I still remember the buzz on Dio's debut Holy Diver before its original release. There was a genuine sense of excitement given that Dio was of heavy metal royalty coming off a successful stint with Black Sabbath (not to mention Rainbow of course). Dio himself was going on and on about how Vivian Campbell was basically the next Randy Rhoads. And backed up by hard rock veterans like Jimmy Bain and Vinny Appice, there seemed to be no chance of a failed effort. So I bought the LP the first day it hit the shelves. I liked it. I didn't love it - nope - but I did enjoy it. It just didn't knock my socks off. It really didn't move the needle forward in the innovation category. Just a solid set of mid tempo metal anthems, a bit more tight and contemporary than Sabbath or Rainbow, but nonetheless the influences were similar. Eventually I moved the LP out and hadn't thought about the album in 20 years probably (as evidenced by my omission of a rating here until now). Time has passed, and nostalgia has kicked in. $5 will net one a new (original pressing) CD, so why not revisit? With rose colored glasses on of course. The result? Pretty much what I remember. Except I get more of a time and place kicker from it now. Solid early 80s metal from one of the captains of the industry. Every home should own one.
Ownership: LP: 1983 Warner Bros. Single sleeve with picture inner. Purchased from a local offline dealer (2022) for a bargain of a price (same guy as High 'N' Dry and many others to be announced). This replaces the commodity CD mentioned in the review above.
5/20/14 (RYM); 8/21/22 (new entry with LP acquisition)
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