aaamusic | On 06, Feb 2012

In May 2010 the world of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal lost one of its most gifted and fervent ambassadors, with the passing of Ronnie James Dio. In his position as lead vocalist for Rock giants such as Rainbow and Black Sabbath, as well as fronting his own eponymous band for nearly three decades, Dio created some of the genres most defining and respected works. Albums such as ‘Holy Diver’, ‘Sacred Heart’ and ‘Last in Line’ all stand as towering monuments of sheer class and brilliance in the Rock pantheon. Dio was also to pave the way in regards to performing live, as few equaled him. With his incredible vocal range, Dio was to preside over countless memorable rock shows, enthralling his millions of fans worldwide. As well as the original CD being re-mastered, these reissues each feature a bonus CD containing an expanded booklet with notes from Malcolm Dome and has been endorsed by Ronnie’s widow Wendy Dio.

 

‘Holy Diver’ was the debut album from Dio, released 25^th May, 1983. It was hailed by critics as some of his best work and in January 1986 it was awarded Silver certification. The upbeat sounding ‘Rainbow in the Dark’ was to catch MTV’s attention, with the title track also standing out.

 

‘The Last in Line’ was the second Dio studio album. It was released on 13^th July, 1984 and was the first album from Dio to reach Platinum status as well as number 4 in the UK charts. This new album showcased the anthemic  tracks ‘We Rock’ and ‘I Speed at Night’ as well as the seven-minute epic, ‘Egypt ( The Chains are On)’.

 

Released in October 1985 ‘Sacred Heart’ was released as the third studio album from Dio. The album reached number 4 in the UK charts and was to go on to be certified Gold. This was to become Dio’s most well known album and contained the tracks ‘Rock N’ Roll Children’ and ‘Hungry for Heaven’. The stage show that was to accompany this album was hailed as a spectacle, involving a mechanised dragon as well as laser’s. Ronnie and his band were to refer to the dragon as Denzil. This was the last studio album to be released by Dio that included guitarist Vivian Campbell.

 

Holy Diver

 

Disc one

 

• Stand Up And Shout
• Holy Diver
• Gypsy
• Caught In The Middle
• Don’t Talk To Strangers
• Straight Through The Heart
• Invisible
• Rainbow In The Dark
• Shame On The Night

Disc two

• Evil Eyes
• Stand Up And Shout
• Straight Through The Heart
• Stand Up And Shout
• Shame On The Night
• Children Of The Sea
• Holy Diver
• Rainbow In The Dark
• Man On The Silver Mountain

Last In Line

 

 

Disc one

 

• We Rock
• The Last In Line
• Breathless
• I Speed at Night
• One Night In The City
• Evil Eyes
• Mystery
• Eat Your Heart Out
• Egypt (The Chains Are On)

 

Disc two

 

• Stand Up And Shout – Live – B-Side Last In Line
• Straight Through The Heart – Live – B-Side Last In Line
• Eat Your Heart Out  – Live – Mystery
• Don’t Talk To Strangers – Live – Mystery
• Holy Diver – Live – B-Side We Rock
• Rainbow In The Dark – Live – B-Side We Rock
• One Night In The City – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• We Rock – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Holy Diver – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Stargazer – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Heaven And Hell – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Rainbow In The Dark – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Man On The Silver Mountain – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen
• Don’t Talk To Strangers – Pinkpop Festival, Geleen

 

Sacred Heart

Disc one

• King Of Rock N Roll
• Sacred Heart
• Another Lie
• Rock N Roll Children
• Hungry For Heaven
• Like the Beat Of A Heart
• Just Another Day
• Fallen Angels
• Shoot Shoot

Disc two

 

• Hide In The Rainbow – Dio EP
• We Rock – Live – B-Side Rock N Roll Children
• Last In Line – Live – B-Side Rock N Roll Children
• Like the Beat Of A Heart   – Live – B-Side Hungry For Heaven
• King Of Rock N Roll – Intermission
• Rainbow In The Dark – Intermission
• Sacred Heart   – Intermission
• Time To Burn – Intermission
• Rock N Roll Children   – Intermission
• Long Live Rock N Roll – Intermission
• Man On The Silver Mountain – Intermission
• We Rock – Intermission