DIO: 'I Know I Can Sing And Write Well, But I Don't Think I'm Better Than Anybody Else'

May 15, 2007

Jed Gottlieb of BostonHerald.com recenty conducted a short interview with legendary heavy metal vocalist Ronnie James Dio (BLACK SABBATH, DIO, RAINBOW, HEAVEN AND HELL).

BostonHerald.com: When you joined SABBATH did you do anything to foster a devilish reputation like sleep in a coffin or drink blood?

Dio: I've always tried to be a private person. My personal life and my family's life was nobody's concern but my own. I didn't think that my family should ever have been drawn into a controversial situation where they think they are either married to or a child of the devil. I always felt the less people knew about you the more legends they would create about you. I'm sure half of the people who care about me think I am the devil. The other half think I'm some kind of angel.

BostonHerald.com: It seems like you have a pretty good sense of humor about your career judging from the TENACIOUS D song about you and your appearance in their movie.

Dio: I know I can sing and write well, but I don't think I'm better than anybody else. That's always helped me not be so serious. Therefore, it's OK to take the mickey out of myself by doing the TENACIOUS D picture. I did that because Jack (Black) is a friend and I love his sense of humor. If you want to be an American icon you need to be part of a "Spinal Tap" moment.

BostonHerald.com: Did you really popularize the heavy metal devil horns?

Dio: That's what they tell me. I didn't invent it; it was probably a signal given by some guy named Og a hundred thousand years ago in a cave. I got it from my grandma who came from Italy and would flash that sign at people she thought were giving me the evil eye.

BostonHerald.com: Did popularizing devil horns give you a free pass into the Heavy Metal Hall of Fame?

Dio: It does give me a free pass. The only problem with it is that you see it everywhere now. You go to a BRITNEY SPEARS concert and they're chucking the thing up in the air. I've done a couple things in my life that were sensible. One was accepting the role of being the person noted for the devil horns. Two would be doing the TENACIOUS D movie. The third one was doing "South Park". If you want to be an American icon you have to have a "South Park" done on you. ... Those are the three things that go on my tombstone.

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