The Last in Line
The Last In Line is the second studio album by the American heavy metal band Dio, released on July 2, 1984. It is the first Dio album to feature former Rough Cutt keyboardist Claude Schnell. It became the band's highest-charting album in both the UK and the U.S., reaching number 4 and number 23, respectively (Sacred Heart would later reach number 4 in the UK as well).
The Last In Line | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 2, 1984 | |||
Recorded | Caribou Ranch, Colorado | |||
Genre | Heavy metal | |||
Length | 41:07 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. (North America) Vertigo (rest of the world) | |||
Producer | Ronnie James Dio | |||
Dio chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Last in Line | ||||
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Reissues
The album, along with Holy Diver and Sacred Heart, was released in a new 2-CD Deluxe Edition on March 19, 2012 through Universal for worldwide distribution outside the U.S.[1]
Critical reception
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 10/10[3] |
Rock Hard (de) | 9.5/10[4] |
In 2005, The Last In Line was ranked number 372 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[5]
Track listing
All lyrics written by Ronnie James Dio, music as stated.
No. | Title | Music | Length |
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1. | "We Rock" | Dio | 4:36 |
2. | "The Last in Line" | Jimmy Bain, Vivian Campbell, Dio | 5:40 |
3. | "Breathless" | Campbell, Dio | 4:04 |
4. | "I Speed at Night" | Vinny Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 3:22 |
5. | "One Night in the City" | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 5:15 |
No. | Title | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|
6. | "Evil Eyes" | Dio | 3:38 |
7. | "Mystery" | Bain, Dio | 3:46 |
8. | "Eat Your Heart Out" | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 3:49 |
9. | "Egypt (The Chains Are On)" | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 6:57 |
No. | Title | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Eat Your Heart Out" (live B-side of "Mystery" 12') | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 5:11 |
2. | "Don’t Talk to Strangers" (live B-side of "Mystery" 12') | Dio | 6:03 |
3. | "Holy Diver" (live B-side of "We Rock") | Dio | 4:23 |
4. | "Rainbow in the Dark" (live B-side of "We Rock" 12') | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 4:43 |
5. | "One Night in the City" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 5:55 |
6. | "We Rock" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Dio | 5:05 |
7. | "Holy Diver" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Dio | 4:28 |
8. | "Stargazer" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Ritchie Blackmore, Dio | 1:53 |
9. | "Heaven and Hell" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Geezer Butler, Dio, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward | 13:03 |
10. | "Rainbow in the Dark" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Appice, Bain, Campbell, Dio | 5:11 |
11. | "Man on the Silver Mountain" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Blackmore, Dio | 8:14 |
12. | "Don’t Talk to Strangers" (live at Pinkpop Festival, Geleen, Netherlands, 11 June 1984) | Dio | 5:38 |
Personnel
- Dio
- Ronnie James Dio – lead vocals
- Vivian Campbell – guitar
- Jimmy Bain – bass
- Claude Schnell - keyboards
- Vinny Appice – drums, percussion[6]
- Production
- Recorded at Caribou Ranch, Colorado, USA
- Produced by Ronnie James Dio
- Engineered by Angelo Arcuri
- Assistant engineering by Rich Markowitz
- Mixed on Westlake Audio BBSM6 monitors
- Originally mastered by George Marino at Sterling Sound, New York, USA
- Remastered by Andy Pearce (2012 Universal Deluxe Edition)
- Remastered by Steve Hoffman (2012 Audio Fidelity 24K edition)
- Illustration by Barry Jackson
Charts
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Certifications
It was certified Gold (500,000 units sold) by the RIAA on September 12, 1984, and was the first Dio album to be certified Platinum, achieving the feat on February 3, 1987.[16]
In the UK, it attained Silver certification (60,000 units sold) by the British Phonographic Industry, achieving this in January 1986, at the same time as Holy Diver.[17] To date, these are the only two Dio albums to be so certified.
Country | Organization | Year | Sales |
USA | RIAA | 1987 | Platinum (+ 1,000,000)[16] |
UK | BPI | 1986 | Silver (+ 60,000)[17] |
References
- Siegler, Joe (1 February 2012). "Dio Deluxe Editions". Black Sabbath Online.com. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
- Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Dio The Last in Line review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2013-11-03.
- Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 98. ISBN 978-1894959315.
- Stratmann, Holger. "Rock Hard review". issue 7 (in German). Retrieved 24 May 2013.
- [...], Rock Hard (Hrsg.). [Red.: Michael Rensen. Mitarb.: Götz Kühnemund] (2005). Best of Rock & Metal die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten. Königswinter: Heel. p. 59. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
- Saulnier, Jason (24 March 2012). "Vinny Appice Interview". Music Legends. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
- "Dio Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2013-10-28.
- "Dio – The Last in Line (album)". Swedishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "Dio – The Last in Line (album)". Norwegiancharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "Dio – The Last in Line (album)". GfK Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "Album – DIO, The Last in Line". Charts.de (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "The Last in Line Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 41, No. 6, October 13, 1984". Library and Archives Canada. 13 October 1984. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- ロニー・ジェームス・ディオのアルバム (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2013-10-28.
- "The Last in Line Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
- "RIAA Gold & Platinum Database, search for "The Last in Line"". Retrieved February 22, 2009.
- "Search for Artist Dio". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2013-10-28.