During a conversation with Heavy Consequence, Ronnie James Dio’s widow Wendy Dio talked about Tony Iommi, Ritchie Blackmore, the song Ronnie wrote for her, and more.
When asked about Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi recently saying that he would probably be doing something with Ronnie if the singer was still among us, Wendy replied:
“Absolutely. Ronnie loved working together with Tony. It was the joy of his life. And I’m so happy that they got back together again before Ronnie passed away. Because it was something he loved doing.”
Asked if “Ronnie regretted never burying the hatchet with Ritchie Blackmore,” Wendy replied:
“I don’t know about that. Obviously, it was a shame. Ronnie was very young when he joined [with] Ritchie, and he changed as a person – he became his own person. He thanked him for the opportunity that Ritchie gave.
“I don’t think they really had a hatchet to bury – they just didn’t really talk to each other. I don’t think there was any bad feelings after Ronnie left. There were maybe bad feelings for a short while – but not later.
Asked about the song “Rainbow Eyes,” which Ronnie wrote for her, Wendy replied:
“My eyes are sometimes green, sometimes blue, and sometimes hazel. They change color. And Ronnie used to always say that – so he wrote that song about me, before we were married, actually.
“He just told me one day when they were performing it, he said, ‘By the way, you know I wrote that song about you?’ And I said, ‘No, I didn’t!’ That was Ronnie’s way.
“He wasn’t a showman – he was a different person on stage as to when he was off stage. He was very kind and down to earth.”