Metal's 'Big Four' Pay Tribute to Dio
During the history-making team-up of thrash gods Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax – better known to metal brethren as “The Big Four” – at the Sonisphere festival in Bulgaria last week, members of all four bands recorded a special video tribute to their mutual idol Ronnie James Dio, whose death last month devastated music lovers around the world. The video was included in the live satellite transmission of the concert that went out to movie theaters in several countries, and we've got a copy of that tribute segment below the jump. Flip it over and watch the clip...
Dio's band Heaven & Hell, which featured Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice (all members of Black Sabbath during Dio's early-'80s tenure as lead vocalist), was slated to appear at Sonisphere as well, but had to cancel ahead of the fest due to Ronnie's deteriorating health at the time. The singer eventually lost his battle to stomach cancer on May 16th.
The bands gathered at Sonisphere collectively acknowledged Dio and his legacy during the festival, and members of the Big Four – namely Megadeth founder & frontman Dave Mustaine, Slayer guitarist Kerry King, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich and Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian – also recorded a video segment commemorating Dio and his influence on their careers, and on the world of metal in general. That segment is viewable below in its entirety...
