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I normally don't like "greatest hits" albums due to the fact that a lot of the chosen tracks are very subjective. There will always be a few tracks that make you wonder why the hell they were placed on the album at all. I am of the opinion that these types of albums are more for someone that is new to the music rather than a long time fan. I fall into the latter category. Ronnie James Dio was there from the beginning of my descent into metal music, his music sort of opened the door so to speak and I walked through it and have been listening to metal music for 18 years now.

Although I am not new to his music this compilation album is actually pretty good all things considered. The first 11 of the 16 tracks are all from the first three albums. It seems to focus more on his earlier work which is a bonus for me considering I am of the opinion that his first three albums (Holy Diver, The Last In Line and Sacred Heart) are by far some of his best work with Holy Diver being a certified classic that all metal fans should have in their collection. The rest are all from albums that were ok but not nearly at the same level as his previous work. There is nothing new here for someone that has been a fan since the beginning however this is absolutely great for someone just getting into Dio's musical legacy. If you are new to his music what you will find here is one of the very best vocalist's in the metal world with music that has great guitar work throughout and songs that will stick in your head from the very first time you listen to them. One of the things I always enjoyed about Dio is the way he is able to use his voice to portray emotion. If the song is slow and sad his voice sounds like it and he is able to transfer that to the listener. One other thing I really enjoyed is the lyrics. Dio is just absolutely brilliant when it comes to writing lyrics from the straightforward type such as "Stand Up and Shout" to the symbolic such as "Rainbow in the Dark".

Overall I would say if you are new to this incredible talent jump on this and you will certainly not be disappointed. For the rest of us fans from the beginning we already have all these songs anyway so it really doesn't offer anything new.

Track by track

Stand Up and Shout-9.5
Holy Diver-9
Rainbow in the Dark-9
Straight through the Heart-8
We Rock-9
The Last in Line-9.5
Mystery-8.5
King of Rock and Roll-9.5
Sacred Heart-8.5
Hungry For Heaven-8.5
Rock 'N' Roll Children-8
Man on the Silver Mountain(Live)-8
Dream Evil-7
I Could Have Been A Dreamer-7
Lock up the Wolves-7
Strange Highways-6.5