Master of the Moon - Dio

It's 2004. Return Craig Goldie again for a third go around in the band. Exit long time bassist Jimmy Bain. On this album, Jeff Pilson plays bass, but he was only intended for the album - the touring and formal bassist is now Rudy Sazro. Oh yeah, the album... :)

At first I didn't like this album. It took some listening to get into. I initially didn't like it. After Killing the Dragon being a very accessible disc that felt a lot like Holy Diver, we got Master of the Moon, which other than one track wasn't (to me anyway) very listenable. However, that changed over a few listens. My favorite tracks are The Eyes (which was the song I initially liked), plus Shivers, One More for the Road, and Living the Lie. It is a Dio album - there's no doubt about that. Which means it's good - Dio albums are always solid, good work. However, I was not a fan of the political song on here - "The Man Who Would be King", which is about George W Bush. I don't mind the message, but the song itself is my least favorite on the disc.

Been a Dio fan since Day 1. Bought Holy Diver when it was new, and bought all the other ones when they came out. Given I also run www.black-sabbath.com , I'd like to say that I know Ronnie Dio well. This is up there with the good ones, but it didn't catch me quickly at first - I think if you dismiss it after just one or two listens, you're not giving it enough of a chance.