Vincent Samson Appice (born September 13, 1957) is an American rock and metal drummer best known for his work with the bands Dio, Black Sabbath, and Heaven & Hell. Of Italian descent, he is the younger brother of drummer Carmine Appice.[1]
Appice took up the drums at the age of nine, taking lessons from the same teacher as his brother Carmine Appice. When he was sixteen, Appice and his band BOMF met John Lennon at Record Plant Studios. Lennon took a liking to the group and used them as a backing band in several performances, including the final one before his death. He moved on to record with Rick Derringer on Derringer (1976), Sweet Evil (1977), and Derringer Live (1977), before forming his own band Axis and recording It's A Circus World (1978).
Black Sabbath
Appice joined Black Sabbath during the tour in support of the band's Heaven and Hell album in 1980. Sharon Arden had approached him with an offer to join Ozzy Osbourne's new band but he turned it down at the urging of his older brother Carmine. About a month later he was approached by Black Sabbath, whose longtime drummer Bill Ward had just departed mid-tour to deal with personal issues. Appice was told over the phone that Ward was "missing in action", and he subsequently met with Tony Iommi and the pair hit it off. Iommi was a fan of Appice's work on Axis' It's A Circus World and he invited Appice to meet the rest of the band and rehearse in Los Angeles the following day. When he initially joined Black Sabbath, he was expected to only complete the tour, as it was anticipated that Ward would return at some point.[2]
Appice's first show with Black Sabbath was at the Aloha Stadium in Hawaii.[3] Though he had rehearsed the songs in Los Angeles before leaving for Hawaii, he was forced to use hastily written crib notes on stage for each unfamiliar song. "The endings were a bit sloppy and long, but as the tour went on it got tighter and tighter," Appice recalled of his early days in the band.[2] After several months it became apparent that Ward would not be returning, and Appice became the band's permanent drummer. He subsequently appeared on the 1981 Black Sabbath studio album Mob Rules and the 1982 live album Live Evil.
Dio
In late 1982, vocalist Ronnie James Dio left Black Sabbath and asked Appice if he'd be interested in forming a new band with him. Though Appice was still a member of Black Sabbath, he and Dio lived in the same town in New York and the two had a close relationship. As Sabbath were based in England, Appice thought it would be more convenient to stay in the United States and work with Dio, and the band Dio was soon formed along with Vivian Campbell and Jimmy Bain.[2] He recorded the albums Holy Diver (1983), The Last in Line (1984), Sacred Heart (1985), Intermission (1986), and Dream Evil (1987) with the band. In December of 1989, Appice left Dio and briefly teamed up with ex-Dokken bassist Jeff Pilson in the short-lived band Flesh & Blood.
Post-Dio
Ronnie James Dio rejoined Black Sabbath in 1992 to record the album Dehumanizer. The band were working with drummer Cozy Powell, but Powell was unable to record after falling off a horse and breaking his pelvis. They immediately called Appice, who flew to Wales to rehearse and record with the band.[2] "I like Vinny, he's a nice chap," Tony Iommi said of the reunion. "Vinny was asked to continue with the Sabbath thing (in 1982), but he didn't. I like Vinny's playing."
Appice rejoined Dio and they recorded Strange Highways (1994) and Angry Machines (1996). Prior to the 1996 tour, Appice played drums for Las Vegas–based guitarist, Raven Storm, on his album The Storm Project, which also involved long-time Dio engineer and producer, Angelo Arcuri. Arcuri was also a childhood friend of the Appice brothers.
In 2005 Appice appeared on a rap recording by Circle of Tyrants, whose lineup included Necro, Ill Bill, Goretex, and Mr Hyde, also collaborating with Alex Skolnick. Appice played two shows in Las Vegas with the Sin City Sinners in October 2009.[4] Appice rejoined his Black Sabbath bandmates Ronnie James Dio, Geezer Butler, and Tony Iommi in 2006 as Heaven & Hell, touring and releasing one studio album, The Devil You Know, before Dio's death in 2010.
Appice with Heaven & Hell in 2007
In 2006 he recorded the CD Dinosaurs, together with Carl Sentance, Carlos Cavazo and Jeff Pilson. The CD was produced by guitarist-musician Andy Menario (leader of Martiria band) and featured lyrics written by Italian poet Marco Roberto Capelli, who is also Martiria's lyricist.
He is currently participating in "Drum Wars" shows with his brother Carmine, which feature a guest appearance from vocalist Paul Shortino.
Appice formed the band Kill Devil Hill with former Down and Pantera bassist Rex Brown, guitar slinger Mark Zavon and lead vocalist Dewey Bragg. Kill Devil Hill's self-titled debut album was released May 22, 2012, via Steamhammer/SPV and landed at No. 9 on the Billboard Top New Artist Albums (HeatSeekers) Chart, No. 41 on the Top Hard Music Chart and No. 50 on the Independent Album Chart.
Following the death of Dio frontman Ronnie James Dio in 2010, the original lineup of Vinny Appice on drums, Jimmy Bain on bass, Vivian Campbell on guitar and Claude Schnell on keyboards reunited along with vocalist Andrew Freeman to perform covers of Dio songs they originally recorded.[5] This lineup, without Schnell, would become Last in Line.
On November 25, 2013, it was announced that Appice had formed a new band called WAMI, which features vocalist Doogie White, bassist Marco Mendoza, and 16-year-old Polish guitarist Iggy Gwadera.[6] On February 12, 2014, the upcoming album title was revealed to be Kill the King, due for release in the spring.[7] On February 25, the album cover and track listing were revealed.[8]
Last in Line began recording tracks for a new album of original material in April 2014, followed by the release of a snippet of the new track "Devil in Me" in June. The album, Heavy Crown, produced by former Dio bassist Jeff Pilson, was released in early 2016. The band has since released further albums.
In 2015, it was announced that Appice would appear on the EP "Mainly Songs About Robots" by Australian progressive rock band Toehider, to be released in September 2015.[12] The same year, Appice was invited to play drums for a new project of Whitesnake and former Night Ranger guitarist Joel Hoekstra, called Joel Hoekstra's 13, with an album called Dying to Live, released on October 16.[13]
On September 30, the band Resurrection Kings was announced. The band is formed by Appice with former Dio guitarist Craig Goldy, Sean McNabb on bass and Chas West on vocals.
On January 18, 2017, Appice was inducted into the Hall of Heavy Metal History for his contributions to Heavy Metal drumming.[14]
In 2023, Vinny put together a new touring band called Sabbath Knights, performing the music of Black Sabbath and Dio.[15]
Discography
John Lennon
Walls and Bridges (hand claps on "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night"; uncredited) (1974)[16]
Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped define the genre with their first three albums Black Sabbath, Paranoid, and Master of Reality (1971). Following Osbourne's departure in 1979, the band underwent multiple lineup changes, with Iommi being the only constant member throughout its history.
Ronald James Padavona, known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and Heaven & Hell.
Dio was an American heavy metal band formed in 1982 and led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio. Dio left Black Sabbath with intentions to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath drummer Vinny Appice. The name Dio was chosen because it made sense from a commercial standpoint, as the name was already well known at that time.
Dehumanizer is the sixteenth studio album by English rock band Black Sabbath. It was first released on 22 June 1992 in the UK by I.R.S. Records and on 30 June 1992 in the US by Reprise Records.
Mob Rules is the tenth studio album by English rock band Black Sabbath, released in November 1981. It followed 1980's Heaven and Hell, and was the second album to feature lead singer Ronnie James Dio and the first with drummer Vinny Appice. Neither musician would appear on a Black Sabbath studio album again until the 1992 album Dehumanizer.
Live Evil is the first official live album by English rock band Black Sabbath. The previously released Live at Last (1980) was not sanctioned by the band. Live Evil peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart.
Strange Highways is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Dio. It's also their first album since Ronnie James Dio and Vinny Appice's reunion tour with Black Sabbath. The European release was on Vertigo Records, in October 1993; the U.S. release was on Reprise Records, in January 1994.
William Thomas Ward is an English musician. He was a co-founder and the original drummer for the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. Ward helped found Black Sabbath in 1968 alongside bandmates Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi (guitarist), and Geezer Butler (bass).
Heaven and Hell is the ninth studio album by English rock band Black Sabbath, released on 18 April 1980. It is the first Black Sabbath album to feature vocalist Ronnie James Dio, who replaced original vocalist Ozzy Osbourne in 1979.
Jeffrey Steven Pilson is an American musician best known for being the bass player in the glam metal band Dokken and currently classic rock band Foreigner. He has also had an extended stint with Dio in the 1990s.
Douglas "Doogie" White is a Scottish rock vocalist who currently sings for La Paz. He has also notably sung for Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force, Praying Mantis, Tank and Alcatrazz.
Thomas "Craig" Goldy is an American musician, best known as the guitarist of the rock bands Dio and Giuffria.
Heaven & Hell was a British-American heavy metal supergroup active from 2006 to 2010, featuring guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler, vocalist Ronnie James Dio and drummer Vinny Appice.
Black Sabbath: The Dio Years is a 2007 compilation CD of material recorded by Black Sabbath during vocalist Ronnie James Dio's tenure in the band. The CD contains remastered tracks taken from the studio albums Heaven and Hell (1980), Mob Rules (1981), and Dehumanizer (1992), as well as a live version of the song "Children of the Sea" taken from the live album Live Evil (1982). It also contains three songs that were recorded in 2007: "The Devil Cried", "Shadow of the Wind", and "Ear in the Wall".
The Devil You Know is the only studio album by heavy metal band Heaven & Hell; the members had previously recorded as a group in an earlier line-up of Black Sabbath. The Devil You Know was Ronnie James Dio's final studio album prior to his death in May 2010.
Kill Devil Hill is an American heavy metal supergroup, founded in 2011 by drummer Vinny Appice, bassist Rex Brown, guitarist Mark Zavon, and lead vocalist Dewey Bragg. The band is named after the town of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, a location renowned from pirating days.
Joel Hoekstra is an American guitarist currently in the hard rock band Whitesnake. He also tours as a guitarist for Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The son of classical musicians, he started out playing cello and piano at a young age, but it was hearing Angus Young of AC/DC that inspired him to start playing the guitar. He was raised in the suburbs of Chicago, in Orland Park, but has lived in New York City since 2001.
Last in Line is a British rock band formed in 2012 by former members of Dio's original lineup. Their name comes from the 1984 Dio album, The Last in Line. Following the death of frontman Ronnie James Dio in 2010, drummer Vinny Appice, bassist Jimmy Bain, guitarist Vivian Campbell and keyboardist Claude Schnell reunited and added vocalist Andrew Freeman to perform the Dio songs they originally recorded. They released three studio albums of original material without Schnell between February 2016 and March 2023.
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