyrics for those non-Sabbath efforts. There would always be a fan expectation to play Paranoid and Iron Man with Iommi on stage, but guys like Gillan could toss in material from DP and personal projects if it's not a Black Sabbath concert, but a Tony Iommi Band concert or something like that.

[Charger]

I know Ronnie never had anything against Bill but Bill hasn't really spoken very highly of Ronnie's stint in Sabbath...Bill and Ozzy were pretty tight back then I think so that probably had something to do with that.

[Zzzptm]

One thing for sure is that there was too much alcohol in the mix, and that affected everyone badly.