Ok, so i begin to see where the difference in opinion and definition comes in.
Mettalica and Iron maiden have always been considered by me to be heavy metal/ thrash metal. Neither of these particularly appeal to me personally so I never compare BJ's stuff to theirs, never have.
I know virtually nothing about Dio, other than he's a strange looking little man. (no offense intended).
Here are examples of my definitions of genres:
A) metal = Led Zepplin
B) thrash/heavy metal = mettalica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest
C) Hard Rock= Aerosmith(although they have covered just about every genre over the years)
D) mainsteam Rock= Rollong Stones, U2, Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Bad Company, Kansas( although they may be more theater art rock to me).
It's easier for me to see now where you guys come from when you complain about BJ not being "rock" enough for you.