I managed to catch part of the video for the Proclaimers song ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’ while I was channel-surfing yesterday. Unfortunately, that one thirty-second encounter last night has left me with that song running through my head all day today.
Posts Tagged ‘Meat Loaf’
The Uncoverables
Wednesday, August 18th, 2010Review: Elvis in Vegas
Friday, July 16th, 2010I promised that I’d be back with a separate review of ‘Elvis in Vegas’ today. After all, it’s not every day that Meat Loaf records a song co-written by Jon Bon Jovi. That warrants a post in its own right.
I don’t know that I would have made this connection if I hadn’t known that Jon was one of the songwriters for ‘Elvis in Vegas’, but the song really reminds me of ‘Right Side of Wrong’ from Bounce. It has the same sweeping narrative feel as ‘Right Side of Wrong’, and it also has the same sort of living, breathing imagery throughout the lyrics. That’s probably Jon’s touch; he’s always been good at that kind of song that tells a story, but this one is an outstanding example.
I suppose that I shouldn’t be surprised that ‘Elvis in Vegas’ turned out to be one of my favorite songs off of Hang Cool Teddy Bear–after all, it does have Jon, Desmond Child and Billy Falcon behind it, and those three have been responsible for many of my favorite songs.
But above and beyond that, I like the song because it plays to a lot of Meat Loaf’s strengths. This is one of the few songs on this album that really taps into the expressive range that Meat Loaf can bring to his performances. He can make you believe whatever he’s singing about–and with that power behind the lyrics, this song shines. The chorus on this song is nothing less than a thing of beauty.
This song is definitely a keeper. As a matter of fact, it’s probably going to shape up to be one of my all-time favorites.
Album Review: Hang Cool Teddy Bear
Wednesday, July 14th, 2010Meat Loaf has been a longtime favorite of mine. I actually had some trouble finding a copy of this album around here when it was first released–but I finally got around to getting myself a copy.
In all honesty, I can’t rate this as one of his best outings, but it’s quite respectable all the same. (Any new Meat Loaf album has a lot to live up to–it’s automatically in company with albums like Bat Out of Hell and Bat Out of Hell II–which is august company indeed.)
This album has a distinctly different sound from some of his earlier work, most likely attributable to the absence of Jim Steinman. However, it’s definitely not a bad thing. The songs here are less operatic that Steinman’s work tends to be, but are mostly all still decently well-written songs with good hooks.
My immediate favorite tracks included ‘Los Angeloser’, ‘Like a Rose’, ‘Running Away From Me’, ‘Let’s Be In Love’, ‘If It Rains’ and ‘Elvis in Vegas’.
For me, at least, ‘Los Angeloser’ is where Hang Cool Teddy Bear really hits its stride. This song opens fire, pretty much right away, dealing with classic rock and roll subject material.
Lyrically speaking, ‘Like a Rose’ is classic sleaze rock–which you know I like. But this one comes served up with a side order of Meat Loaf’s style, and it comes out a unique entity. The production here is also excellent–there’s just enough layers mixed into it to make it sound full, but it doesn’t overpower the vocals. This particular song just oozes attitude–and Meat Loaf is one of the few artists with enough swagger to really pull of a song like this.
‘Running Away From Me’ and ‘Let’s Be In Love’ are actually the songs from this album that remind me most of some of Meat Loaf’s earlier work. This probably the most operatic that this album gets. And Meat Loaf is always at his best when presented with material that veers toward the operatic. (I think that’s why his partnership with Steinman was always so fruitful.) ‘Let’s Be In Love’ especially has that expansive sound that I tend to associate with Meat Loaf.
‘If It Rains’ has a little bit more of a pop sound to it. But then again, a lot of Meat Loaf’s work doesn’t veer too far from pop radio, and he brings his distinct voice to bear here. Mix that up with a good hook and it all works out.
I think one of the things that I really like best about this album is that it mixes things up a little more than some of Meat Loaf’s other releases.
I’ll dive a little deeper into ‘Elvis in Vegas’ on Friday.
Duel of the Metaphors
Monday, May 3rd, 2010The first several times that I listened to The Circle, I had the nagging feeling that the song ‘Fast Cars’ reminded me of another song, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. After awhile, I just put it out of my mind. It wasn’t hard to do, since I really don’t like ‘Fast Cars’ at all.
Today I happened to be listening to Bat Out of Hell II, and it finally hit me. The song that I was thinking of was ‘Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are’. The overall theme–cars as a metaphor for life–is identical, and some of the sound of the songs are the same, especially in the verses, where Meat Loaf tones it down into a more regretful tone and keyboards play a big part in both songs.
It also explains a lot about why I had such a heavy dislike of ‘Fast Cars’. At some subconscious level, I think I was comparing it to Objects, and it didn’t compare well. The Meat Loaf song handles the metaphor in a far more delicate and sensitive manner, whereas the Bon Jovi song kind of beats it to death. ‘Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are’, on the other hand, deftly weaves the automobile narrative through the stories of the verses and builds it up naturally straight into the chorus where it comes to fruition.
Also, Meat Loaf stays true to his own style in Objects–even if I didn’t know who had recorded it, I could have identified it in just one listening. ‘Fast Cars’, on the other hand, could have been recorded by any of the many interchangeable mediocre rock bands that are around right now. Nothing about this sounds distinctly Bon Jovi, other than Jon’s occasional raspy moment in the verses.
It’s true that the Meat Loaf song is far darker than the Bon Jovi one. That’s appropriate, as the rest of The Circle is structured to deliver a hopeful message. However, it’s somehow strange that the darker song is the one that delivers the bigger, stronger chorus, with a far bigger hook. ‘Fast Cars’ never delivers the punch in the same way that Objects does. Never mind the fact that one of the biggest shaping influences of the Bon Jovi style–Richie Sambora’s guitar skills–are almost completely absent from ‘Fast Cars’.
Some might argue that Meat Loaf’s style is emblematic of what Bon Jovi used to be, and I’m living in the past. But if that’s the case, and Bon Jovi has “matured”, why is it that the lyrics that Jim Steinman wrote for Meat Loaf handle the same metaphor with far more subtlety and elegance?
Random Song: I Would Do Anything For Love
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009Artist: Meat Loaf
Album: Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell
I have to confess: this was the song that ignited my interest in rock music. Up to this point my musical taste was quite different–a whole lot more pop-oriented. I’d also had a habit of listening to Broadway soundtracks. (This was long enough ago that the ‘Jukebox Musical’ had yet to come along. I don’t think I’ll say how long ago it was, seeing as how I saw a post over at Entertainment Weekly today that made me feel older than dirt.)
The thing about I Would Do Anything For Love was that the song brought together a pop sensibility with the bombast of a big Broadway number and the aesthetic of rock music. Basically, the perfect vehicle to introduce me to the possibilities of rock.
The other wonderful thing about this song is Meat Loaf’s distinctive voice. His voice is a signature–no one else is like it. A voice that wasn’t perfect was another novelty for me at the time. Remember, I’d been listening to pop music, and most of today’s pop is so processed that the singers are interchangeable. This was an introduction to someone with their own unique voice, and it was wonderful–someone imperfect had made it as a musician.
Also, and this is probably the lingering remains of the Broadway thing–I’m a sucker for big long songs, and like a lot of Meat Loaf’s songs, this one runs about three times longer than a song is ‘supposed to’. Sometimes, there are songs that just don’t fit into four minutes, and I personally love when they don’t. (I love, love, love Dry County. But that’s another post.)
So yes, without this song, this blog would not exist today.