Category Archives: Dio
Dio – The Very Beast of Dio Vol. 2 [Review]
Dio – The Very Beast Of Vol. 2
(2012, Niji Entertainment)
1. Killing the Dragon
2. Push
3. The Eyes
4. Along Comes a Spider
5. Better in the Dark
6. Fever Dreams
7. Black
8. Feed My Head
9. Shivers
10. Hunter of the Heart (live)
11. One More for the Road
12. Lord of the Last Day
13. Electra
14. As Long as It’s Not About Love
15. This Is Your Life
16. Metal Will Never Die
17. The Prisoner of Paradise
Dio is no stranger to compilation albums (I’ve already reviewed one of them before). According to Wiki, this is the 12th (!!!) Dio compilation. The Very Beast of Dio Vol. 2 I believe is the first to focus exclusively on Dio’s career post-1994. Predictably, it picks up where Warner Bros/Rhino Records’ The Very Beast of Dio left off by representing material from Dio’s last four studio albums: Angry Machines (1996), Magica (2000), Killing the Dragon (2002) and Master of the Moon (2004). Inferno: The Last In Live (1999) is also represented with a live version of the Angry Machines song “Hunter of the Heart” and Dio’s last recorded song, “Metal Will Never”, from cousin David “Rock” Feinstein’s Bitten By the Beast is here as well.
The last three Dio albums were all solid releases, Killing the Dragon particularly. The track list here is very well done though I would’ve included “Guilty”, “Cold Feet” and “Scream” (all from Killing the Dragon). But the real hook here isn’t that the final Dio albums are getting their own compilation. Nope. What’s notable about this release is the inclusion of the song “Electra”, an epic that was originally released on the extremely limited edition Tournado box set and was later meant to be included on Magica II (Ronnie had planned a Magica trilogy). It’s a classic slow evil Dio song and it’s great that it’s finally available to a larger market. That’s really the main reason to get this album if you’re already a hardcore Dio fan.
The other song to entice hardcore fans is the inclusion of “The Prisoner of Paradise”, which had previously only appeared on the Japanese pressing of Master of the Moon. This is another good track and it sounds like it could have come from Killing the Dragon.
The Very Beast of Dio Vol. 2 is a great companion for Warner’s original Very Beast compilation. Ronnie James Dio still had a lot left in the tank throughout the 2000s even if sales from these albums don’t really express that. Certainly, I’d recommend a compilation of ’80s classics to anyone looking to get into Dio but you can’t go too wrong here either. “Electra”, “The Prisoner of Paradise” and “Metal Will Never Die” (for those who missed it) more than make up for the die-hards who feel compelled to buy this album. Recommended pick up for those three songs alone. Everyone else should already have all the other albums represented!
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Dio – Dio at Donington UK: Live 1983 & 1987
Dio – Dio at Donington UK: Live 1983 & 1987 (2010, Niji Entertainment Group)
Disc 1: 1983
1. “Stand Up And Shout” … 3:50
2. “Straight Through The Heart” … 4:49
3. “Children Of The Sea” … 6:16
4. “Rainbow in the Dark” … 4:38
5. “Holy Diver” … 5:09
6. Drum Solo
7. “Stargazer” … 1:43
8. Guitar Solo
9. “Heaven And Hell” … 11:06
10. “Man On The Silver Mountain” … 3:33
11. “Starstruck” … 0:47
12. “Man On The Silver Mountain (Reprise)” … 2:30
Disc 2: 1987
1. “Dream Evil” … 4:56
2. “Neon Knights” … 4:44
3. “Naked In The Rain” … 7:29
4.” Rock and Roll Children” … 2:47
5. “Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll” … 4:39
6. “The Last In Line” … 4:12
7. “Children Of The Sea” … 1:22
8. “Holy Diver” … 1:28
9. “Heaven and Hell” … 3:18
10. “Man On The Silver Mountain” … 4:29
11. “All the Fools Sailed Away” … 4:23
12. “The Last in Line (Reprise)” … 1:12
13. “Rainbow In The Dark” … 5:12
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Vivian Campbell – Guitar (Disc 1)
Craig Goldy – Guitar (Disc 2)
Jimmy Bain – Bass
Vinny Appice – Drums
Claude Schnell – Keyboards
Another great document and testament to the power of Dio live! This collection of two live Donington shows is the first album to be released under Ronnie & Wendy’s Niji Entertainment Group label. The album was in the works before Ronnie’s death (he gets executive producer credit) but sadly he did not get to see the release of this album. Disc One was recorded August 20, 1983 while Disc Two was recorded on August 22, 1987. These shows are available to us today thanks to the BBC archiving them (along with a couple of the other bands) for the purpose of a few radio broadcasts. Now they’ve passed the savings onto us!
And what a release it is! Very nice digipak foldout featuring some cool pics from the shows (the album cover is the best shot), promo art, a bit of history on the band leading up the shows, plus two mock-laminate passes for these ’83 and ’87 Monsters of Rock shows. Also, if you pre-ordered from Ronnie’s official site, included is an exclusive Dio VIP backstage pass. I’m not sure if the passes were from random tours but my pass is from the 1990 Throw ‘Em to the Wolves tour which of course had the band supporting the Lock Up the Wolves album. If the pre-order pass isn’t authentic and something they found in a warehouse somewhere, they really did a heck of a job with making it look so.
Disc One features a hungry band on fire and with something to prove. Ronnie was coming out of Sabbath and had just released Holy Diver the month before and the group was placed early on the bill. Ronnie and his gang had no choice but to throw down the gauntlet and show the world they could make it just fine, thank you. Half of the set list features songs from the then-new Holy Diver album while Ronnie also makes use of his Rainbow and Sabbath days to further win over the crowd. The worst part about this set? We are only teased with way-too-short versions “Stargazer” and “Starstruck”! But there is another lengthy and epic version of “Heaven and Hell” to make up for it while the band shows all kinds of flash, power and pizazz on their shiny new songs. A lively crowd throughout (even cheering on the new and soon-to-be classics) helps makes this an even better show.
Disc Two finds Craig Goldy stepping in for Vivian Campbell. An extended set list is here as well now that the band had graduated to “Special Guest” for their second Donington appearance playing second to last on the bill (Bon Jovi headlined this year). Dream Evil was the new album to promote that year (also coming out in the previous month) and it’s a good album so I have no problems with some of those songs making appearances but I would’ve loved to have heard “Sunset Superman” (in place of “Naked In The Rain”) and even “Sacred Heart” from the 1985 album of the same name. At least Sacred Heart‘s Rock and Roll Children made it! One of my favorite Dio songs. I’m also surprised “Holy Diver” got the short end of the stick but oh well. Still, with Dio now being able to call up on four albums of his own and adding a few more Rainbow and Sabbath nuggets to distinguish this set from the 1983 show, this is yet another great concert. Funny how “Rainbow In The Dark” had worked its way up to becoming the band’s closing number.
I won’t even get into the highlights this time. The first disc is full of fire and energy and the second disc thankfully does not repeat too much of disc one and is a fine total performance in its own right. Dio fans must own this album!
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DIO – Intermission
Dio – Intermission (1986, Vertigo Records – German Import)
1. “King of Rock and Roll” … 3:41
2. “Rainbow in the Dark” … 4:42
3. “Sacred Heart” … 6:23
4. “Time to Burn” … 4:25
5. “Rock ‘N’ Roll Children” Medley: “Long Live Rock ‘N’ Roll”/”Man on the Silver Mountain” … 9:40
6. “We Rock” … 4:55
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Craig Goldy – Guitar
Jimmy Bain – Bass
Vinny Appice – Drums
Claude Schnell – Keyboards
Additional Musicians:
Vivian Campbell – Guitar
Producer: Ronnie James Dio
Intermission is a fantastic live EP which features one new studio track. All of the live songs were taken from a performance on 12/06/85 at the Sports Arena in San Diego, CA. I’ve read a couple of different theories on why this EP was created. One theory states that it was an attempt to boost sales for the previous year’s Sacred Heart album (which found itself not doing quite as well as Dio’s first two efforts). The other theory is that it was meant to introduce new guitarist Craig Goldy to the world. Goldy had replaced Vivian Campbell in the middle of the Sacred Heart tour.
Vivian was still in the band at the time of the recording of the live songs so they actually had Goldy re-record some of those guitar parts. The new studio song “Time to Burn” was recorded entirely with Goldy on guitar. It’s a good song that is on par with some of Sacred Heart‘s better moments but anyone in 1986 who was hoping it would be a return to the Holy Diver or The Last In Line albums would have been disappointed… even more so since half of this EP is compromised of Sacred Heart songs. I’m a big fan of that album though so I think this EP is great. The live performances are typically very good. You can’t go wrong with Dio live. I especially enjoy “King of Rock and Roll”, “Sacred Heart” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Children” (which features a medley of “Long Live Rock ‘N’ Roll” and “Man on the Silver Mountain”).
I’ve had this album on my want list for a long time but it was always a low priority because it was a live EP. With the unfortunate passing of Ronnie, I decided there was no time like the present to get it. I tried to order it used on Amazon’s Marketplace but two or three days after placing my order, the seller told me they did not have it in stock and probably would not be getting it in stock again. So I went to my usual online stop CD Universe where they had it on backorder but I knew that was normal because every time I looked at the listing in the past it was always listed as such. I went ahead and placed the order anyway and hoped for the best. The CD finally shipped about a week and a half after I placed the order.
Highlights: “King of Rock and Roll”, “Sacred Heart”, “Rock ‘N’ Roll Children”
DIO – Sacred Heart
Dio – Sacred Heart (1985, Vertigo Records – West German Import)
1. “King of Rock and Roll” … 3:49
2. “Sacred Heart” … 6:27
3. “Another Lie” .. 3:48
4. “Rock ‘n’ Roll Children” … 4:32
5. “Hungry for Heaven” … 4:10
6. “Like the Beat of a Heart” … 4:24
7. “Just Another Day” … 3:23
8. “Fallen Angels” … 3:55
9. “Shoot Shoot” … 4:20
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Vivian Campbell – Guitar
Jimmy Bain – Bass
Vinny Appice – Drums
Claude Schnell – Keyboards
Producer: Ronnie James Dio
Alright! I own a Cold War-era import! I’m guessing the U.S. pressing (where it was released on Warner Bros.) is out of print? Doesn’t matter, owning imports gives you an extra bit of credibility and cool and this is one of the last few Dio album I needed to acquire to make my collection complete.
I’ve read a lot about this album not stacking up to Holy Diver or The Last in Line and that may be true but it doesn’t make Sacred Heart anything to stick your nose up at! In fact, this is pretty good stuff. It’s Dio! How can you go wrong? Just his voice alone makes his albums worth the price of admission and sure he’s criticized for using the same themes over and over again but honestly — what’s wrong with angels, dragons, rock ‘n’ roll and evil women? I’ve listened to this album 4 or 5 times in full since buying it and I haven’t gotten tired of it.
There are a few keyboard-heavy commercial efforts here. Seems a if Dio was trying to replicate “Rainbow in the Dark” with songs like “Rock ‘n’ Roll Children” and “Hungry for Heaven” but that’s okay because I happen to like the songs. They’d be better though without the keyboards and that goes especially for “Hungry for Heaven” which is a catchy rocker but it totally loses its balls when the keys come in.
Dio’s first two albums went platinum and this one only went gold (500,000 copies sold). None of his albums have been certified gold or platinum since. If this is the beginning of any popularity “downfall” for Dio there’s still more than a few good notes here for him to go out on. Quality certainly isn’t the issue as far as I’m concerned. Sacred Heart is a solid release in a long history of them from Dio.
In addition to being Dio’s last flirt with mainstream success, this was guitarist Vivian Campbell’s last album in the group. Vivian joined Whitesnake in 1987 and has enjoyed a cushy job in Def Leppard since 1992.
“Shoot Shoot” is often cited as one of Dio’s worst songs but I don’t see it that way. It’s not great and the lyrics are silly but I don’t think the song is terrible. I guess I’m just not that hard to please when it comes to Dio.
Highlights: “King of Rock ‘N’ Roll”, “Sacred Heart”, “Another Lie”, “Rock ‘N’ Roll Children”, “Hungry for Heaven”
DIO – Dream Evil
Dio – Dream Evil (1987, Warner Bros. Records)
1. “Night People” … 4:06
2. “Dream Evil” … 4:26
3. “Sunset Superman” … 5:45
4. “All the Fools Sailed Away” … 7:10
5. “Naked In The Rain” … 5:09
6. “Overlove” … 3:26
7. “I Could Have Been a Dreamer” … 4:42
8. “Faces in the Window” … 3:53
9. “When a Woman Cries” … 4:43
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Craig Goldy – Guitar
Jimmy Bain – Bass
Vinny Appice – Drums
Claude Schnell – Keyboards
Producer: Ronnie James Dio
I’m not really sure why I put off buying Dio’s solo albums for so long. I’ve never had a problem with the music or the man and I’ve become a HUGE Black Sabbath fan over the last two years. I basically figured Ronnie’s Stand Up and Shout collection was pretty much all I’d ever need but boy was I wrong! Dio is going to be one of those artists for me where I eventually plan on collecting all of his studio albums.
I bought this album the same time I bought Lock Up the Wolves. For whatever reason, I was drawn to Lock Up the Wolves first but now that I’ve backtracked chronologically to this album — I can say as much as I liked Lock Up the Wolves, Dream Evil is much better. Dream Evil is right up there with Holy Diver and The Last in Line as far as classic Dio goes. Perhaps if 1986′s Sacred Heart had stuck to the traditional Dio sound a bit more closely, Dio wouldn’t have already seen such quickly diminishing returns by the time this album was released.
Their really isn’t any filler to be found on this album in my opinion but I have to admit the album’s second single, “I Could Have Been a Dreamer”, is a guilty pleasure. Definitely the slickest most radio-ready song of the bunch but it peaked at No. 33 on the U.S. rock radio charts.
It’s a shame this album started Ronnie’s spiral into obscurity (though it was the gold-status Sacred Heart that did the damage, really) when it comes to the masses because this is a great heavy metal album that stands shoulder to shoulder with the group’s first two efforts.
Highlights: “Night People”, “Dream Evil”, “Sunset Superman”, “All The Fools Sailed Away”, “I Could Have Been a Dreamer”
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DIO – Lock Up The Wolves
Dio – Lock Up The Wolves (2008, Reprise Records)
Original Release: 1990, Reprise Records
1.”Wild One” … 4:02
2.”Born on the Sun” … 5:39
3.”Hey Angel” … 4:59
4.”Between Two Hearts” … 6:27
5.”Night Music” … 5:05
6.”Lock Up The Wolves” … 8:30
7.”Evil on Queen Street” … 6:01
8.”Walk on Water” … 3:42
9.”Twisted” … 4:44
10.”Why Are They Watching Me” … 5:00
11.”My Eyes” … 6:34
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Rowan Robertson – Guitar
Teddy Cook – Bass
Simon Wright – Drums
Jens Johansson – Keyboards
Producer: Tony Platt and Ronnie James Dio
This album is from a reissue series called ‘Flashback’, a line of budget priced titles from artists and labels that fall under the giant umbrella of Warner Bros. Barnes & Noble’s website lists the label releasing this edition as Rhino Entertainment but all I see on the CD and in the liner notes is Reprise Records, so I’m still going with that. Doesn’t really matter though, since both Rhino Entertainment and Reprise are owned by Warner Bros.
To be honest, I never intended to buy this album. I’ve always read mixed reviews on it. For an album with mixed reviews, I never saw a price low enough to warrant the investment. Luckily, these Flashback titles are priced to sell at $5.99 so I couldn’t resist when I saw it at Barnes & Noble and figured it nothing else I’d be getting a cool piece of cover art. The insert folds out to reveal Dio posing with some hair band.
For my tastes, Dio albums (while good) can sometimes be a bit too slow. That’s not really the case here. This album was recorded and released when heavy metal was flashy and more often than not it was accessible to the mainstream as well. Therefore, this release find itself straddling the line between Dio’s typical brand of metal and a more “eighties” metal sound. The results are really enjoyable if not really amazing.
“Wild One” is a fast number and the best choice to open the album. “Born on the Sun”, “Lock Up the Wolves” (Does anyone else think of Back to the Future with those clocks ticking?) and “Hey Angel” are typically epic Dio songs. “My Eyes” is a fun nod to Dio’s past bands and songs. I’m usually a sucker for a song like this from veteran bands.
Definitely worth the $5.99 I paid for it and I think this is an underrated Dio album. I think it probably isn’t favored as much from Dio fans just because it’s a bit more flashy and polished than his albums are usually known to be. There’s some great guitar playing here from Rowan Robertson.
I would have like to have heard more from this line-up that consisted of former AC/DC drummer Simon Wright, wunderkind Rowan Robertson (who went on to do a series of instructional guitar videos and plays in various bands to this day) and Jens Johnasson (who has played in power metal band Stratovarius since 1995). Don’t ask me about Teddy Cook. I don’t know.
Highlights: “Wild One”, “Born on the Sun”, “Hey Angel”, “Night Music”, “Lock Up The Wolves”, “My Eyes”
DIO – Stand Up and Shout: The Anthology
Dio – Stand Up and Shout: The Anthology (2003, Rhino Records)
Disc One:
1. “Hoochie Koochie Lady” … 5:34
2. “I’m Coming Back for You” … 3:28
3. “Carolina County Ball” … 4:47
4. “Man on the Silver Mountain” … 4:39
5. “Starstruck” … 4:07
6. ” Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll” … 4:21
7. ” Neon Knights” … 3:53
8. “Children of the Sea” … 5:34
9. ” Heaven and Hell” … 6:58
10. “Turn Up the Night” … 3:42
11. “The Sign of the Southern Cross” … 7:45
12. “The Mob Rules” … 3:15
13. “Voodoo (live)” … 5:30
14. “Sacred Heart (live)” … 6:28
Disc Two:
1. “Stand Up and Shout” … 3:18
2. “Holy Diver” … 5:51
3. “Don’t Talk to Strangers” … 4:55
4. “Straight Through the Heart” … 4:32
5. “Rainbow in the Dark” … 4:16
6. “We Rock” … 4:35
7. “The Last in Line” … 5:45
8. “Egypt (The Chains Are On)” … 7:01
9. “King of Rock and Roll” … 3:51
10. “Hungry for Heaven” … 4:12
11. “Dream Evil” … 4:24
12. “All the Fools Sailed Away” … 7:13
13. “Lock Up the Wolves” … 8:33
14. “Strange Highways” … 6:52
Musicians:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
(No, I’m not listing 30+ years worth of musicians. You know the bands, you know who played what.)
Spectacular career retrospective of Ronnie James Dio and it isn’t just his solo work that’s featured. This two disc collection covers his work in Elf, Rainbow and Black Sabbath as well. All that’s missing is a few doo-wop songs from his days with the Red Cap and the Prophets! Disc one covers his time in Elf, Rainbow and Sabbath while disc two focuses entirely on the band Dio.
This is hardly the first Dio compilation, but to my knowledge, it is the first to not focus exclusively on his solo career. All of the original songs by the original bands are here (meaning these aren’t re-recordings by Dio and his band), which is awesome. Getting the Sabbath songs on the album probably wasn’t too hard because Rhino is a part of Warner Bros. (the longtime label of Black Sabbath), but Elf was released under Epic Records (owned by Sony) and Rainbow comes from Polydor Records (owned by Universal). So Kudos to Rhino Entertainment for working with three separate labels to give us a truly wonderful career overview of one of rock’s most amazing singers.
It’s evident from “Hoochie Koochie Lady” to “Strange Highways” that Ronnie’s voice has not faltered through the decades. Ronnie James Dio defies time itself! In fact, if anything, his voice has better more rich and powerful as time soldiers on. The only gripe I can have about this album is that “Computer God” is the only song from Dehumanizer. That album was great! “Voodoo” is from Sabbath’s Live Evil and I’m assuming the live version of “Sacred Heart” comes from Intermission.
I wanted to pick this album up when it was first released because I was just then beginning to take an interest in Black Sabbath and Dio, but I held off because I think the album was $25-30 at the time and I wasn’t sure if I would even like it. I picked it up a year or two later at Walmart for $13. I’m sure this album can probably be found for that same price or maybe even less these days.
Sometimes referred to as The Dio Anthology: Stand Up and Shout or Stand Up and Shout: The Dio Anthology.
DIO – Magica & Killing the Dragon
Dio – Magica & Killing the Dragon (2007, Snapper Music – German Import)
Fantastic import because it is a two-disc set featuring Magica (2000) and Killing the Dragon (2002) and I picked it up online brand new for only $10. These albums had been on my “I”ll get to it someday” wish list since they were first released. I hadn’t had a full sampling of Dio’s music yet earlier this decade and I knew both albums had positive reviews at the time of their release. I couldn’t pass this up when I saw it listed. I like the album art, incorporationg both albums, but I would have also liked a more prominent representation of the original albums’ art. All we get are two TINY thumbnails of each album’s full cover on the back of the booklet insert!
Let’s break down each disc…
Disc 1: Magica (Original Release: 2000, Spitfire Records)
1. “Discovery” … 0:54
2. “Magica Theme” … 1:16
3. “Lord of the Last Day” … 4:04
4. “Fever Dreams” … 4:37
5. “Turn to Stone” … 5:19
6. “Feed My Head” … 5:39
7. “Ebeil” … 7:25
8. “Challis” … 4:25
9. “As Long as It’s Not About Love” … 6:04
10. “Losing My Insanity” … 5:04
11. “Otherworld” … 4:56
12. “Magica (Reprise)”… 1:53
13. “Lord of the Last Day (Reprise)” (Dio) … 1:44
14. “Magica Story” … 18:26
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Craig Goldy – Guitar
Jimmy Bain – Bass
Simon Wright – Drums
Scott Warren – Keyboards
Produced by: Ronnie James Dio
Magica is a concept album, a “science fiction tale of the future”. It’s good vs. evil and Dio’s singing about it. What more do you really need to know to get on board?
I personally think the album is a bit bogged down with instrumentals, reprises and spoken word pieces (there’s only 9 legit songs here), but all of the songs are rock solid and at least the tracks that are there only to flesh out the “concept” are fairly short. Well, “Magica Story” is extremely long. It’s Ronnie telling the tale of “Magica”. That’s interesting, but thankfully, it was included as the last track in order to skip it quite easily. =)
Overall, this is definitely one of Dio’s finer moments. I think it is similar to Master of the Moon in that it doesn’t have a lot of fast rockers, but these trudging numbers are so heavy and scream “classic Dio” so loud that it doesn’t even matter.
Veteran Dio guitarist Craig Goldy made his return with this album.
Highlights: “Lord of the Last Day”, “Fever Dreams”, “Turn to Stone”, “Feed My Head”, “Ebeil”, “Challis”
Disc 2: Killing the Dragon (Original Release: 2002, Spitfire Records)
1. “Killing the Dragon” … 4:25
2. “Along Comes a Spider” … 3:32
3. “Scream” … 5:02
4. “Better in the Dark” … 3:43
5. “Rock & Roll” … 6:11
6. “Push” … 4:08
7. “Guilty” … 4:25
8. “Throw Away Children” … 5:35
9. “Before the Fall” … 3:48
10. “Cold Feet” … 4:11
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Doug Aldrich – Guitar
Jimmy Bain – Bass, Keyboards
Simon Wright – Drums
Additional Musicians:
Scott Warren – Keyboards (“Before the Fall”)
King Harbour Children’s Choir — Chorus (“Throw Away Children”)
Produced by: Ronnie James Dio
This isn’t a concept album, but a bit of Dio’s fascination with the future & technology carries over from Magica as he has said the dragon in “Killing the Dragon” is meant to be technology.
Anyway, this album is another great moment in Dio’s career and one of his top albums, in my opinion. Not sure where guitarist Craig Goldy went, even though he has a few songwriting credits here. He played on Magica, skipped out on this album, then came back for 2004′s Master of the Moon. Doesn’t really matter though because his replacement here is the amazing Doug Aldrich. I was fortunate enough to catch Doug live with Whitesnake in 2009 and he’s gotta be one of the rock’s top active guitarists.
Back to this album, maybe Dio realized Magica was a plodding beast (heavy and solid, but plodding) because Killing the Dragon doesn’t have that problem. The tempo is a bit faster and some of Dio’s best numbers roost here. “Killing the Dragon” is a great opener and “Scream” is just too catchy. Who wouldn’t love a song featuring Dio screaming “SCREEEEAM”?
“Cold Feet” is my favorite song from the album (yes, I know it is a mid-tempo number). It’s got a great classic rock vibe and I like the use of keyboards in it.
An even better release than Magica. And Magica is nothing to stick your nose up at.
Highlights: “Killing the Dragon”, “Scream”, “Better in the Dark”, “Push”, “Guilty”, “Cold Feet”
DIO – Master of the Moon
Dio – Master of the Moon (2004, Sanctuary Records)
Track Listing:
1. “One More For The Road” … 3:17
2. “Master Of The Moon” … 4:19
3. “The End Of The World” … 4:39
4. “Shivers” … 4:16
5. “The Man Who Would Be King” … 4:59
6. “The Eyes” … 6:27
7. “Living The Lie” … 4:26
8. “I Am” … 5:00
9. “Death By Love” … 4:22
10. “In Dreams” … 4:26
Band:
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Craig Goldy – Guitar, Keyboards
Jeff Pilson – Bass
Simon Wright – Drums
Scott Warren – Keyboards
Produced by: Ronnie James Dio
One of the greatest covers… ever! I absolutely love it, it’s such an 80s metal cover and I’ve got no qualms with that.
I was initially disappointed by this album, as were many reviewers at the time of its release, with the slower numbers on this album. Sure, it sounds like Dio all the way through (don’t worry, it’s not an album of lame ballads), but there’s not much here to get you pumped up outside of the album’s opener (and my favorite song from this album), “One More For The Road”. Dio’s voice is just as strong as ever here on this song and the entire album for that matter.
It’s held up fairly well though from the past few years. Not a great Dio album, but certainly good and worth a listen, but it doesn’t hold a candle to his earlier material.
My biggest remembrance of this album is listening to it while on the run from Hurricane Ivan in 2004, with my family and my fiancee. Yikes!
Highlights: “One More for the Road”, “Master of the Moon”, “The Eyes”, “Death By Love”, “In Dreams”
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