A tribute album to legendary singer Ronnie James Dio made by Swedish metal musicians has just been released.
“Legacy – A Tribute To Ronnie James Dio” features the bands MADISON, MEMORY GARDEN, TAD MOROSE, GORMATHON, TRAIL OF MURDER, FRONTBACK, SOULSHINE and SVEN-HOLGER ROSENVINGE plus guest appearances from Mats Levén (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, CANDLEMASS), Mike Wead (KING DIAMOND, HEXENHAUS), Pontus Norgren (HAMMERFALL, THE POODLES), Jonny Lindkvist (NOCTURNAL RITES, GATHERING OF KINGS), Simon Johansson (WOLF, BIBLEBLACK), Tom Björn (NIGHTINGALE, MEMENTO MORI), Anders Modd (WOLF, BLACK INK RIVER), Hans Birger (FATAL SMILE, MINDSPLIT), Martin Knutar (DIVINE SIN, MACABRE DECAY) and Andreas “Bagge” Baglien (DIVINE SIN, WOLVERINE)
Available on all streaming platforms now, this collection was originally intended to be released on CD on the five-year remembrance day of the legendary singer’s passing in 2015, but a lot of small and big things got in the way.
Initiative taker Andreas “Bagge” Baglien remembers: “Being out of work at the time, borrowing and begging for money to get this project off the ground coupled with health issues really wore me down. The last straw came when the laptop and back-up drive containing all files and info gathered were stolen while I was on tour. That was the wall I couldn’t run through. I had to put it in the closet so as not to lose it completely, and there it’s been sitting these five years.
“I’m so happy that this is finally seeing the light of day and that all the artists’ hard work and passion for this project gets to be heard, even if it’s streaming and not a physical album!”
All proceeds will go to Ronnie James Dio Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund.
Track listing for the album is as follows:
01. FRONTBACK – Long Live Rock N Roll
02. TRAIL OF MURDER (ft. Jonny Lindkvist) – Rainbow In The Dark
03. MEMORY GARDEN – Falling Off The Edge Of The World
04. TAD MOROSE – Straight Through The Heart
05. DIO APPRECIATION SOCIETY SWEDEN – Caught In The Middle
06. MADISON – Children Of The Sea
07. GORMATHON – Jesus, Mary & The Holy Ghost
08. EPHEMERAL PLEASURE – Like The Beat Of A Heart
09. SVEN-HOLGER ROSENVINGE – I
10. SOULSHINE – Hungry For Heaven
The two special all-star projects put together for this release feature as follows.
DIO APPRECIATION SOCIETY SWEDEN is:
* Mats Levén – Vocals
* Mike Wead – Guitar
* Simon Johansson – Guitar
* Anders Modd – Bass
* Tom Björn – Drums
EPHEMERAL PLEASURE is:
* Hans-Birger Andersson – Vocals
* Pontus Norgren – Guitars
* Anders Modd – Bass
* Andreas “Bagge” Baglien – Keyboards
* Martin Knutar – Drums
“Legacy – A Tribute To Ronnie James Dio” is streaming now on Spotify, YouTube Music, iTunes, Tidal, Amazon Music, Shazam, Pandora, Digital, Napster, Deezer, Anghami and others.