Died On This Date (January 24, 2016) Jimmy Bain / Bassist For Dio, Rainbow & More
themusicsover Jimmy Bain
December 19, 1947 – January 24, 2016
Jimmy Bain was a rock bassist who is best remembered for his years playing with Rainbow and Dio. Born in Highland, Scotland, Bain caught the attention of Ritchie Blackmore when Bain was playing a gig at London’s Marquee. Blackmore quickly hired him to play on Rainbow’s 1976 metal masterpiece, Rising and on the tour that followed. That tour, with Bain on bass, was recorded for Rainbow’s popular On Stage album that came out the following year. After leaving Rainbow in 1978, Bain formed Wild Horses who received moderate success with two albums. During the early ’80s, Bain co-wrote songs for Phil Lynott‘s two solo albums and toured as part of his backing band. In 1983, he joined forces with former Rainbow singer, Ronnie James Dio in the latter’s new band, Dio. Bain wrote several of the band’s hits, including “Holy Diver” and “Rainbow In The Dark.” He played on The Last In Line and Dream Evil, among other Dio classic albums. In 1985, Bain founded Hear ‘n Aid which was metal’s effort to raise money for famine relief. The all-star collective recorded, “Stars,” co-written by Bain, which reportedly raised over $1 million in its first year of release. Bain continued to record and tour with various members of metal’s elite up until the time of his death. It was while traveling as a performer on Def Leppard‘s Hysteria On The High Seas cruise on January 24, 2016, that Jimmy Bain passed away unexpectedly His cause of death was not immediately released and was believed to have been health related. He was 68.
What You Should Own
Joe Markowski was a respected drummer who is perhaps best remembered for playing with Twisted Sister for about a year starting in 1981. Markowski was also an in-demand drum teacher who, over the course of his career, tutored the likes of Bobby Rondinelli who played for Black Sabbath and Rainbow, and Joe Franco of Twisted Sister. Joe Markowski was 57 when he passed away on April 14, 2010. Cause of death was not immediately released.
