dio on the warren issue

[sully]

from blabbermouth.net:

RONNIE JAMES DIO Explains Why WARREN DEMARTINI Wasn't Right For His Band - Oct. 7, 2003

DIO mastermind Ronnie James Dio recently spoke to ElectricBasement.com about the group's numerous changes in the guitarist department since the release of their last album, "Killing The Dragon". While the CD featured Doug Aldrich (now in WHITESNAKE), an announcement was made earlier this year that ex-RATT axeman Warren DeMartini would be touring with the band during the summer. However, before Warren even got a chance to set foot on stage with the band, he was replaced by former DIO guitarist Craig Goldy.

"Well, we had already committed to the [IRON] MAIDEN tour and for the festivals," Dio explained. "Having committed to something, I'm never one to say, 'Oh we just won't do it.' Well we thought we had a few months to put this together and play some of these songs we haven't played before and I was thinking, 'I hope we get the right player.' The hardest part is working with a guitar player who hasn't played the songs before, while we've been playing some of them for 25 years now. That becomes difficult. We like to rehearse, but we don't like to nitpick and teach somebody every little nuance of the song, and that's really what happened with Warren. Warren came in and he had to learn all these things. He was just the wrong player for the band. He doesn't work in the same way that we do. None of us felt that he was giving to what these songs are all about. Certainly not from a solo perspective. He didn't really have a handle on what was going on. That's not to take away anything from his talent. In a different band, his talent will shine, in this band, it will not.

"It made life very difficult for us. We tried to deal with it for three weeks actually. It just didn't work and none of us were very happy about what was going on. I couldn't speak for how Warren felt about it, but it wasn't down to him, it was down to us. We're the ones who created these things and we are the ones who had to carry on. Luckily for us, Craig had his things sorted out and it made life much easier for us. We sorry for Warren that it didn't work out, but we are very happy to have Craig back with us.

"Once you're so comfortable with the people in a band, you can take those other chances [when performing live], and that's really what happened. With Warren, I think we always kind of would've been on the razor's edge thinking, 'Well, is this working?' 'I don't like what's being done.' This way it's just so easy. You can let your guard down. You just go out and play and do some things we've never done before." Read the rest of the interview here .

sully

[zeegler]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Well, not to take anything away from Warren, but I was at the show in Toronto, and Goldy was spectacular!!!

[Tekky]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Honestly the response from Dio was more or less saying what we all were thinking...

Too bad Vivian is busy with Def Leppard... THAT, I'd kill to see...

[lerxstcat]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Sounds like Warren just didn't do his homework. You don't try to learn the songs at rehearsal, you should already have your parts down and be finetuning at rehearsal. He probably thought he could fake it, and Ronnie Dio doesn't play that game.

Vivian? He's been in Def Leppard for over 10 years and still doesn't play Clark's parts right. I wonder if he can still play his Dio stuff, or if Ronnie will let him within 100 feet of him.

[JACKSONFREAK]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Vivian doesn't play Steve's parts right because he's not Steve he's vivian and wants that seperation. He plays the parts so you can tell what they are but puts his own flavor to it.
I'm sure Phil,Joe, and everybody else invloved with Def Lepard are happy with Vivians input and structuring of the Steve Clark parts or they would've booted him by now and found a Steve Clark clone.
Gil

[Tekky]

Re: dio on the warren issue

What happened between RJD and Viv?? I never got the story...

[Rhoadsfan67]

Re: dio on the warren issue

From what I have read, RJD and Viv split on some pretty bad terms, and I doubt that they could ever work together unless they can somehow reconcile their differences. It came down to a money issue - Viv supposedly wanted more and more money, to the point that he wanted as much as, or more than, the boss (RJD). As well, RJD said that while he was pumping most of his money into the bands' stage set and production, Viv didn't want to contribute in that sense, thus creating a rift that was never able to be bridged after that.

It's really sad, because Viv was DEFINITELY the heart and soul of DIO's music. No one since him has been able to write and capture that wicked feel he displayed on albums like Holy Diver, Last in Line and Sacred Heart - however, Goldy's parts seemed adequate on Dream Evil and some of Magica. Aldrich was great on Killing the Dragon, but somehow still fell a little short of Viv's stuff in the atmosphere category. Rowan Robertson's stuff was waaay too bluesy for DIO's material in my opinion. Not that there's anything wrong with bluesy stuff - it just sounds out of place with the rest of DIO's (the solo artists) stuff.

[thenine]

Re: dio on the warren issue

some of Magica? I really like Magica. Its not a complete shredfest, but I think Goldy's parts (and tone) are excellent on that album.

9

[Tekky]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Originally posted by Brian:
Rowan Robertson's stuff was waaay too bluesy for DIO's material in my opinion. Not that there's anything wrong with bluesy stuff - it just sounds out of place with the rest of DIO's (the solo artists) stuff.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Are you saying that the blues and dragons and magic don't mix? [img]graemlins/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[charvelguy]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Some guys are big on the freedom of "artistic expression" Meaning..avoiding doing the style of another note for note because it isn't them, and it isn't them to force themselves to do so because they've made themselves a name in being who they are in their own format. It's to limiting. I can understand that attitude to a degree.. but say if you were for example to change the main solo riff in a classic like "reelin in the years".. yeah, it's gonna get some "what the??" reactions.

Sounds like Warren should have approached the gig with more of a sideman mentality. It's a job.
You learn your stuff note for note with the nuances observed to represent the song with it's original intrgrity.
Given Dio's place in the industry, that should have been discrened between Dio and Warren out in advance.
Then once you've established yourself capable of presenting that..you can let yourself go live and stretch out upon the original interpetation when given the nod.

I passed on gigs where the "you might as well have a sampler in my spot" mentality has prevailed. It sounds like RJD is flexible live, you just have to prove to him you can do the original stuff as it was recorded and sold first then yeah...sell yourself as you want to within descretion.

[ October 09, 2003, 10:55 AM: Message edited by: charvelguy ]

[ChickenScratch]

Re: dio on the warren issue

I'm gonna say it man, "I want Doug back!" I've seen Dio many times in my 22 years and seeing him with Craig on the tour with Iron Maiden was such a let down. He didnt have the nuance or the touch Doug had, not to mention Doug is the king of tone.

Instead of going back to Craig he should have found an unknown guy with the chops.

Ok, that's just jealousy talking, I wanted the Dio gig.

[ChickenScratch]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Originally posted by Brian:
Chickenscratch: I wanted that gig, too!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Dude, it would have been so cool to see a JCFer getting the gig. I don't care who as long as they represent hardcore.

[Tekky]

Re: dio on the warren issue

I wanted the Lizzy Borden gig when it was offered, but I don't live in LA, and it would have been too much to move out there only on the slight chance that I'd get the gig.

[lerxstcat]

Re: dio on the warren issue

He went back to Craig because he knew the material, had been in the band for years,
and was able to work his schedule around his regular job to do the tour. When a tour's around the corner, why audition a
bunch of unknowns when you've got a guy who's ready to go?

Of course, if Whitesnake's done touring when Ronnie's ready to go back to the studio, don't be surprised if Doug's back in at that point. Craig DOES have his other job, and he can't count on the Dio gig as fulltime income for the rest of his life, so him going back to work may create the opening for Doug to return to
Dio.

[pro-fusion]

Re: dio on the warren issue

Actually, the Whitesnake thing is looking like it might turn into a longer term gig...they were talking a new album and a 'five year plan', the last I had read. Of course, Coverdale might long for retirement again if/when things don't work out with a new album. Troubles with EMI and the industry in general caused him to retire during the late '90s, and I don't see that anything has really changed since then.