Vivian Campbell: From Dio Fallout to Def Leppard Legend

  • Thread starter Thread starter JohnnyGtar
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He seems like a very likeable "regular" guy. Must be an Irish/UK thing.
 
He played a local club a while back and I know the promoter. Said Viv was a huge prick that complained about everything.

That goes along with the stories over the years that he’s an asshole.
 
He played a local club a while back and I know the promoter. Said Viv was a huge prick that complained about everything.

That goes along with the stories over the years that he’s an asshole.
I can confirm the same about Mattias Jabbs, Dick Cheney & PGA Pro Hale Irwin.
 
He played a local club a while back and I know the promoter. Said Viv was a huge prick that complained about everything.

That goes along with the stories over the years that he’s an asshole.
Maybe he was told and promised things that weren’t done right or at all. One man’s prick is another man’s standing up for what was promised.
🤷‍♂️
I take stories on how famous people are with a big grain of salt. Who knows what they were dealing with or going through on the day someone met them or worked with them for a few minutes to a few hours.
Only a feeling but I think an asshole wouldn’t be in Def Leppard for 27 years when they could have had their pick. But that could also be because he’s their kind of asshole. 😂
 
I was having fun with my comments but for sure it was a good interview and he does seem like a good guy. I am sure he might of had a bit of a temper in his youth as well but the way he describes the Dio situation makes sense. I mean how many times has a wife manager destroyed everything? ( Sharon..) they are like the devil on the shoulder, the Eve in the garden of Eden " shhh don't listen to them Ronnie, YOU are the attraction". It is true that Ronnie is a once in a lifetime talent but if you listen to his interviews over the years, it is almost like he has abandonment issues or resentment. Shit on Sabbath, shit on Vivian, shit on Aldrich etc etc.

Now that said, there seem to be stories of Vivian being a diva so who the hell knows. I don't doubt that he and the band were getting screwed on their contracts though.
 
He played a local club a while back and I know the promoter. Said Viv was a huge prick that complained about everything.

That goes along with the stories over the years that he’s an asshole.
Have to say I've been around Vivian twice in a professional situation back stage and he was nothing but nice when he didn't have to be. And I can tell you, back stage is where you can see guys be real dicks when it's just working staff. Worse guy I ever dealt with backstage was Jimmy freaking Buffet. Total asshole. And this wasn't just one time but ever time that guy came to the venue. The jam band Phish, assholes. I could go on. Another cool guy was...believe it or not Justin Timberlake and Harry Connick, both totally laid back.

Another time as a fan at the show, his first tour with Leppard, we were sitting on the isle way right by the stage entrance which was in the round. After the show a bunch of us yelled at Vivian as he was walking by, he came over and talked to us, signed stuff for other friends and even made the security wait as they were trying to rush him away. Maybe he was just having a bad day that day.

Now temper, he kinda admits in the interview and I remember the story when Danzig said something to his wife at a festival event and Vivian slapped him around.

Good interview, watched it yesterday. $100 bucks a week playing for Dio for three albums and three tours, that's freaking criminal. Even Jake made more than that playing for cheapskate Ozzy, seems like Jake made about $500 a week, something like that. I know it wasn't what we all thought it was back in the day.
 
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I was having fun with my comments but for sure it was a good interview and he does seem like a good guy. I am sure he might of had a bit of a temper in his youth as well but the way he describes the Dio situation makes sense. I mean how many times has a wife manager destroyed everything? ( Sharon..) they are like the devil on the shoulder, the Eve in the garden of Eden " shhh don't listen to them Ronnie, YOU are the attraction". It is true that Ronnie is a once in a lifetime talent but if you listen to his interviews over the years, it is almost like he has abandonment issues or resentment. Shit on Sabbath, shit on Vivian, shit on Aldrich etc etc.

Now that said, there seem to be stories of Vivian being a diva so who the hell knows. I don't doubt that he and the band were getting screwed on their contracts though.
Max’s wife blew up Sepultura.
 
It is true that Ronnie is a once in a lifetime talent but if you listen to his interviews over the years, it is almost like he has abandonment issues or resentment. Shit on Sabbath, shit on Vivian, shit on Aldrich etc etc....

Someone might have warned Dio about karma:

 
Shame hearing that about RJD.

My mother always said the times she was around him he was very nice.
He'd stay after Elf (?) shows up North (Watertown area) and play poker with my uncle and others.
My uncle worked at the club, Ill have to ask my mother the name of it.
 
Someone might have warned Dio about karma:



He's in an echo chamber here " Yeah Ronnie ! He really is an asshole! Yeah! " . Looks like Ronnie went where no man should go.. wishing death even in a passing statement is just one of those things you don't do and he should know that being of Italian origin and southern Italian origin where the occult and superstitions can run deep.
 
ANYONE who plays, listens to or even acknowledges the existence of that god awful hippie jam music is an asshole

I once had tickets to a show in Italy to see Phish but only because Satch was opening.. got to the show and heard Satch had cancelled, scalped my ticket for next to nothing to a ticket vendor, left my buddies and went home. I thought and still think, that Phish is shit. Funny enough, I have had Satch cancel two shows on me. The other one was a wind storm that blue the stage over and cancelled a festival. He was going on after Cheap Trick.
 
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