Ronnie James Dio: 80s Metal All-Star Project Hear 'n Aid On CD And DVD

On May 20th and May 21st, 1985, 40 artists from the metal community gathered at A&M Records Studios in Hollywood, California to participate in the making of a record called "Stars" as a part of a very special fundraising project spearheaded by Ronnie James Dio known as Hear 'n Aid. The "Stars" single and a video documentary on the making of the record was used to raise money for famine relief efforts in Africa and around the world. These 40 artists - including members of Mötley Crüe, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, Blue Öyster Cult and even Spinal Tap - along with hundreds of other volunteers, donated their time and talent over four months to make Hear 'n Aid a reality. "Stars" was a plea for unity in the fight against world hunger.

Due to contract differences with the labels, the "Stars" song and album weren't released until New Year's Day, 1986, and were only ever made available on vinyl and cassette. But Ronnie's widow/manager Wendy Dio wants to fix that. "I'm going to re-release («Stars»). So it'll come out on DVD and CD," she tells RollingStone.com. "I have loads of outtakes for the video."