“A Decade of Dio: 1983-1993”
Dio
Rhino
Producer: Ronnie James Dio, Tony Platt, Mike Fraser
Discs: 6
Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Legendary vocalist Ronnie James Dio may have passed away in 2010 however that has not stopped his legacy and music from living on. Thanks to Rhino Entertainment fans of the former Elf, Rainbow and Black Sabbath front man can experience “A Decade of Dio: 1983-1993”. The six album collection focuses on the first 10 years of Ronnie’s solo career which he embarked on in 1983. Remastered and packaged in a sleek box set featuring brand new artwork from Marc Sasso, the artist who was responsible for many of the band’s iconic covers.
The latest offering from Rhino Entertainment “A Decade of Dio: 1983-1993” isn’t just a collection of greatest hits. Instead you get the first 6 albums from Ronnie James Dio’s solo career in their entirety. Remastered and repackaged complete with replica inserts “Holy Diver”, “The Last In Line”, “Sacred Heart”, “Dream Evil”, “Lock Up The Wolves”, and “Strange Highways” all sound just as good as the originals. However I was a little disappointed at the remastering process as it didn’t seem to add anything to mix. If anything the remastering added a layer of thinness that was a bit shrill on the ears at time. Thankfully Ronnie and his bands performances are so strong on the included albums that you can easily get past the sonic shortcomings and enjoy the track for what it is. Tracks like “Last In Line”, “Egypt (The Chains Are On)” and “Gypsy” were some of my personal favorites while classics like “Stand Up and Shout”, “Holy Diver” and “Rainbow in the Dark” are always a fun listen.
If you already have these albums then there probably isn’t enough offered in this package to warrant purchasing them again. However for those looking to bolster their Dio collection then this set is worth its weight in gold. The recreated front and back album art and inserts is nice little feature as when you open up the main box it’s as if your getting 6 miniature LP’s. I think it would have been nice if the set came with a book providing background info/photos on the releases as I feel that would have given a little incentive to those who already have some of these albums to pick up this package. None the less still a cool offering, the set is available now on CD and will be released on vinyl October 4th.
Disc 1: “Holy Diver”
1.) Stand Up And Shout
2.) Holy Diver
3.) Gypsy
4.) Caught In The Middle
5.) Don’t Talk To Stranger
6.) Straight Through The Heart
7.) Invisible
8.) Rainbow In The Dark
9.) Shame On The Night
Disc 2: “The Last In Line”
1.) We Rock
2.) The Last In Line
3.) Breathless
4.) I Speed At Night
5.) One Night In The City
6.) Evil Eyes
7.) Mystery
8.) Eat Your Heart Out
9.) Egypt (The Chains Are On)
Disc 3: “Sacred Heart”
1.) King of Rock And Roll
2.) Sacred Heart
3.) Another Lie
4.) Rock N’ Roll Children
5.) Hungry For Heaven
6.) Like The Beat Of A Heart
7.) Just Another Day
8.) Fallen Angels
9.) Shoot Shoot
Disc 4: “Dream Evil”
1.) Night People
2.) Dream Evil
3.) Sunset Superman
4.) All The Fools Sailed Away
5.) Naked In The Rain
6.) Overlove
7.) I Could Have Been A Dreamer
8.) Faces In The Window
9.) When A Woman Cries
Disc 5: “Lock Up The Wolves”
1.) Wild One
2.) Born On The Sun
3.) Hey Angel
4.) Between Two Hearts
5.) Night Music
6.) Lock Up The Wolves
7.) Evil On Queen Street
8.) Walk On Water
9.) Twisted
10.) Why Are They Watching Me
11.) My Eyes
Disc 6: “Strange Highways”
1.) Jesus, Mary & The Holy Ghost
2.) Firehead
3.) Strange Highways
4.) Hollywood Black
5.) Evilution
6.) Pain
7.) One Foot In The Grave
8.) Give Her The Gun
9.) Blood From A Stone
10.) Here’s To You
11.) Bring Down The Rain
