For some reason, the second Elf record, 1974's Carolina County Ball, was released under the title L.A./59 in the United States and Japan, while the more widely accepted title was used in the U.K. and Europe. The Ronnie James Dio-led outfit was becoming increasingly entwined with Deep Purple – Roger Glover was producing the band, they appeared on the Deep Purple-owned Purple record label in the U.K., and the group was working frequently with Ritchie Blackmore – and their music began taking on a more powerful, more complex, more Deep Purple-like sound because of it. The more or less straight-up boogie rock of the Elf debut was not entirely abandoned for this follow-up, but tracks like "Annie New Orleans" and "Carolina County Ball" have a depth that goes beyond the accomplishments of the group's previous, self-titled offering. Difficult to obtain, this long out-of-print release is a true find for fans of Rainbow, Black Sabbath, and Ronnie James Dio's best solo efforts of the '80s.

For some reason, the second Elf record, 1974's Carolina County Ball, was released under the title L.A./59 in the United States and Japan, while the more widely accepted title was used in the U.K. and Europe. The Ronnie James Dio-led outfit was becoming increasingly entwined with Deep Purple – Roger Glover was producing the band, they appeared on the Deep Purple-owned Purple record label in the U.K., and the group was working frequently with Ritchie Blackmore – and their music began taking on a more powerful, more complex, more Deep Purple-like sound because of it. The more or less straight-up boogie rock of the Elf debut was not entirely abandoned for this follow-up, but tracks like "Annie New Orleans" and "Carolina County Ball" have a depth that goes beyond the accomplishments of the group's previous, self-titled offering.

Recorded while the band was evolving slowly into the Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, Trying to Burn the Sun is the third and final release from Elf, the band that finally earned Ronnie James Dio the attention he had been seeking since the late '50s. After writing and recording a few singles for Blackmore, Dio and Elf were solidly moving in a heavier musical direction, no doubt influenced by Deep Purple and the British supergroup's lead guitarist. Standout cuts include "Wonderworld" and "Streetwalker," two cuts that were somehow placed at the tail end of the record, despite their strong melodies and musicianship. Because the Rainbow debut was released during the same year, this record was slightly overlooked, even though the band had established a small amount of momentum in Europe and Japan especially. Trying to Burn the Sun is a great listen for fans of '70s rock, not just Dio/Rainbow fans.

By the time he came to prominence as the lead singer of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, Ronnie James Dio had accumulated an extensive rock & roll résumé (longer than he'd like to admit, actually) performing with a number of groups, ranging from doo-wop in the late '50s to psychedelic rock in the '60s. But it wasn't until he founded Elf in the early '70s that Dio, or Ronald Padavona as he was then called, took his first tentative steps toward hard rock…