Ronnie James Dio thanks fans for Get Well messages via Blabbernouth.net

As you may know legendary rock singer Ronnie James Dio was recently diagnosed with the early stages of stomach cancer. Our very best wishes and hope of a speedy recovery go to Ronnie.

He recently released the following statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET:

"I'd like to take the time to thank everyone for the most wonderful gift I have ever received — your good wishes, your prayers, your support, your tears and laughter, your anger, your rejoicing, and most of all the unwavering love you have bestowed upon me. I guess I've always felt that we were one person and that you've allowed me to be our spokesman, but until this time of my greatest peril, the truth was perhaps slightly hidden. It is hidden no more. Together we shall face the foe and live on to climb higher mountains and explore greater magic. Together we cannot fail.

"Please accept my never-ending love and dedication to you all.

"So it is written, and so it shall be.

"Magic, from Ronnie James Dio."

According to a posting on the BLACK SABBATH fan site Black-Sabbath.com, fans can send get-well cards to Ronnie James Dio through the official fan club address:

Dio Fan Club
12400 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 624
Studio City, CA
91604

Additionally, if you'd like to send an email to Ronnie, you can do so via getwellronnie@black-sabbath.com. After a short time, Black-Sabbath.com webmaster Joe Siegler will print them out and pass them over to Ronnie and his wife/manager Wendy Dio.

Free Joe Bonamassa Download to all our readers

Those splendid people at www.joebonamassa.com are giving you all a Christmas present.

Simply click on the link below to get Joe's superb version of "Merry Christmas Baby" completely free. Just enter the promo code of #1FAN at the checkout.   Happy Christmas !

The Answer O2 Academy Oxford 5th December 2009

On to our last gig of 2009,  great to meet up with Rockgig's Editor in Chief NR and due to a late Christmas booking our oldest son came to his second gig as a  late substitute.

First up to a pretty sparse crowd was The Black Spiders. Playing a brand of Sabbath influenced stoner blues rock this 5 piece(3 geetar) more than warmed up the few bothered enough to get there early. Very entertaining in fact the drummer was a show on his own.

A late substitute on the tour was General Fiasco. A very young 3 piece from Ireland who played an Ash type rock .They went down well but I have to say the jangly geetar line played on each song did get on my wick after a while. Some different tones would be great.

 

Now onto The Answer. In their short career they seem to have done it all. We have seen them 6 times supporting Whitesnake, Aerosmith at Hyde Park and this year at Wembley with AC/DC. After 14 months on the road with AC/DC playing only enormodomes how would they react to seeing the audience again?

Fantastically I have to say. With a set culled mainly from 2nd cd "Everyday Demons" with a few "Rise" favourites thrown in for good measure. They hit the ground running .The crowd had swelled to near capacity and from the word go you can see the confidence gained from all the road miles they have done.

Setlist

Tonight

Demons Eyes

Come Follow Me

Walkin Mat

Cry Out

Never Too Late

Too Far Gone

Why'd You Change Your Mind

On And On

Evil Man

Comfort Zone

Dead Of The Night

Under The Sky

Encores of Highwater Or Hell

Preachin'

 

Everything was played at full throttle with the band showing off their chops at such a young age .Paul Mahon on geetar is so accomplished and can rip out riffs and solos so easily. It is great to someone so young being able to play slide geetar too. It appears James Heatleys' hand problems have been sorted out due to the power he showed and his rhythm team with Michael Waters on bass was superb.

 

Lastly onto Cormac Neeson on vox .He has his own style and totally loses himself in the music. He is a very engaging frontman enjoying between song banter with the crowd. His vocals continue to grow. Leaving the stage after a quite brilliant Preachin' (in which Neeson spent a fair bit in the crowd) they were gone. A fantastic 90 mins spent with surely the best young band in the UK .I look forward to seeing them grow and it will be interesting where they go from here .You can't tour with AC/DC everytime can you?

 

Dan loved them too !

 

(all photographs copyright Daniel Evans)

ME 10/10

Joe Bonamassa Southampton Guildhall - 1st December 2009

So after a day of Christmas shopping we get to the Guildhall 10 mins before doors open expecting a long queue (as the show is sold out) to end up only 20 yards to the door. We are used to metal crowds who turn up days before!!
Got a great spot only 3 people from the front and dead centre. First up was Sandi Thom. Played for 30 mins a combination of pop/blues and folk rock and with her 5 piece band went down very well .Great voice and a good warm up.

Now this was our first time seeing Joe Bonamassa. With thanks to our regular contributor NH who turned us on to the man's talents. To a sold out 1800 crowd the man and his 3 band mates wowed us for about 2 hours.
Setlist was
Ballad Of John Henry
Last Kiss
So Many Roads
So It's Like That
If Heartaches Were Nickels
Further On Up The Road
Sloe Gin
Lonesome Road Blues
Happier Times
Bridge To Better Days
Had To Cry Today
The Great Flood
Woke Up Dreaming
India
Mountain Time
Encores of Ball Peen Hammer
Medley of Just Got Paid/Stratus/Dazed And Confused.

Words don't describe the talents of the man. To see him at such close quarters was stunning. Too many highlights to mention although Sloe Gin was just jawdropping and the start of Mountain Time. I have never seen an acoustic geetar played so fast.

Surely the greatest new geetarist of the decade and now moving into arenas his star will continue to rise.
ME 10/10.

First Ever Live Creed DVD - Out Now!!

CREED BRINGS REUNION TOUR ‘FULL CIRCLE’
WITH THEIR FIRST-EVER LIVE CONCERT DVD ‘CREED LIVE’
Bonus features includes Backstage Documentary
UK Release: Monday 7th December

Fans of multi-platinum power rockers CREED are in for a special treat as CREED LIVE, the first-ever live DVD from one of the most successful bands of the past decade, hits stores and all major online retailers in the UK on Monday December 7th (US release date is Tuesday December 8th).

CREED LIVE, captured during the band’s long-awaited “Full Circle” reunion tour, includes the Creed favorites -   “Higher,” “My Sacrifice,” “With Arms Wide Open” and “Bullets”, plus new songs such as “Overcome” and “A Thousand Faces” from Full Circle, the band’s first studio effort in seven years.

Full Circle recently debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top 200 Charts second only to Michael Jackson’s This Is It. The DVD includes a revealing documentary that follows Creed throughout “Full Circle” tour with exclusive band interviews and behind-the-scenes, and a photo gallery with over 100 photos from the 2009 Summer tour.

Directed by Daniel E. Catullo III (Rush, Nickelback, Alter Bridge, Smashing Pumpkins, Godsmack) and produced by Catullo, Lionel Pasamonte, and Peter Bowers, the 239-camera, state-of-the-art high definition shoot was filmed in front of 18,000 screaming fans in Houston at The Woodlands - Cynthia Woods Pavillion” on September 25, 2009.

Creed gave the performance of a lifetime, setting four World Records – including most cameras utilized in a live concert recording - and using first-time technology in a live concert environment, highlighted by the “Big Freeze” effect immortalized in the hit film “The Matrix.”  The concert audio was mixed by Andy Johns (The Rolling Stones, Chickenfoot, Led Zeppelin) in 5.1 Surround Sound and also features Standard 5.1, Stereo and DTS audio streams.

“Making this DVD was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for us,” says CREED lead singer Scott Stapp. “Daniel Catullo and his staff not only set a world record filming this, but set a whole new benchmark for filming the live show with unprecedented vision and creativity. I have never seen anything like this, nor have our fans. I am so excited to finally give CREED fans something they will never forget. I know this is something that will keep us connected at all times through the live experience. Honestly, I am blown away!”

In addition to an arsenal of High Definition TV Cameras, jibs, cranes, etc, the “Big Freeze” technology required over 200 Nikon still cameras to create and entirely new concert viewing experience in scenes which will be made available in the “Deluxe Edition” of “Creed Live” coming out in early 2010. The “Deluxe Edition” promises to be a true collector’s piece. The limited edition set will include a full feature-length film about the history of Creed, a live audio CD and special collectors’ items such as a T-shirt, poster and a backstage pass from the “Full Circle” tour”.

“Being able to have access to so many different forms of technology and equipment for this shoot not only allowed me to capture Creed in a way never done before, it gives the viewers angles they would never otherwise be able to  see,” says Director/Producer Catullo. “This project was definitely a highlight of my career and I am sure that Creed fans will appreciate every bit of hard work and energy we put into this.”

 TRACK LISTING :

• Bullets
• Overcome
• My Own Prison
• Say I
• Never Die
• Torn
• A Thousand Faces
• What If
• Unforgiven
• Are You Ready
• What’s This Life For
• Faceless Man
• With Arms Wide Open
• My Sacrifice
• One
• One Last Breath
• Higher

BONUS FEATURES:

• Behind the Scenes Documentary of the Full Circle Tour
• Photo Gallery
• Trailer for the Upcoming “Deluxe Box Set”

CREED LINE-UP:

• Scott Stapp- Lead Vocals
• Mark Tremonti - Lead Guitar/ Backing Vocals
• Brian Marshall - Bass
• Scott Phillips - Drums
• With Eric Friedman- Guitars (Touring Musician Only)

Dogs D’amour - The Crown Faringdon – 28th November 2009

For those of you not in the know, The Crown is an old coaching inn in the market square of Faringdon, so a bit surreal to say the least for a rock gig, or as one of the Dogs D’amour said “it’s the first time I’ve played a gig in the 18th Century.”

Support was by the excellent Tommy Hale who was backed by members of The Snakes. This was a semi acoustic set and the percussion was provided by Dan Tilbery who got the most amazing sounds out of a wooden box he was sat on. For me this was worth the fiver admission on its own.
The Dog’s D’amour provided an excellent set of songs, both new and old, which a had the crowd moving around from the start. The second part of the set was made up mainly by an acoustic session from Tyler; It was good to hear a number of the songs played in this format. After this we were back to the full electric set to take us through to the end of the entertainment.
A really good night out, if the Dogs or Tommy Hale play near you make sure you check them out.
NH