Heaven & Hell to play at High Voltage

Heaven and Hell - the band that featured the recently departed Ronnie James Dio as vocalist - are to play a show as a tribute at High Voltage on Saturday 24th July.

Ronnie James Dio passed away on the 16th May 2010, and the world of metal mourned the loss of one of its great voices. Dio was an iconic figure in music, whose work with Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and most recently Heaven & Hell defined a genre.

Heaven & Hell were set to be on the road in Europe this summer, but the shows had to be cancelled due to Dio's illness. But now, remaining members Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice are set to play a one off show to celebrate his life and work, with the proceeds to be donated to the Ronnie James Dio "Stand Up And Shout" Cancer Fund.

The band will be completed by Glenn Hughes and Jorn Lande who will both contribute vocals. Former Deep Purple / Black Sabbath star Glenn Hughes was a close friend of Ronnie's for many years and performed a musical tribute at Ronnie's funeral service in Los Angeles. Norwegian Jorn Lande is best known in the UK as the vocalist for power metal band Masterplan, he has also released many solo albums including a tribute to Ronnie. It promises to be a fitting celebration to a man that the metal scene owes so much.

"It's going to be a very emotional occasion. Ronnie loved his fans like no-one else I know - and they loved him. It will be a privilege doing a gig in honour of his memory, and to help towards his charity. Above all, I hope it encourages people to have regular check-ups for this disease. Early detection is vital, and greatly improves the chance of a cure. I know everyone has heard that a million times before, but seeing one of your best friends die because we all think we're immune from this disease, really brings it home. Do it for yourself, your family, your friends. Ronnie would be proud of you." Love & Peace, Geezer Butler.

Tony Iommi says "Ronnie's passing has left a huge hole, we hadn't anywhere near finished what we set out to do as a band together. He was so looking forward to the European tour and we hope this appearance will go some way to fulfilling that."

High Voltage takes place at London's Victoria Park over the weekend of Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th July 2010.

They join a line-up that has headliners ZZ Top, and Emerson, Lake and Palmer, along with Saxon, HammerFall, Cathedral, Bachman Turner, Asia, Uriah Heep, Joe Bonamassa, Focus, Touchstone, The Reasoning, Martin Turner's Wishbone Ash, Pendragon, Argent, Marillion and Foreigner. For the line-up details, day and stage splits, as available please click here.

Tickets are priced at £135 for weekend tickets and £75 for day tickets.

To buy tickets, click here.

High Voltage also offers a wide range of added attractions including an Air Guitar Championship, a real ale pub - The Victoria, good food outlets, Classic Car & Motorbike Exhibition, a Fairground, Wall Of Death, and a Vinyl Exchange.

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