Holy Diver

[ronws]

"Holy Diver" from the phenomenal Ronnie James Dio. I don't him justice but I love this song and wanted to share it. In fact, the beginning and the ending are falsetto for the effect of emotion, rather than worrying if I sound like RJD.

Blessings to the all of us aspiring vocalists and to the family and friends of Ronnie James Dio (1942 - 2010).

[kalapoka]

hey ron...i was pleasantly surprised. you were hitting the dio notes alright...i am not sure if you were doing those in a light heady almost strong falsetto type way or not but they sounded good! I felt you could've sung the song as it was originally instead of changing it. good work!

[ronws]

Thanks, Fahim. I have sung it as he performed it but it comes out wrong on my equipment. It's one of the reasons I changed the beginning and ending to falsetto. And the guitar arrangement is something I came up with, impromptu. I had not played it quite this way before.

The high part near the end "Sole survivor, you're the one that's clean" was always a bit rough for me as something of a passagio. I "solved" it by making the transition in range in falsetto tone and bring in the next repetition at full voice. Some might consider that cheating but look at the results. A recording that has received a favorable review.

I have not sung that song in a few months but it's part of my practice repertoire. It's also a good chance to show more tonal and vibrato qualities I have in my voice that are not often found in the staccato lyrics of say, AC/DC.