On This Day, 2010: Ronnie James Dio dies of stomach cancer

On March 16, 2010, one of heavy metal's preeminent voices, Ronnie James Dio die from stomach cancer.

Sunday, March 16, marks 11 years since Ronnie James Dio died of stomach cancer at the age of 67.

Before his death, Dio had reunited a final time with his former Black Sabbath bandmates under the name Heaven and Hell. The initial version of Dio-era Sabbath yielded perhaps the best two albums any incarnation of that band did (Heaven and Hell, Mob Rules), before an ill-advised reunion in 1992 for an album called Dehumanizer. That latter album yielded a song featured on the Wayne’s World movie soundtrack though, “Time Machine.”

Inspired by his death at the time, here’s a poem I wrote about Dio.

"Dio"

We thought you'd live forever
But legends never truly die
The place you are is better
In our hearts you'll always lie

You chose to be a dreamer
And always make your mark
A light in the darkness
A rainbow in the dark

You were always a mystery
Who made us stand up and shout
You are the king of rock and roll
Of that there is no doubt

Dio still stands as one of the preeminent voices of hard rock and heavy metal. What is your favorite Dio song? Drop it to me in the comments. I’ll drop a video for a song that’s tickling my fancy today.