Second Volume of Dio Hits Collection En Route

Another new Ronnie James Dio collection is due out by year's end. 'The Very Beast Of Dio Vol. 2' is a 17 song compilation and will, according to Blabbermouth, include three bonus tracks, two of which are new and were previously unavailable.

With cover art created by Marc Sasso, who previously worked on Dio's 'Killing The Dragon' and 'Master Of The Moon,' the package is certain to delight fans of the late, great one. Issued in October 2000, the first volume of 'The Very Beast Of Dio' was certified gold.

In other Dio news, Ronnie's widow (and manager) Wendy has been talking about reissuing the 'Magica' album from 2000, with bonus tracks, including a new song which Ronnie nearly completed before his death.

According to an interview with Classic Rock magazine, former Dio guitarist Craig Goldy, the band were were working on tracks for a new Dio album just before Ronnie died. "We did almost finish one song." he said, "the  lyrics deal with what Ronnie was going through at the time, when he was battling cancer. So now they are very emotional. It's hard to listen without a lump in your throat."