Holy Mother

Holy Dio: A Tribute to Ronnie James Dio is much better executed than most heavy metal tribute albums, even involving Dio himself, who pens an introduction for the liner notes. Most of the bands are culled from the portion of Century Media's stable that's influenced chiefly by British metal, often with a progressive or Gothic touch, which makes them a perfect fit for the tribute's subject. That doesn't mean all of them deliver - there are still a few performances that are too mannered or enslaved to the originals - but, overall, it's pretty effective for a tribute album. Bands present include Fates Warning, Yngwie Malmsteen, Hammerfall, Axel Rudi Pell, Gamma Ray, and Blind Guardian, among others.