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 25th 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 13th 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.