This Is Your Life Pays Tribute To The Late Singer With Covers
Of
His Greatest Songs From Rainbow, Black
Sabbath, And Dio
Features Newly Recorded Tracks From Anthrax,
Halestorm, Rob Halford, Metallica, Motörhead, Scorpions, Corey Taylor, And
Tenacious D, Among Others
To Benefit The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and
Shout Cancer Fund
Available On April 1 From Rhino
Ronnie James Dio is
one of the most beloved figures in rock history. His gifts, both as a singer
and songwriter, are instantly recognizable, whether he was with Rainbow, Black
Sabbath, Heaven & Hell, or leading Dio. Sadly, Dio lost his battle with
stomach cancer in 2010 but his towering voice and legacy live on.
To celebrate one of
rock’s most powerful voices, an all-star group of his friends and fans recorded
13 of their favourite tracks for a tribute album, titled This Is Your Life,
that will raise funds for the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer
Fund (diocancerfund.org).
Produced by his longtime manager and wife Wendy Dio, the album includes
contributions by such metal heavyweights as Metallica, Motörhead, Scorpions,
Anthrax, Corey Taylor, and Rob Halford, as well as appearances by many of the
musicians who performed with Dio over the years.
This Is Your Life will be released by Rhino on April 1
in CD and digital formats.
Although the songs
featured on the album touch on the different eras of Dio’s career, several
spotlight his time with Rainbow, including Metallica’s epic, nine-minute
“Ronnie Rising Medley” which combines the Rainbow songs “A Light In The Black,”
“Tarot Woman,” “Stargazer,” and “Kill The King.” Scorpions add a scorching take
on “Temple Of The King” while Motörhead is joined by Biff from Saxon on
“Starstruck.” Rob Halford teams up with frequent Dio collaborators Vinny
Appice, Doug Aldrich, Jeff Pilson, and Scott Warren for “The Man On The Silver
Mountain.” The final line-up of Dio’s solo band – Simon Wright, Craig Goldy,
Rudy Sarzo and Scott Warren – are joined by Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Black
Sabbath) for “Catch The Rainbow,” a track from Rainbow’s 1975 debut.
Anthrax and
Adrenaline Mob honor Dio’s memorable stint with Black Sabbath with their takes
on “Neon Knights” and “The Mob Rules” respectively, as does a group, led by Oni
Logan on vocals along with Jimmy Bain, Rowan Robertson, and Brian Tichy, which
performs “I” from Dehumanizer.
This Is Your Life
also includes songs from
Dio’s back-to-back platinum albums Holy Diver (1983) and The Last In
Line (1984), with Doro’s take on “Egypt (The Chains Are On)”, Halestorm
tackling “Straight Through The Heart,” Corey Taylor (Stone Sour, Slipknot) and
Satchel (Steel Panther) covering the classic “Rainbow In The Dark” and
Tenacious D (Jack Black and Kyle Glass) putting their signature spin on “The
Last In Line.” Killswitch Engage’s cover of “Holy Diver,” a hit in its own
right when released in 2006, is also included here.
Fittingly, Ronnie
James Dio provides the finale (and the album’s title) with his moving
performance of “This
Is Your Life.” Originally released on Angry Machines (1996), the song’slyrics explore
mortality and are backed by a stark and beautiful arrangement that features Dio accompanied only by
his longtime keyboardist Scott Warren on piano. The song serves asa poignant reminder
that we will never hear a voice like Dio’s again.
The Ronnie James Dio
Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund, co-founded by Wendy Dio, is a non-profit
501(c)(3) charitable fund dedicated to supporting cancer-prevention research,
raising awareness and educating the public about the vital importance of early
detection and prevention when dealing with this deadly disease.
RONNIE JAMES DIO:
THIS IS YOUR LIFE
Track Listing
1.
“Neon Knights” – Anthrax*
2. “The
Last In Line” – Tenacious D*
3. “The
Mob Rules” – Adrenaline Mob
4.
“Rainbow In The Dark” – Corey Taylor, Roy Mayorga, Satchel, Christian Martucci,
Jason Christopher*
5.
“Straight Through The Heart” – Halestorm*
6.
“Starstruck” – Motörhead with Biff of Saxon*
7.
“Temple Of The King” – Scorpions*
8.
“Egypt (The Chains Are On)” – Doro
9.
“Holy Diver” – Killswitch Engage
10.
“Catch the Rainbow” – Glenn Hughes, Simon Wright, Craig Goldy, Rudy
Sarzo, Scott Warren*
11. “I”
– Jimmy Bain, Oni Logan, Rowan Robertson, Brian Tichy*
12.
“Man On The Silver Mountain” – Rob Halford, Vinny Appice,
Doug Aldrich, Jeff Pilson, Scott Warren*
13.
“Ronnie Rising Medley (featuring "A Light in the Black",
"Tarot Woman", "Stargazer", "Kill the King")”–
Metallica*
14. “This Is
Your Life” – Dio
* Previously
unreleased
About The Ronnie
James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund
The Ronnie James Dio
Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund is a privately funded 501(c)(3) charity
organization which has already raised more than $600,000 in its short history. Monies raised to date have been committed to the cancer research work of
the T. J. Martell Foundation for Cancer, AIDS and Leukemia Research and the
gastric cancer research unit of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston,
where Ronnie was treated for gastric cancer during the last six months of his
life.
Source : Cosa Nostra PR
