October
Wednesday 19 May 2010 photo 1/1
![Geezer Butler (BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL) berättar om sina sista dagar med Ronnie James Dio.
"It's impossible to express in mere words the relationship Ronnie
and I, Wendy and my wife Gloria had. He was much more
than a friend, fellow musician, band mate. If I have a soul, then he is
part of it. I truly believe God, fate, destiny, whatever it's called,
brought us together again in 2006, after not seeing each other for 14
years, to do one final tour, which turned into three major tours and an
album. We were having a blast together, enjoying each other's company
more than we had ever done before, talking about maybe doing one more
album, when fate intervened again. We were planning on doing a two- or
three-part North American tour, after having toured South America and
Europe in spring/summer 2009, but on the first leg of the North American
tour, Tony's [Iommi] hand ligaments were in a bad way, Vinny's
[Appice] shoulder became dislocated, and Ronnie was
having terrible stomach pains. We decided to cut the tour, get healthy,
and carry on the following year. Tony and Vinny had
successful procedures to fix their ailments, but Ronnie's stomach
pains were worsening. I saw him at the Dio Halloween party, but
he wasn't drinking, unusual for Ronnie who liked his tipple. He
was telling me he had made an appointment with a specialist, to see what
it was.....
"Wednesday, 12th May 2010.
"Wendy
invited Gloria and I to lunch in Santa Barbara. A few close
friends of Ronnie and Wendy, Omar, Simon, Paul,
Tim, and Diana, had dropped by. Ronnie had no
appetite whatsoever — the disease and the chemotherapy were taking an
immense toll. As usual, we talked sports and had a laugh together — it
would be the last time. That night, I had a beautiful email from him,
that I will treasure forever. I sent him an email saying I'd see him
during the following week.
"Friday, 14th May 2010.
"Wendy
called to say she had taken Ronnie to hospital. The pain had
become unbearable. We got to the hospital around 2 p.m. The doctor
eventually sedated him. More and more friends were coming to visit — we
took it in turns to hold Ronnie's hand, and whisper our thoughts
to him. Wendy wouldn't leave his side — she stayed curled up on
his bed the whole night. Gloria's assistant, Debi, kept
her company. I emailed Tony to prepare him for bad news.
"Saturday,
15th May 2010.
"There was no mistaking Ronnie's room.
There were around 25 to 30 friends outside his room. We knew the end was
imminent. We all wanted to say our goodbyes. It was a day filled with
tears and reflection. In the evening, the chaplain came, and we all
gathered around Ronnie's bed and prayed. Ronnie wasn't
going easily. At 11 p.m., most of us left, leaving Wendy her
privacy to say her last farewell. The devastation was palpable.
"Sunday,
16th May 2010.
"7.46 a.m. As we were preparing to leave for the
hospital, Gloria called Wendy to see if she wanted a
coffee or any breakfast — she broke the sad news. Ronnie had just
passed away.
"Wendy Dio has been a true saint through all
this. She has been with Ronnie every step of the way. Her
courage has amazed us all. Even as I write, she is ensuring Ronnie
has the finest send-off possible. God bless you, Wendel.
"Most
people who were there for those last days chose to keep their thoughts
private. I wanted to keep my thoughts private, too, but I've been
overwhelmed by emails, and requests from the media and fans for
comments.
"I can truly say I've never known anyone to have such
loyal, loving friends, fans, and family as Ronnie. He really was a
special person, blessed with a u](http://cdn08.dayviews.com/84/_u1/_u7/_u0/_u6/_u2/_u9/u1706294/14312_1274291567/Geezer_Butler_BLACK_SABBATH_HEAVEN_HELL_berattar_om_sina_sista_dagar_med_Ronnie_James_Dio_It_s.jpg)
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Geezer Butler (BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL) berättar om sina sista dagar med Ronnie James Dio.
"It's impossible to express in mere words the relationship Ronnie
and I, Wendy and my wife Gloria had. He was much more
than a friend, fellow musician, band mate. If I have a soul, then he is
part of it. I truly believe God, fate, destiny, whatever it's called,
brought us together again in 2006, after not seeing each other for 14
years, to do one final tour, which turned into three major tours and an
album. We were having a blast together, enjoying each other's company
more than we had ever done before, talking about maybe doing one more
album, when fate intervened again. We were planning on doing a two- or
three-part North American tour, after having toured South America and
Europe in spring/summer 2009, but on the first leg of the North American
tour, Tony's [Iommi] hand ligaments were in a bad way, Vinny's
[Appice] shoulder became dislocated, and Ronnie was
having terrible stomach pains. We decided to cut the tour, get healthy,
and carry on the following year. Tony and Vinny had
successful procedures to fix their ailments, but Ronnie's stomach
pains were worsening. I saw him at the Dio Halloween party, but
he wasn't drinking, unusual for Ronnie who liked his tipple. He
was telling me he had made an appointment with a specialist, to see what
it was.....
"Wednesday, 12th May 2010.
"Wendy
invited Gloria and I to lunch in Santa Barbara. A few close
friends of Ronnie and Wendy, Omar, Simon, Paul,
Tim, and Diana, had dropped by. Ronnie had no
appetite whatsoever — the disease and the chemotherapy were taking an
immense toll. As usual, we talked sports and had a laugh together — it
would be the last time. That night, I had a beautiful email from him,
that I will treasure forever. I sent him an email saying I'd see him
during the following week.
"Friday, 14th May 2010.
"Wendy
called to say she had taken Ronnie to hospital. The pain had
become unbearable. We got to the hospital around 2 p.m. The doctor
eventually sedated him. More and more friends were coming to visit — we
took it in turns to hold Ronnie's hand, and whisper our thoughts
to him. Wendy wouldn't leave his side — she stayed curled up on
his bed the whole night. Gloria's assistant, Debi, kept
her company. I emailed Tony to prepare him for bad news.
"Saturday,
15th May 2010.
"There was no mistaking Ronnie's room.
There were around 25 to 30 friends outside his room. We knew the end was
imminent. We all wanted to say our goodbyes. It was a day filled with
tears and reflection. In the evening, the chaplain came, and we all
gathered around Ronnie's bed and prayed. Ronnie wasn't
going easily. At 11 p.m., most of us left, leaving Wendy her
privacy to say her last farewell. The devastation was palpable.
"Sunday,
16th May 2010.
"7.46 a.m. As we were preparing to leave for the
hospital, Gloria called Wendy to see if she wanted a
coffee or any breakfast — she broke the sad news. Ronnie had just
passed away.
"Wendy Dio has been a true saint through all
this. She has been with Ronnie every step of the way. Her
courage has amazed us all. Even as I write, she is ensuring Ronnie
has the finest send-off possible. God bless you, Wendel.
"Most
people who were there for those last days chose to keep their thoughts
private. I wanted to keep my thoughts private, too, but I've been
overwhelmed by emails, and requests from the media and fans for
comments.
"I can truly say I've never known anyone to have such
loyal, loving friends, fans, and family as Ronnie. He really was a
special person, blessed with a unique voice and presence. He loved his
fans — he would stay meeting and talking to them until the early hours
of the morning.
"One of my fondest memories of him comes from
last year, at the Sonisphere Festival, Knebworth. He noticed my
sister and her husband at the side of the stage. During our opening
song, he took the time to go over and hug them. Just a little thing like
that made him special to me.
"Of course his music will live on
forever, as will his influence.
"I have never seen so many
tributes from so many musicians and fans, so many good wishes, no
cynicism, just pure love and appreciation for a great man.
"God
bless you, Ronald — thank you so much for the wonderful
memories."
"It's impossible to express in mere words the relationship Ronnie
and I, Wendy and my wife Gloria had. He was much more
than a friend, fellow musician, band mate. If I have a soul, then he is
part of it. I truly believe God, fate, destiny, whatever it's called,
brought us together again in 2006, after not seeing each other for 14
years, to do one final tour, which turned into three major tours and an
album. We were having a blast together, enjoying each other's company
more than we had ever done before, talking about maybe doing one more
album, when fate intervened again. We were planning on doing a two- or
three-part North American tour, after having toured South America and
Europe in spring/summer 2009, but on the first leg of the North American
tour, Tony's [Iommi] hand ligaments were in a bad way, Vinny's
[Appice] shoulder became dislocated, and Ronnie was
having terrible stomach pains. We decided to cut the tour, get healthy,
and carry on the following year. Tony and Vinny had
successful procedures to fix their ailments, but Ronnie's stomach
pains were worsening. I saw him at the Dio Halloween party, but
he wasn't drinking, unusual for Ronnie who liked his tipple. He
was telling me he had made an appointment with a specialist, to see what
it was.....
"Wednesday, 12th May 2010.
"Wendy
invited Gloria and I to lunch in Santa Barbara. A few close
friends of Ronnie and Wendy, Omar, Simon, Paul,
Tim, and Diana, had dropped by. Ronnie had no
appetite whatsoever — the disease and the chemotherapy were taking an
immense toll. As usual, we talked sports and had a laugh together — it
would be the last time. That night, I had a beautiful email from him,
that I will treasure forever. I sent him an email saying I'd see him
during the following week.
"Friday, 14th May 2010.
"Wendy
called to say she had taken Ronnie to hospital. The pain had
become unbearable. We got to the hospital around 2 p.m. The doctor
eventually sedated him. More and more friends were coming to visit — we
took it in turns to hold Ronnie's hand, and whisper our thoughts
to him. Wendy wouldn't leave his side — she stayed curled up on
his bed the whole night. Gloria's assistant, Debi, kept
her company. I emailed Tony to prepare him for bad news.
"Saturday,
15th May 2010.
"There was no mistaking Ronnie's room.
There were around 25 to 30 friends outside his room. We knew the end was
imminent. We all wanted to say our goodbyes. It was a day filled with
tears and reflection. In the evening, the chaplain came, and we all
gathered around Ronnie's bed and prayed. Ronnie wasn't
going easily. At 11 p.m., most of us left, leaving Wendy her
privacy to say her last farewell. The devastation was palpable.
"Sunday,
16th May 2010.
"7.46 a.m. As we were preparing to leave for the
hospital, Gloria called Wendy to see if she wanted a
coffee or any breakfast — she broke the sad news. Ronnie had just
passed away.
"Wendy Dio has been a true saint through all
this. She has been with Ronnie every step of the way. Her
courage has amazed us all. Even as I write, she is ensuring Ronnie
has the finest send-off possible. God bless you, Wendel.
"Most
people who were there for those last days chose to keep their thoughts
private. I wanted to keep my thoughts private, too, but I've been
overwhelmed by emails, and requests from the media and fans for
comments.
"I can truly say I've never known anyone to have such
loyal, loving friends, fans, and family as Ronnie. He really was a
special person, blessed with a unique voice and presence. He loved his
fans — he would stay meeting and talking to them until the early hours
of the morning.
"One of my fondest memories of him comes from
last year, at the Sonisphere Festival, Knebworth. He noticed my
sister and her husband at the side of the stage. During our opening
song, he took the time to go over and hug them. Just a little thing like
that made him special to me.
"Of course his music will live on
forever, as will his influence.
"I have never seen so many
tributes from so many musicians and fans, so many good wishes, no
cynicism, just pure love and appreciation for a great man.
"God
bless you, Ronald — thank you so much for the wonderful
memories."
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