12 Greatest Ever Hard Rock Solo Artists
3. Dio
Throughout the 70's, it seemed that everything Ronnie James Dio touched turned into solid gold. After reigniting the hard rock scene in Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, he got the call to do the same for Black Sabbath, where he brought them back to their metal roots on albums like The Mob Rules. However, it was only a matter of time before we got a taste of Dio solo.
While the Dio project is a band in name, the focus has always been on Ronnie, whose voice is one of the strongest the rock world has ever seen. Left to his own devices, Dio showed the world that his songwriting prowess didn't necessarily need to be through the Sabbath or Rainbow filter. Compared to his previous outfits, these songs were rooted in a medieval mindset, with songs that called back to the age of dungeons and dragons. Not only did this set Dio apart from other metal acts, but also set the template for the genre of power metal going forward.
Even when reuniting with his Sabbath brethren, fans still couldn't get enough of songs like "We Rock" and "Stand Up and Shout" from Dio's solo catalog. He may have been known to revive the careers of other bands, but Dio's solo work proved he didn't need a big-name act behind him in order to blow minds.