Artist: DIO
Album: THE VERY BEAST OF DIO (CD)

Release date: 1990
EAN/UPS: 0081227998325
Media type: CD

The first domestically (U.S.) available Dio anthology (following the 1994 German import Diamonds), Rhino's The Very Beast of Dio is jam-packed with 16 tracks taken from the band's seven Warner and Reprise albums (spanning the years 1983-1994). Which is to say, it's an excellent overview of the band's career, especially given the unevenness of some of their albums. Ronnie James Dio honed his metal chops singing lead in both Rainbow and Black Sabbath, and his own band is sort of a reflection of both: the sinister, medievally gothic elegance of the former, and the crushingly heavy, doom-laden riffs of the latter. That combination, plus solid songwriting, made Dio's best work some of the most invigorating British metal of the '80s, and those qualities are best concentrated here.

The first to be released in the U.S., it has sold over 400,000 copies, according to SoundScan. As of 2009, it has been certified Gold by the RIAA, having sold more than 500,000 copies in the U.S.

CD:
        1. Stand Up and Shout
        2. Holy Diver
        3. Rainbow In the Dark
        4. Straight Through the Heart
        5. We Rock
        6. The Last In Line
        7. Mystery
        8. King of Rock and Roll
        9. Sacred Heart
       10. Hungry For Heaven
       11. Rock N Roll Children
       12. Man On the Silver Mountain (Live)
       13. Dream Evil
       14. I Could Have Been a Dreamer
       15. Lock Up the Wolves
       16. Strange Highways