UAWIL #181: Dio - The Last In Line

The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast

Listeners of our show know that The Wolf loves Ronnie James Dio and his epic voice. We've done past episodes on his time in Sabbath (UAWIL #13), the Dreamers Never Die bio-pic/documentary (UAWIL #98) and last year's Holy Diver at 40 (UAWIL #129). So as Dio's sophomore effort turns 40 in 2024, we took the opportunity to celebrate Ronnie's voice and dive into The Last In Line.

With the same lineup as Holy Diver - Vivian Campbell - guitar, Jimmy Bain - bass, Vinnie Appice - drums - Ronnie sought to recapture the magic from the first album. And with stadium rockers like We Rock, Egypt (The Chains Are On) and the title track, the band showed progress while keeping in touch with the anthemic rock that got them where they were. But are songs like Breathless and Evil Eyes really Dio songs? Are could they have been released by any hard rock band of the era? While The Last In Line showcases Ronnie's voice in a way that no one else could ever sing the song, some of the tracks on the album don't seem to hold up to the same standard. Vivian Campbell is glorious throughout the album with some thrashing solos and a touch of Eddie Van Halen here and there. Vinnie and Jimmy provide the devastating beat that makes this a hard rock classic and Ronnie's vocals are as strong as ever. But should they have taken more time to hone down the songs? Should they have spent more money on the videos? We dive into all those questions to celebrate Ronnie and The Last In Line at 40.

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