In an interview with "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" on the red carpet of last night's (Thursday, November 7) "Bowl For Ronnie" event at PINZ Bowling Center in Studio City, California, FOO FIGHTERS frontman Dave Grohl was asked how Ronnie James Dio's music affected his songwriting. Dave responded (see video below): "Well, 'Holy Diver' is one of the best fucking albums of all time. When I listen to records, I don't just listen to the vocals; I don't just listen to the drums — I listen to it as a whole. But an album like that, that's kind of the perfect record. Vinny Appice's playing on that fucking album is insane. As a drummer, I listen to that record and it's, like, I don't know if it's composition or if that shit was just coming off the top of his head, but as a drummer, that album is incredibly inspiring and influential. The simplicity of something like that. That's one of the things I've always loved about Dio's music — it's not overly complicated or orchestrated; it's a sum of a few very simple parts, and it's powerful. And I fucking grew up with that shit. I remember being 13 or 14 years old and seeing 'Stand Up And Shout' live on 'Don Kirshner's Rock Concert' on Friday night. And it makes you want to become a musician. You see something like that and it's so moving and inspiring that you're, like, 'Oh my God! That's what I wanna do for the rest of my life.' It did that to me." Best known for his work with BLACK SABBATH, RAINBOW and DIO, Ronnie James Dio passed away of stomach cancer on May 16, 2010 at the age of 67. A few months after his death, MTV Books announced plans to release his memoir, which at the time was going to be called "Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography Of Ronnie James Dio". Ronnie's widow and longtime manager Wendy is currently working with legendary rock journalist Mick Wall on the long-awaited autobiography of the heavy metal master, which was three-quarters written before the singer's death. Dio was renowned throughout the world as one of the greatest and most influential vocalists in heavy metal history. The singer, who was recording and touring with BLACK SABBATH offshoot HEAVEN & HELL prior to his illness, was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late 2009. He underwent chemotherapy and made what is now his final public appearance in April 2010 at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards in Los Angeles. Earlier this year, Wendy told The Metal Voice that work had already started on a documentary that will cover Dio's career from his early days with ELF to his final project, HEAVEN & HELL. She went on to say that she is hoping that the documentary will receive a theatrical release before being made available on various streaming platforms.
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