Vinny Appice Played Dio and John Lennon's Final Shows ::Dio News ::antiMusic.com

Vinny Appice Played Dio and John Lennon's Final Shows

. (Classic Rock) Veteran drummer Vinny Appice has recalled playing with Ronnie James Dio and John Lennon on their last ever shows. He's revealed that when Dio brought him into Black Sabbath for 1981's Mob Rules, the first track he played was Sabbath's Neon Knights - which was also the last song he played live with the iconic singer before his death in 2010.

Appice tells The Classic Metal Show: "Before I met Black Sabbath I met Tony Iommi the night before. The next day I went down to the rehearsal studio and I met Ronnie, Geezer Butler, Geoff Nicholls on keyboards and Tony again.

"The first song we played was Neon Knights - the first song I ever played with Ronnie and the last song I ever played with Ronnie. It's a weird trip between 30-something years from the first time to the last."

He only recently discovered that he was also behind the kit for Lennon's last-ever performance, shortly before his murder in 1980. Appice says: "We did the show at the Hilton and it was a live worldwide telecast. That was his last appearance ever - and I f***ing played on it. I didn't know that until a magazine called Guitar Aficionado came out last year." Stream the full interview here.

Classic Rock Magazine is an official news provider for antiMusic.com.
Copyright Classic Rock Magazine- Excerpted here with permission.

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