Ozzy Osbourne vs. Ronnie James Dio: Who's Better?

By Nicholas Pell Thu., Jan. 19 2012 at 4:00 AM

[Editor's note: Deathmatch pairs two artists who have something in common, and determines who is better. It's a concept we sort-of ripped off from MTV, except that instead of claymation it's the printed word!]

A singer's voice impacts a band's sound so much that a replacement basically creates a new group. Black Sabbath, who single-handedly charted a course for dark and evil metal, replaced Dark Prince Ozzy Osbourne with Elven Wizard Ronnie James Dio. Ozzy reigns supreme among many Sabbath fans, but the late great Dio has his admirers. Let's stack the two up against one another using the DeathmatchTron 6000.

Overall Catalog
Most Ozzy-era Black Sabbath is unfuckwitable. Black Sabbath might be the first true heavy metal record. Paranoid and Master of Reality offer up dirty, doomy, dirgy riffs that peel paint. However, the outfit also gave us Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die. The less said about those, the better. And, let's face it, Ozzy can't really sing. He just follows the riff.

The RJD-era catalog is slimmer, but contains no duds. "Neon Knights" showed the band was paying attention to the new wave of British heavy metal. If any of these new jack doom metal bands wrote anything as evil as "The Sign of the Southern Cross," I've yet to hear it. Also, RJD invented the metal horns' hand gesture. Not to mention the fact that he wailed like a demon.

Point: RJD

Reunions
Heaven and Hell were a metal band. Black Sabbath (because seriously, do you want to think of that Ozzfest abortion as the Real McCoy?) is a reality show. The leather-lunged Dio had it until the day he died in 2010. Ozzy lost it somewhere around the time Sharon forbid him from blowing lines of ants.

Point: RJD

Live Album
The original Black Sabbath lineup didn't cut a real live album (Live At Last was released without the band's knowledge and they hated it) until the wretched Reunion. This album showcases Sabbath doing their heavy metal oldies circuit thing, complete with Ozzy playing a low-rent Bowser. The live version of "Iron Man" won a Grammy, putting it in the same category as "Spoonman" and "St. Anger." Compare that with Live Evil. The record documents the RJD-era band at their best. The guys sound great and the crowd is barely audible. As it should be.

Point: RJD

Tags:

Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Ronnie James Dio

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Ozzy23

I bet you must be around 30 years old. Cause you spray like a 30 year old dumbo who worships Dio. At least Ozzy has more brains than to try and sing a Dio track of any kind. Dio looks and sounds retarded doing them stunts. I'd dare Dio to do a duet with any female cause it would be a joke. Don't get me wrong about Dio but u should check yourself before you wreck yourself. Long live Sanbath!!! RIP Dio

KDC

I liked his duet with Lita Ford. And 'dreamer', 'mama i'm coming home' etc. . . I love both of these guys but Ozzy's solo career wasn't as bad as you are making it seem.

Jenningsleo71

The best thing to happen to metal was Oz departing and Dio's entrance! Oz had no imput into Sab's writing! Shame!!! Dio wrote the songs for Sabbath! Oz would have never had his writing discovered! Dio Rocks Get With It People

Erika

You know, this used to be a fun debate, but it really doesn't seem like much fun now that one of these metal legends has passed on. To be honest, with all they've accomplished in their careers, I'd say call it even. A lot of the myths about how the two stack up tend to get blown out of proportion. Conventional wisdom says that Dio is the better singer and Ozzy is the better frontman. Certainly, Dio is a better singer in technical terms, but many people (myself included) actually prefer Ozzy's vocals because of their expressiveness. In rock n roll, it's often not technical chops that make the difference;Bruce Springsteen is more popular by far than, say, Geoff Tate, and has affected more people. Likewise, while Ozzy is notoriously good at connecting with a crowd, Dio was nothing less than a legendary frontman. His style may have been a bit less wildman and more traditional showman, but he was a consummate professional and more;he definitely knew how to command a stage. Dio made two, possibly three of the best Sabbath albums ever (heck, maybe four if you count "The Devil You Know"), but all of the Ozzy-era Sabbath albums are classics (even the underrated "Never Say Die" and "Technical Ecstacy") which gives him 8 to Ronnie's 4. And I'd personally give Ozzy the edge in solo career (and sales figures would be on my side), but again they've both done great solo. Both of them put out at least two post-Sabbath solo albums that are undeniable metal classics ("Blizzard of Ozz", "Holy Diver", "Diary of a Madman" and "Last in Line") and countless other great (and top-selling) albums. If Ozzy does have an edge with his Sabbath and solo stuff, Ronnie closes the gap by having put out 3 more classic albums with another legendary band, Rainbow. His pre-Rainbow career, from Ronnie Dio & the Prophets to Elf, had a lot of great moments, too. Bottom line? They've both done so much and, between the two of them, virtually defined metal (or at least metal singing). One can make a personal call as to who was better, but there's not much doubt they are two of the most legendary rock singers ever and they helped shape hard rock and metal. \m/

Guest

Lol at this article.

Jacob

Legacy, are you shitting me? Who the hell outside of the metal circle even knows who Ronnie James Dio is? RJD had a poor voice for what Sabbath fans were accustomed to, and that is why they dropped off of the charts. He was a better singer in terms of technicality, but Ozzy's voice has a more unsettling tone to it; it is more properly suited for Sabbath's doom-y type of metal. Ozzy could undoubtedly please a crowd better, and his live energy was always more electric. His first two solo albums were pretty much the pinnacle of metal at the time of their release; none of RJD's albums were ever the pinnacle of anything.

Necroshine95

This is totally Biast. You talk bad about Ozzy the majority of this and praise Dio. Dio was definately a great Singer but Ozzy deserves just as much credit and whataya mean he just follows the riffs?? War Pigs, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Children of the Grave, SOLITUDE!!! And No More Tears is as classic a record I've ever heard. I Don't Wanna Change the World, Desire, S.I.N, etc He is just as good as Dio. And he never lost it he hit a few bumps along the road but who doesn't

Steve

You've got a right to your opinion. But oh, my goodness, how wrong you are. And no disrespect to Ronnie. The two albums they made with him are probably better than Technical Ecstasy, but I don't understand why so many people consider Never Say Die to be so bad. Probably because it's got jazz elements. Listen to Air Dance and tell me it's not a masterpiece. Also, Ozzy's first two albums are BOTH better than any Dio album (as great as Dio's first two albums were).