Holy Diver was an excellent debut from Dio, and this album, just a year later, continued to show
Dio at full glory. Still, I think most people would agree that it does fall a bit short of Holy Diver,
but still it ranks very high. The album kicks off with one of heavy metal's top ever openers - We Rock.
And indeed it rocks. This is the classic type of metal opener you'd imagine: fast, furious and it rocks!
Excellent. The title track is next, and is the highlight of the album. The Last In Line for me is one
of Dio's top-3 songs ever, along with Holy Diver and Rainbow In The Dark, both from the previous album.
Everything is perfect about this song, and I think it would be correct to categorize it as something
between Holy Diver and Rainbow In The Dark, great stuff! Breathless is next and is a good metal song,
quite fast, decent chorus, and strong solo's. I Speed At Night has some of metal's best solo's, and
has an extemely cool riff. One Night In The City is a mid-tempo song with some strong riffs, that would
best be compared to 'Shame On The Night' from the previous album (nothing to do with the 'night' though).
Evil Eyes is another short and fast rocker, sort of like Gypsy, with strong lines throughout, very good. Mystery is a ballad, with some good keyboard work by Ronnie himself. Its slow but manages to stay solid.
It reminds you a little of Rainbow In The Dark, but surely not of that caliber. Eat Your Heart Out
is a nice mid-tempo song, with nice solo's by Vivian Campbell, once again.
The closing song is Dio's best ballad - Egypt (The Chains Are On). Its a slow song, but has excellent
crunching riffs, great lyrics, and is a real classic. At the same year Iron Maiden released
'Powerslave' which also deals with the same subject, has roughly the same length, and is also an excellent
song, interesting. In conclusion this is a very solid metal album. Not as good as Holy Diver, because some of the tracks
are just missing that energy crunch that was vivid throughout almost all of Holy Diver.
But its still a must for all Dio fans for sure, and for all serious metallists as well.
Excellent musicanship, and Dio has never reached this level of music ever since.
Highly recommended.
First and foremost, I am a longtime Dio fanatic, as I am sure you probably are if you're shopping for this album. This remaster is definitely worth the money; The Last in Line has always been a masterpiece marred my poor engineering. The 1984 issue of the album sounded great on tape, back when we didn't know any better. The CD version? Well, what was supposed to sound dark and epic came across as weak and tinny, with all the raucous gusto of a nasal bleat.
This Japanese remaster of The Last in Line captures all of the mix you could almost but not quite hear before, adding some much-needed low end punch to the mix. The opening chords of "We Rock" hit you with the sonic equivalent of a kick to the temple from a steel-toed work boot. You can hear all -- and I mean ALL -- of Vivian Campbell's nuances on the guitar, from harmonics to whammy bar divebombs that were previously lost to the drums. Jimmy Bain's bass playing comes forward in stunning clarity, yet doesn't drown out the rest of the mix. And, of course, Vinny Appice's drumming sounds better than ever; you can tell you're listening to cymbals and not recording hiss. Of course, bear in mind, the original tapes were done in 1983-84, and you can tell by Ronnie's vocals, but I feel that it adds a certain charm.
Overall, the remaster adds some badly needed air to the studio. If you listen closely during "Breathless," you can hear Vivian's amplifier hum. You can actually distinguish what he's playing now as well, which, for a guitarist such as myself, is nigh to a religious experience. This disc puts the spotlight back on the whole band, rather than just Ronnie. Give it a listen, and you can see why Vivian Campbell was one of the few men who could be considered Randy Rhoads' contemporary counterpart. A must for hardcore fans and collectors, and probably not a bad idea for a casual fan who doesn't already have the original.
After a classic like Holy Diver, how could you come up with an album as awesome? Well...Dio came very close with his second album The Last In Line. Very metal! Vivian is still wailing and Ronnie is still in peak form and aside from a few soft spots, this album has classic metal written all over it. We Rock, The Last In Line, One Night In The City, I Speed At Night, Breathless, Eat Your Heart Out & Egypt (The Chains Are On) all rock on every level. Mystery is a little too reminiscent of Rainbow In The Dark & Evil Eyes is the Diet Coke of Metal (Just one calorie, not metal enough!) Still a stellar effort! I saw Dio in '84 on the Last In Line tour in San Diego from the front row and I gotta tell you it was AWESOME! Still one of my favorite albums of all time!
Dig it!
If you want to start listening to Dio, the best place to start with is here. If you like Dio and don't have this CD, then get it. Better than Holy Diver and somewhere around the same as Sacred Heart.
awesome cd when it first came out now has bonus music and newly remastered with awesome sound to it plus great pictures in.
