Cemetery Gates takes you inside the minds of the most twisted icons of heavy metal - including Ozzy Osbourne, Axl Rose, Nikki Sixx, Trent Reznor, Peter Steele, Dimebag Darrell, Cliff Burton, Layne Stayley and John Bonham. Whatever their deadly sin, these prodigiously talented musicians haveall come dangerously close to the edge. Cemetery Gates is the ultimate tribute to the stoical survivors who dragged themselves back from the abyss - as well as the sainted icons who weren't so lucky. The likes of Dio and Dimebag may be gone, but this riotous epitaph - to men who've lived every day as if it was their last - ensures they'll never be forgotten.

It has been reviled, dismissed, attacked, and occasionally been the subject of Congressional hearings, but still, the genre of music known as heavy metal maintains not only its market share in the recording and downloading industry, but also as a cultural force that has united millions of young and old fans across the globe. Characterized by blaring distorted guitars, drum solos, and dramatic vibrato, the heavy metal movement headbanged its way to the popular culture landscape with bands like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath the 1970s. Motley Crue and Metallica made metal a music phenomenon in the 1980s. Heavy metal continues to evolve today with bands like Mastodon and Lamb of God. Providing an extensive overview of the music, fashion, films, and philosophies behind the movement, this inclusive encyclopedia chronicles the history and development of heavy metal, including sub-movements such as death metal, speed metal, grindcore, and hair metal. Essential and highly entertaining reading for high school and undergraduate courses in popular music studies, communications, media studies, and cultural studies, the Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal Music and Culture offers a guide to the ultimate underground music, exploring its rich cultural diversity, resilience, and adaptability. Entries for musicians include a discography for those wanting to start or develop their music collections.

Ronnie James Dio was a heavy metal icon and frontman of three of the best-selling, most influential and famous rock bands in history: Rainbow, Black Sabbath and his own multi-million selling band, Dio. Rainbow in the Dark is a rollercoaster ride through the extraordinary highs and lows of Dio's life, and takes us from his early days as a street gang leader and Doo-wop singer in '60s Vegas through to his breakout success with Rainbow and Black Sabbath in the '70s and the stadiums of US metal in the '80s - ending in Dio's dressing room at Madison Square Garden, in June 1986, at the peak of his worldwide fame with Dio. Tragically Dio passed away from cancer in 2010, but had already begun writing a memoir before his death. Edited by the world-renowned music biographer Mick Wall, with the involvement of Dio's wife of over 35 years and personal manager Wendy Dio, Rainbow in the Dark will honour and feature Dio's never-before-seen original manuscript, while drawing on the extraordinary collection of print and audio interviews with the man himself to produce a vivid, raw and faithful portrait of one of the world's greatest ever rock legends.

In its 114th year, Billboard remains the world's premier weekly music publication and a diverse digital, events, brand, content and data licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video, gaming, media, digital and mobile entertainment issues and trends.

STEELcyclopedia - The Titans of Hard Rock is the third entry in Taylor T. Carlson's ROCKcyclopedia series of books. This book covers the best classic hard rock and metal bands of all time, including groups like Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Blue Oyster Cult, Metallica, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Dio. For all 50 bands in the book, there are lineups, discographies, recommendations, and band histories. Printed in black and white, the emphasis is more on information - this is more a reference book than a coffee table book. As with the first two books in this series (HAIRcyclopedia Vol.1 - The Legends and HAIRcyclopedia Vol. 2 - The Vault) this one includes photos by David Plastik, a legendary photographer whose work has been seen on album covers, in liner notes, and in major music publications. Author Taylor T. Carlson is a die-hard rock fan residing in the Vegas Valley. His reviews can be seen in Vegas Rocks Magazine, as well as on Rock Over America (a music website.)

Behold: the Holy Diver graphic novel – an original storyline inspired by one of heavy metal’s most iconic album covers. Penned by acclaimed horror comics writer Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), the book will tell the tale behind the events leading to the powerful moment captured on the cover of Dio's debut album—definitively addressing 30 years of fan speculation. Why is the priest being thrown into the ocean? Who is truly the villain in this scenario?

Unlike any Sabbath book thus far, Black Sabbath FAQ digs deep into quirks, obscure anecdotes, and burning questions surrounding the Sabs. In a fast-moving, topical format, this book covers a tremendous amount of information, delectable to any Sabbath fan, but hard to find in a traditional biography. This rich history lives and breathes and shouts right here. And the voice behind it could not be stronger: Martin Popoff is a heavy metal expert who has authored over 30 books on the subject, including Doom Let Loose, which is widely considered the definitive biography of the band. In Black Sabbath FAQ, Popoff is like a rabid detective unearthing (and sometimes debunking) ancient lore, valiantly covering new ground, applying academic rigor, but then wildly sounding off with lurid opinion. The pendulum swings, and, though disoriented, the serious Sabbath studier is better for it come the book's doomy conclusion. Dozens of images of rare memorabilia make this book a must-have for fans.

Decades before reality television was invented, Ozzy Osbourne was subversive and dark. Ozzy was the singer in the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and they meant business. In an era when rock bands were measured by how 'heavy' they were, no one was weightier than Black Sabbath. All four founding members of the original Black Sabbath grew up within half-a-mile of each other in a tiny Birmingham suburb. Though all shared a deep love of music--The Beatles for Ozzy, the Mothers of Invention for Geezer, the Shadows and Chet Atkins for Iommi, and Gene Kruppa for Ward— they formed their group "as the quickest way out of the slums." This is the story of how they made that dream come true--and how it then turned into a nightmare for all of them. At the height of their fame, Sabbath discovered they'd been so badly ripped off by their managers they didn't even own their own songs. They looked for salvation from Don Arden—an even more notorious gangster figure, who resurrected their career but still left them indebted to him, financially and personally. It finally came to a head when in 1979 they sacked Ozzy: "For being too out of control--even for us," as Bill Ward put it. The next fifteen years were a war between the post-Ozzy Sabbath and Ozzy himself, whose solo career overshadowed Sabbath so much that a reunion was entirely on his terms. Or rather, those of his wife and manager—to add a further bitter twist for Sabbath, daughter of Don Arden —Sharon Osbourne.