An album of unequaled greatness...

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll (1978.) Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow's third studio album, and the final one to feature Ronnie James Dio on lead vocals.

All right, people. Before I actually begin the review, I should probably make something clear. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that this album is the best Ritchie Blackmore album, the best Ronnie James Dio album, and the best Rainbow album. Yes, I feel it's even better than Machine Head, Heaven And Hell, Holy Diver, and Rainbow Rising - all of which are masterpieces in their own right. All right, enough of my rambling - let's get on with the review!

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll, Rainbow's third studio album, was released in 1978. This would be the end of an era, since it was the final release by Rainbow to feature the legendary Ronnie James Dio on vocals, and one of Blackmore's last true moments of greatness until 1984, when he temporarily reunited with Deep Purple. The line-up for Rainbow was never a stable one, with Ritchie Blackmore being the one constant. The bass player on this album plays only on this album. Who is it, you ask? None other than future Ozzy Osbourne band bass player Bob Daisley! And yes, he's the one that recently sued Ozzy (read my Ozzy reviews if you want more information on this.) Long Live Rock 'N' Roll proved to be an all time high for Blackmore and Dio, though some would beg to differ. Let's break this masterpiece down, track by track, so we can see why it is my favorite album of all time - from a collection of over four hundred compact discs.

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll - The album kicks off with the title track. This was Rainbow's first album to feature a title track, and it's an excellent one. It's a shame this song never got the proper credit - it should have gone on to become a legendary rock anthem. Oh well, the song's still damn good.

Lady Of The Lake - Remember how I said this was my all-time favorite album from Rainbow, Blackmore, and/or Dio? Well, this is my favorite track on the album, making my favorite song of all time from all three of these three respective artists. Here the band goes for an ultra-melodic rock assault on the senses, which speaks of the devil being personified as a woman. The fact that this song is so underrated just makes my head spin...

L.A. Connection - The third track on the album is more of a straight-up kind of rock and roll song thant the last two. The lyrics here are excellent - as is everything else about this song. In a way, this song serves as a premonition to Dio's solo career - no less than one track on his Holy Diver album bore a striking resemblance to this one!

Gates Of Babylon - No matter how many reviews for this album you read, you're always going to hear praise about this song. And why the hell not? For this track, the band uses keyboard effects that simulate an "eastern world" sound. Combine that with an ultra-heavy yet ultra-melodic sound and Dio's unbeatable vocals, and what do you get? A MASTERPIECE. This is my second favorite song on the album, being outdone only slightly by Lady Of The Lake.

Kill The King - Although Rainbow actually premiered this song on their recent live release known as On Stage, this was the first time it was done in the studio. Here the band serves up an excellent mixture of power rock and heavy metal that stands as solid proof that heavy metal DID exist before the eighties! Blackmore's unrivaled guitar superiority makes this song another one of the masterpieces that composes one hell of an album.

The Shed (Subtle) - Before I start reviewing this track, I need to clear up that I have NO IDEA where they got that title. With this track the band gives us a mid-fast hard rocker with a slightly more "raw" sound than the other tracks featured here. Once again, we have been blessed.

Sensitive To Light - This is one of the most interesting tracks on the album because, while it is obviously a straight-up power rocker, Dio's vocal style hints back at the work he did in Elf (listen to L.A. 59 on that band's Carolina County Ball album, and you'll notice a striking resemblance.) It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this fusion of styles only makes this track better.

Rainbow Eyes - You may have notice something so far in my reviews of the album tracks - there haven't been any ballads! That is, until the very end. You may be thinking something like "I'm a metalhead! I hate ballads! There's no way I could like this track!" Well, you poor, demented soul, I've got news for you. This is a GOOD ballad. It's the slowest and softest track on the album (and arguably of Blackmore and Dio's careers), and even has a hint of a medieval sound (Blackmore was fascinated by music from this time period, and several years later his obsession with it would destroy his musical career (at least in my eyes.)) It may sound odd going from so many hard and heavy tracks to a soft one, but this one closes the album nicely, and gives it a nice, "finished" feeling.

A number of reviewers have mentioned a problem with this recording - the sound quality just isn't as up to par as it is on the other Rainbow remasters. That's a real shame, I was hoping they'd take advantage of this remasters series and use it to clean up the shoddy production. Oh well, that doesn't change my feelings about this album's greatness one bit.

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll is a very appropriate title for this masterpiece, since it's one of the greatest rock and roll albums ever recorded. If I could give this album an infinite number of stars, I would certainly do so, but Amazon only lets you give as high as five stars - so that's my rating. If you're a fan of classic rock, hard rock, heavy metal, power rock, or just a fan of Blackmore or Dio, DO NOT PASS THIS ALBUM BY. Maybe you won't agree with my calling this the greatest Blackmore/Rainbow/Dio album ever, but if you like any of these artists, you'll agree with one thing - it's more than worthy of a five-star rating.

excellent debut

This is a number 2 rainbow album. The best is the first LP. This album is also good. But a little worse. I like it, because Ronnie Dio is on the vocals, so that's a good thing. Ritchie Blackmore doesn't dissapoint. He's been always a great guitarist. I think the best song is the title track.

The best!

This is one of the best hard-rock recordings of all times. Just that. Period.

Their finest hour

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll (1978.) Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow's third studio album, and the final one to feature Ronnie James Dio on lead vocals.

All right, people. Before I actually begin the review, I should probably make something clear. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that this album is the best Ritchie Blackmore album, the best Ronnie James Dio album, and the best Rainbow album. Yes, I feel it's even better than Machine Head, Heaven And Hell, Holy Diver, and Rainbow Rising - all of which are masterpieces in their own right. All right, enough rambling - let's get on with the review!

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll, Rainbow's third studio album, was released in 1978. This would be the end of an era, since it was the final release by Rainbow to feature the legendary Ronnie James Dio on vocals, and one of Blackmore's last true moments of greatness until 1984, when he temporarily reunited with Deep Purple. The line-up for Rainbow was never a stable one, with Ritchie Blackmore being the one constant. The bass player on this album plays only on this album. Who is it, you ask? None other than future Ozzy Osbourne band bass player Bob Daisley! And yes, he's the one that recently sued Ozzy (read my Ozzy reviews if you want more information on this.) Long Live Rock 'N' Roll proved to be an all time high for Blackmore and Dio, though some would beg to differ. Let's break this masterpiece down, track by track, so we can see why it is my favorite album of all time - from a collection of over four hundred compact discs.

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll - The album kicks off with the title track. This was Rainbow's first album to feature a title track, and it's an excellent one. It's a shame this song never got the proper credit - it should have gone on to become a legendary rock anthem. Oh well, the song's still damn good.

Lady Of The Lake - Remember how I said this was my all-time favorite album from Rainbow, Blackmore, and/or Dio? Well, this is my favorite track on the album, making my favorite song of all time from all three of these three respective artists. Here the band goes for an ultra-melodic rock assault on the senses, which speaks of the devil being personified as a woman. The fact that this song is so underrated just makes my head spin...

L.A. Connection - The third track on the album is more of a straight-up kind of rock and roll song thant the last two. The lyrics here are excellent - as is everything else about this song. In a way, this song serves as a premonition to Dio's solo career - no less than one track on his Holy Diver album bore a striking resemblance to this one!

Gates Of Babylon - No matter how many reviews for this album you read, you're always going to hear praise about this song. And why the hell not? For this track, the band uses keyboard effects that simulate an "eastern world" sound. Combine that with an ultra-heavy yet ultra-melodic sound and Dio's unbeatable vocals, and what do you get? A MASTERPIECE. This is my second favorite song on the album, being outdone only slightly by Lady Of The Lake.

Kill The King - Although Rainbow actually premiered this song on their recent live release known as On Stage, this was the first time it was done in the studio. Here the band serves up an excellent mixture of power rock and heavy metal that stands as solid proof that heavy metal DID exist before the eighties! Blackmore's unrivaled guitar superiority makes this song another one of the masterpieces that composes one hell of an album.

The Shed (Subtle) - Before I start reviewing this track, I need to clear up that I have NO IDEA where they got that title. With this track the band gives us a mid-fast hard rocker with a slightly more "raw" sound than the other tracks featured here. Once again, we have been blessed.

Sensitive To Light - This is one of the most interesting tracks on the album because, while it is obviously a straight-up power rocker, Dio's vocal style hints back at the work he did in Elf (listen to L.A. 59 on that band's Carolina County Ball album, and you'll notice a striking resemblance.) It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that this fusion of styles only makes this track better.

Rainbow Eyes - You may have notice something so far in my reviews of the album tracks - there haven't been any ballads! That is, until the very end. You may be thinking something like "I'm a metalhead! I hate ballads! There's no way I could like this track!" Well, you poor, demented soul, I've got news for you. This is a GOOD ballad. It's the slowest and softest track on the album (and arguably of Blackmore and Dio's careers), and even has a hint of a medieval sound (Blackmore was fascinated by music from this time period, and several years later his obsession with it would destroy his musical career (at least in my eyes.)) It may sound odd going from so many hard and heavy tracks to a soft one, but this one closes the album nicely, and gives it a nice, "finished" feeling.

A number of reviewers have mentioned a problem with this recording - the sound quality just isn't as up to par as it is on the other Rainbow remasters. That's a real shame, I was hoping they'd take advantage of this remasters series and use it to clean up the shoddy production. Oh well, that doesn't change my feelings about this album's greatness one bit.

Long Live Rock 'N' Roll is a very appropriate title for this masterpiece, since it's one of the greatest rock and roll albums ever recorded. If I could give this album an infinite number of stars, I would certainly do so, but Amazon only lets you give as high as five stars - so that's my rating. If you're a fan of classic rock, hard rock, heavy metal, power rock, or just a fan of Blackmore or Dio, DO NOT PASS THIS ALBUM BY. Maybe you won't agree with my calling this the greatest Blackmore/Rainbow/Dio album ever, but if you like any of these artists, you'll agree with one thing - it's more than worthy of a five-star rating.