Released August 1983 | Format 7", 12" Length 5:51 | |
B-side "Evil Eyes""Don't Talk to Strangers" Recorded 1983Sound City Studios, Los Angeles, USA |
"Holy Diver" is a song recorded by heavy metal band Dio. It was released in August 1983 as the lead single from the band's debut album of the same name. Although it only reached number 40 on the Mainstream Rock chart at that time, today it is one of Dio's most popular songs. When played on the radio, many stations cut the extended instrumental intro sequence. Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the song was placed on the list of post-9/11 inappropriate titles distributed by Clear Channel. In 2009, Holy Diver placed 43rd on VH1's Top 100 Hard Rock Songs.
Contents
Music video
The music video for "Holy Diver", directed and edited by Arthur Ellis, features Dio as a hairy barbarian adventuring through a desolate church. First he strikes a shrouded figure and his hobgoblin friend with his sword, but instead of killing them he turns them into rats. He later visits a blacksmith who is forging a sword. He throws his sword in the trash and deftly catches the newly forged one. Walking through a corridor, he encounters three seated hooded figures. As the camera pans across them, the third slowly raises its head to reveal eyes resembling those of a cat. The final shots show Dio exiting the church.
Killswitch Engage version
Killswitch Engage covered the song for the compilation High Voltage!: A Brief History of Rock for Kerrang! magazine. The song was later re-released for the special edition of As Daylight Dies. A live version of the song is also featured on the Special Edition of their 2009 album Killswitch Engage, then in 2014, the song was re-released on the compilation album entitled Ronnie James Dio This Is Your Life. This version of the song as well as the original composed by Dio are DLC for the guitar video game Rocksmith 2014.
Music video
The band released a music video for their version. Directed by Brian Thompson, the video features a comical take on Dio's original music video.