Ronnie James Dio has issued quite a few live albums and videos since departing from Black Sabbath in the early '80s, but as evidenced by its title, 2006's Holy Diver Live is a bit different. Keeping in step with a phenomenon started in the '90s with veteran rock acts performing a classic album in its entirety, Dio revisited his 1983 solo debut, Holy Diver. Recorded at the Astoria in London on October 22, 2005 (not 1995, as the CD booklet erroneously lists), the double-disc set also includes a second disc comprised of highlights from Dio's Rainbow and Black Sabbath days, as well as a pair of tracks from another strong early solo release, 1984's The Last in Line. Dio is in fine voice all these years later (something that can certainly not be said of the majority of rock singers his age who have to rely on backing vocalists or prerecorded tapes), as evidenced by such standouts as "Rainbow in the Dark," "Holy Diver," "Heaven and Hell," and "Tarot Woman." And headbangers worldwide have to be happy whenever the woefully underrated Dio/Sabbath-era gem "Sign of the Southern Cross" gets an airing on-stage. Despite guitarist Craig Goldy not performing on this night (due to an arm injury, Doug Aldrich took his place), Holy Diver Live is quite possibly Dio's finest live album yet -- from both a performance and set-list standpoint. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide
What's wrong with you terds? This is live and live isn't always butt perfect but the listening experience and joy of live music is! I think you all need to go to more live concerts straight and experience the joy of being there and remembering what you saw or heard! Dio rules along with ALL live music!!!
Dont buy this ablum, rumors of dio being suck during this recording are rampant, so just ignore it and lets pretend it never ever existed. P.S. he sounds really good in Heaven And Hell
It isn't uncommon for vocalists, especially hard rock/metal vocalists to lose some range and crispness from their voices as they get older. The Robert Plant of today cannot touch the one from 1975. Geddy Lee from Rush doesn't even attempt to hit some of the screeches he ripped out on 2112 anymore. Dio fans should be glad he is still out there belting it out even if his voice has lost a few decibels.
Ya, I noticed the rough voice right away and had to check to see if it was Dio singing in Dios live album. But I saw him live about 1.5 years after that recording and he sounded crisp and clear just as he sounded 20 years ago, so go figure.
I'm a big fan of Dio. I have everything from Rainbow, Elf and black Sabbath to his solo stuff and seen every concert he's done including the reunion of b/s and everytime I see him in concert he gets better and better as he gets older. That voice of his reminds me of Robert Plants-ageless
This cued up for me while I had the window closed. My first thought was to open the window to see who was covering Dio. When I saw it WAS Dio, I opened the album notes to see when, and what's wrong with him. Gotta say, I was surprised to see Prato's, "Dio is in fine voice all these years later.." If he's trying to say the voice is OK, then I'd agree. To call it fine, in comparison to the younger days, is a stretch.
badybee you couldn't be further from the truth in regards to Dio's voice. Just saw him this past August....vocals were simply amazing. I imagine every lead singer will have an off night here and there - what a beating the voice takes. But Ronnie was superb, in perfect form.
Awsome to hear the whole albulm although Dios' voice is strained what they should of did was take various perfomances of the songs at different concerts the title track sounds lousy as do other songs but like i said great to hear the whole albulm
I don't know why, but always, when Dio releases live recordings, the selections sound strained. Heaven & Hell in New York is a perfect example -- Ronnie had a bad cold during that part of the tour. When he reached the west coast, he sounded amazing. To hear how he currently sounds live, try YouTube. He doesn't reach the high notes of his Rainbow days as *often* anymore, but the croon's still sweet, and the roar is absolutely as deep as ever.
the guitarist and bassist in dio's band tuned down a whole step so that dio would not have to sing so high. i think the tuning down sounds cool,very heavy, but it does indeed make the vocals sound different as a result of singing all notes a whole step lower.