Ronnie James Dio Way in Portsmouth New Hampshire
Portsmouth, New Hampshire is one of the most beautiful cities in America. It's got all of the lovely small town qualities you could ever ask for; great scenery, amazing food, and a thriving arts community. It's just awesome here.
A relatively little-known fact about Portsmouth is that it is the birthplace of one of the greatest singers in the history of rock and roll music, Mr Ronnie James Dio! The icon known as “Dio” didn't grow up here, but him being born right here in Portsmouth is something that many of us rockers take pride in.
Sadly, Ronnie passed away in 2010. Not long after, a petition was raised to have the city of Portsmouth recognize the singer by erecting a statue in his honor. Despite nearly 5000 signatures, the project never happened.
There are so many things that Portsmouth, New Hampshire does right, but failing to acknowledge the fact that this is the birthplace of Ronnie James Dio is ridiculous. His music has touched so many lives, and is objectively one of the greatest rock vocalists in history...and they have done nothing.
Since the City of Portsmouth won’t do anything about this, The Drum Center of Portsmouth has decided to take the matter into our own hands! After unsuccessfully trying to legally change the entryway to our 20,000 square foot drum store to “Ronnie James Dio Way”, we have UNofficially done so. So, the next time you walk into DCP, look up, and you’ll see that you are walking down DIO Way.
It's not a lot, but it is our way of paying our respects to the great Ronnie James Dio for all the music over all those years.
We appreciate the arts, and we appreciate you!