2014 -Syracuse Area Music Awards - Syracuse New Times "Lifetime Achievement Award". Note- this award is the highest honor one can received from our CNY Music Community.
Present to - RONNIE JAMES DIO
SAMMY's MC- Dave Frisina intros Bill Brod Syracuse New Times owner-publisher who sponsored this award. Bill says a few words about the long relationship the New Times has had with the Sammys Awards and that shortly the New Times would be going to a new publishing format..part newspaper part magazine. Bill then announced that Ronnie James Dio's family and friends have requested that Syracuse Music Historian Ron Wray make this presentation and induction this evening (Ron Wray enters stage to podium)
RON WRAY's RONNIE JAMES DIO's INDUCTION SPEECH...
## First I would like to thanks Ronnie James Dio's family and friends for allowing me to make this historic presentation this evening.
To everyone of us Ronnie James Dio's career may mean something different. To some of us, Ronnie was family, other a friend, a bandmate, a neighbor, lead singer of The Redcaps, Prophets, Electric Elves, Elves, ELF, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell and of course DIO.
I first met Ronnie back in 1963 and his musical relationship with Syracuse lasted close to 50 years. From 3 Rivers Inn, Sports O Rama, Yellow Balloon, Brookside, War Memorial, Landmark Theater to the largest stages and arenas in the world as he performed in over 41 different countries.
A truly amazing singer who easily could have been performing in Las Vegas, but lucky for us, he chose the Rock & Roll path.
A fantastic recording career with many awards, gold & platinum albums and selling over 41+ million recording. Ironically a new Ronnie James Dio Cd tribute will be released by Rhino Records on April 1, 2014, featuring Metallica, Motorhead & some of the biggest names in the music industry.
I've invited some of Ronnie's family and special bandmates to join me on stage this evening..
I'd like to introduce- his son, a good friend to the Syracuse Music community- Dan Padavona
David "Rock" Feinstein- SAMMY'S Hall of Famer and Ronnie's cousin who teamed with Ronnie in the Elves, ELF and played on Ronnie's final recording "Metal Will Never Die" and is currently still tours the World with The Rods.
Mickey Lee Soule - great keyboardist and member of ELF & Rainbow and is still touring the World with Deep Purple.
Dick Bottoff - longtime Dio guitarist with both Ronnie Dio & The Redcaps & Prophets..
Jim Pantas - famed Dio & The RedCaps & Prophets manager and brother of the guitar great Nick Pantas who was Ronnie's best friend and started there very first band together in 1958.
Also would also like to mention some of Ronnie's special friends who are with us this evening- Harold Hyde, Carl Canedy, Ron Kaussner & "Mr 805" Dave Porter.
If I have any regrets in my music career, one would be that Ronnie is not here this evening to enjoy this great Central New York salute.
We will end this great evening with Ronnie's own words that he spoke to me in one of our last interviews- "Ron it was a pleasant surprise for me knowing I was going to speak to you and to Syracuse."
"The best to everybody there. Gold bless for being as nice to me as they have been and in a great way making all this possible for me" (Ronnie James Dio).
It is my great honor to welcome the great Ronnie James Dio into the Syracuse Area Music Hall of Fame by honoring him with our highest honor- the Syracuse NewTimes "Lifetime Achievement Award"
(Ron Wray then presents the SAMMY to David "Rock" Feinstein & Dan Padavona, who both say a few words)
Ron then intro's longtime manager Jim Pantas who managed Ronnie's first band back in 1958. (Jim says a few words and tell a very quick story about become Ronnie first band manager)...
Ron then invites back SAMMY's MC- Dan Frisina who ends this historic evening....
Many photos are taken of all on stage. Pantas, Bottoff, Soule, Feinstein, Padavaona & Wray.
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