Billboard.com has posted a lengthy tribute to legendary singer RONNIE JAMES DIO (BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL, RAINBOW, ELF) who lost his battle with stomach cancer yesterday (May 16th) at 7:45 AM at the age of 67.

An excerpt reads: Dio's death brings an end to a prolific and accomplished hard rock career that spanned 53 years and established Dio as one of the leading voices of his genre. With a powerful vocal delivery that belied his 5-foot-2 build, he leaves behind a litany of hits - from 'Man On The Silver Mountain' by Blackmore's Rainbow to 'The Mob Rules' and 'Heaven And Hell' with Black Sabbath and his own 'Holy Diver' and 'Rainbow In The Dark." Dio also helmed HEAR N' AID, the all-star hard rock band to raise money for African famine relief, and its 1985 single 'We're Stars'.

He was also credited with popularizing the "devil's horn" hand gesture common to heavy metal and frequently employed gothic and Satanic imagery in his work, but Dio claimed he was actually "brought up with good values from my folks - respect your elders, it's a lot easier to say 'please,' that kind of stuff" while growing up in Cortland, N.Y. Nevertheless, Dio - who was born Ronald James Padavona in Porstmouth, N.H. - was an acknowledged trouble-maker, wearing long hair well before it was accepted and dumping soap suds in the high school swimming pool. "Anything that would go wrong I was always blamed for," he said.

Read more of the touching tribute here.

An Associated Press video on the death of Dio can be viewed below. An Artisan News Service news report is also available here