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Posts tagged Vivian Campbell
Dio – Live at Donington UK (1983-87) (@256)
01 Jan 2012
(Review from bbc.co.uk)
When former Black Sabbath and Rainbow frontman Ronnie James Dio exploded out of the gate with a formidable new band and a simply awesome new album, he was an artist reborn. The year was 1983 and the band – simply christened Dio – were on fire, as the album – the immaculate, immortal Holy Diver – so ably attested. Rather than become jaded by acrimonious splits with both his former bands, Dio turned his trials into triumphs and when Dio the band arrived on UK shores for the first time, the setting simply couldn’t have been more magnificent.
The 1980s were the Monsters of Rock’s glory years, taking place in Doningtom. In 1983 Dio had their first taste of success. With just one ‘solo’ album to call upon, Dio delved into his illustrious past to assemble a set as replete with metal standards as it was with future classics. Today, Dio tunes such as Stand Up and Shout, Rainbow in the Dark and Holy Diver can hold their own alongside Sabbath’s epic Heaven and Hell or Rainbow’s jaw-dropping set piece Stargazer; in 83 Dio were really throwing down the gauntlet by daring to perform new, untested material back-to-back with songs that’d sold millions. As a result, the band’s Donington 83 set is simply electric.
Even if it hadn’t been a decidedly damp and miserable afternoon, their return to the Donington stage in 1987 was never likely to eclipse the sheer energy of their debut appearance. New numbers such as Dream Evil and Naked in the Rain show Dio holding steady rather than racing ahead. That said, the band – complete with new guitarist Craig Goldy on his maiden show – are as razor-sharp and rampant as four years previously, riding high on the huge successes of the intervening period.
This double-disc is a trip down memory lane, one disc recordings from 1983, the second from 1987. There’s a fair bit of track duplication between both recordings but, with Vivian Campbell strutting his stuff in 1983 and the aforementioned Goldy taking over in 1987, there’s also plenty of contrast.
Line-up:
- Ronnie James Dio / Vocals
- Vivian Campbell / Guitar (CD1)
- Craig Goldy / Guitar (CD2)
- Jimmy Bain / Bass
- Vinny Appice / Drums
- Claude Schnell / Keyboards
Track List:
CD1 (1983)
01. Stand Up And Shout – 3:49
02. Straight Through The Heart – 4:49
03. Children Of The Sea – 6:15
04. Rainbow In The Dark – 4:38
05. Holy Diver – 5:08
06. Drum Solo – 0:41
07. Stargazer – 1:42
08. Guitar Solo – 1:38
09. Heaven And Hell (Long Live Version) – 11:05
10. Man On The Silver Mountain – 3:32
11. Starstruck – 0:47
12. Man On The Silver Mountain (Reprise) – 2:29
CD2 (1987)
01. Dream Evil – 4:56
02. Neon Knights – 4:43
03. Naked In The Rain – 7:28
04. Rock And Roll Children – 2:46
05. Long Live Rock And Roll – 4:39
06. The Last In Line – 4:12
07. Children Of The Sea – 1:22
08. Holy Diver – 1:27
09. Heaven And Hell (Long Live Version) – 3:18
10. Man On The Silver Mountain – 4:28
11. All The Fools Sailed Away – 4:23
12. The Last In Line (Reprise) – 1:11
13. Rainbow In The Dark – 5:11
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Dio – Intermission (Live 1986) (@256)
04 Nov 2008
Thanks to Man in Silence for the review contribution.
(Review from amazon, wikipedia)
Intermission is an EP the band released in 1986. The live songs were recorded with Vivian Campbell during the first leg of the Sacred Heart tour. Craig Goldy replaced Campbell, and the band wanted something to represent the new lineup, so they recorded “Time to Burn” with him in studio, and it was added to the album.
All 5 live recordings sound great and are of very high quality. The Rock ‘N’ Roll Children Medley is the most awesome, as it contains Man on the Silver Mountain, a classic tune from Dio’s “Rainbow” days done faster and up to date (for the 1986 that is).
“Time To Burn” is an excellent surprise, a new studio track stuck in the middle of all the live tracks.
Fans who had been hoping for a double-live album were somewhat disappointed with this release, especially as the guitar-parts of the now-departed Campbell seem low in the mix. Though, “Intermission” was popular at its time, because it was the only to get some live Dio.
Line-up:
* Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
* Vivian Campbell – Guitar Solos
* Jimmy Bain – Bass
* Claude Schnell – Keyboards
* Vinny Appice – Drums
* Craig Goldy – Guitar (4) & over-dubbed rhythm guitar (1-3,5,6)
Track List:
01. King Of Rock And Roll – 3:41
02. Rainbow In The Dark – 4:42
03. Sacred Heart – 6:23
04. Time To Burn (Studio) – 4:26
05. Rock ‘n’ Roll Children – 9:40
06. We Rock – 4:55
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Dio – Sacred Heart (1985) (@256)
04 Nov 2008
Thanks to Man in Silence for the review contribution.
(Review from amazon)
Sure, you could argue that Dio’s style has remained fairly constant and he does not have a tendency to “grow” stylistically. But one thing for sure: this is one guy who knows how to rock. On Sacred Heart, he cranks out 9 great tunes, and he makes it seem easy. The truth is, while these songs do not shock you with stunning originality, they still rock you to the core. This music is not emotionally moving, but that’s not the point!! The point is that it is hard rock, and it does just that: it rocks hard.
The best song on the album is definitely the title track, “Sacred Heart.” It is in the vein of the title tracks of his two previous albums, “Holy Diver” and “Last in Line”. It is a slower, more epic composition, and it dominates. Other highlights are “King of Rock and Roll” and “Another Lie”.
The band is in top form, as usual. The new keyboardist, Claude Schnell, is pretty cool; his sounds add a whole new element to the band’s music. Sometimes they sound downright evil: check out the main riff to “Like the Beat of a Heart.” And of course, Vivian Campbell tears it up on guitar.
Dio is one of the great voices of hard rock. Although he has more popular albums than “Sacred Heart”, it still seems that he can do no wrong.
Line-up:
* Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
* Vivian Campbell – Guitar
* Jimmy Bain – Bass
* Claude Schnell – Keyboards
* Vinny Appice – Drums
Track List:
01. King of Rock and Roll – 3:43
02. Sacred Heart – 6:27
03. Another Lie – 3:49
04. Rock’n'Roll Children – 4:32
05. Hungry For Heaven – 4:11
06. Like The Beat Of A Heart – 4:20
07. Just Another Day – 3:21
08. Fallen Angels – 3:58
09. Shoot Shoot – 4:16
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Dio – Last in Line (1984) (@256)
02 Nov 2008
Thanks to Man In Silence for the review contribution.
(Review from amazon)
Holy Diver was an excellent debut from Dio, and this album, just a year later, continued to show Dio at full glory.
The album kicks off with one of heavy metal’s top ever openers – “We Rock”. And indeed it rocks. This is the classic type of metal opener you’d imagine: fast, furious and it rocks! The title track is next, and is the highlight of the album. “Breathless” is next and is a good metal song, quite fast, decent chorus, and strong solos. “I Speed At Night” has some great solos, and has an extemely cool riff.
“One Night In The City” is a mid-tempo song with some strong riffs, that would best be compared to ‘Shame On The Night’
from the previous album (nothing to do with the ‘night’ though). “Evil Eyes” is another short and fast rocker, sort of like “Gypsy”, with strong lines throughout, very good. “Mystery” is a ballad, with some good keyboard work by Dio himself. Its slow but manages to stay solid. It reminds you a little of “Rainbow In The Dark”. “Eat Your Heart Out” is a nice mid-tempo song, with nice solos by Vivian Campbell, once again.
The closing song is Dio’s soon-to-be famous ballad – Egypt (The Chains Are On). It’s a slow song, but has excellent crunching riffs, great lyrics, and is a real classic.
Line-up:
* Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
* Vivian Campbell – Guitar
* Jimmy Bain – Bass
* Vinny Appice – Drums
with
* Claude Schnell – Keyboards
Track List:
01. We Rock – 4:35
02. The Last In Line – 5:47
03. Breathless – 4:09
04. I Speed At Night – 3:22
05. One Night In The City – 5:16
06. Evil Eyes – 3:38
07. Mystery – 3:58
08. Eat Your Heart Out – 3:50
09. Egypt (The Chains Are On) – 6:57
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Dio – Holy Diver (1983) (@320)
24 Jun 2007
(Review from allmusic.com, wikipedia)
After participating in five classic studio albums (three with Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow and two with Black Sabbath) in the late ’70s and early ’80s, legendary vocalist Ronnie James Dio formed a band bearing his own name in 1983. Dio states that he never intended to begin a solo career. His intention was to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath member drummer Vinny Appice. Naming the band Dio made sense from a commercial standpoint, as the name was already well-known at that time.
With the release of his self-monickered band’s debut album, Holy Diver, in 1983, Dio struck gold once again by injecting catchy melodies into the classic metal riffery of his previous groups. Besides Dio’s inspired songwriting, the album’s consistency owes a lot to his carefully chosen bandmates, including veteran bassist Jimmy Bain and drummer Vinny Appice, and a phenomenal find in young guitarist Vivian Campbell, whose creativity and technique are quite astounding. The album opens in full-tilt metal mode with the frenetic “Stand Up and Shout,” which segues into the epic title track, an album highlight thanks to it’s hypnotic, mid-paced riff. Dio himself plays keyboards (badly) on the hit single “Rainbow in the Dark,” and the remaining cuts range from further stabs at pop-metal (“Gypsy,” “Caught in the Middle”) to blatant metal anthems (“Straight Through the Heart,” “Invisible”). These two facets find a perfect balance on the excellent “Don’t Talk to Strangers,” arguably the album’s high point.
Dio quickly became one of the world’s top heavy-metal acts. In the late ’80s, lineup changes unsettled the group, but the tenacious frontman persevered, leading Dio into the 21st century still waving its classic headbanging flag high.
Line-up:
* Ronnie James Dio – Vocals, Keyboards
* Vivian Campbell – Guitar
* Jimmy Bain – Bass, Keyboards
* Vinny Appice – Drums
Track List:
01. Stand Up and Shout (Ronnie James Dio, Jimmy Bain) – 3:06
02. Holy Diver (Dio) – 5:51
03. Gypsy (Dio, Vivian Campbell) – 3:39
04. Caught in the Middle (Dio, Vinny Appice, Campbell) – 4:14
05. Don’t Talk to Strangers (Dio) – 4:53
06. Straight Through the Heart (Dio, Bain) – 4:31
07. Invisible (Dio, Appice, Campbell) – 5:24
08. Rainbow in the Dark (Dio, Appice, Bain, Campbell) – 4:21
09. Shame on the Night (Dio, Appice, Bain, Campbell) – 5:20
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