Thought No.28 - Meat Loaf Review

As some of you may have noticed, I have begun listening to Meat Loaf. Who as we know, currently holds the 4th Bestselling Album of all time. So I have decided to get it out of my system and write a few short reviews with what I think. Enjoy below:

Bat Out of Hell - 1977
Well, I'm just gonna start and say my favourite song of all time is currently "Bat out of Hell", this album is 4th Bestselling of all time and for good reason. The other songs I like on this are "You took the words right out of my mouth" and "Paradise by the Dashboard Light". The rest are average. Bat Out of Hell is just under 10 minutes long, the intro is a massive piano solo and lasts around 2 minutes which is awsome in itself.


Dead Ringer - 1981
As we well know, Jim Steinman composed Meat Loaf's best music. This album as the previous, is all Jim. Inarguably the best song on this album is "Dead Ringer for Love" which is a duet between Meat Loaf and Cher. Other songs I like on this album is "Peel Out" and "I'll Kill You If You Don't Come Back"

Midnight At The Lost and Found - 1983
Probably Meat Loaf's worst album, as most of the songs he wrote himself (stick to singing please Meat). Most the these song's sound like a cross between rock and country which does not mix well. The few songs I do like are "Razors Edge" and "Keep Driving".

Bad Attitude - 1984
General all round good album this. Surprisingly not much of it is composed by Jim. My favourites on this one are "Bad Attitude", "Jumpin' the Gun", "Nowhere Fast" and of course "Modern Girl". This album was only a minor success back in the 80's and I think it is still greatly underrated.


Blind Before I Stop - 1986
Another greatly underrated album which I feel represents some of Meat Loaf's best work. My favourites include "Rock n' Roll Mercenaries", "Blind Before I Stop", "Rock N' Roll Hero" and "Masculine".


Bat Out Of Hell II - Back into Hell - 1993
That's right, this is considered one of the greatest musical comebacks of the Century (released after Meat went bankrupt and got all his money back). This album featured the famous "I'd do anything for love" which is my second favourite song of his. It is 12 minutes long and like Bat Out of Hell it features a 2 minute intro. Also on this album is another top favourite of mine "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Throught" and "Objects in the rearview mirror may appear closer than they are" both of which are very moving. Infact there are only about 2 songs on this album which I would rate below fantastic.

Welcome to the Neighbourhood - 1995
This album did go platinum but I'm not a huge fan of it. It has a couple of good songs but nothing too substantial. The ones I like on this include "I'd Lie for You", "Running for the Red Light" and "Original Sin". Not a lot of Jim Steinman on here also to note!



Couldn't Have Said It Better - 2003
I would say this album is similar to "Midnight at the Lost and Found" for me. There are a couple of good songs and at certain points there is some good stuff. However, in general this album goes toward the bottom of the pile for me.



Bat Out of Hell III - The Monster Is Loose - 2006
Now we're getting back to basics, this album is Meat Loaf's latest and of course is primarily written by Jim Steinman. I love this album, just like Bat Out Of Hell II there are only a couple of tracks I don't like. My favourites are "The Monster Is Loose", "What About Love", "If God Could Talk" and "Alive".



Meat Loaf is due for a new album next year. Oh and a quick bit of trivia for you, his real name is Michael Lee Aday.

Thought No.27

A heatwave has struck the county of Berkshire. If we didn't have air conditioning at work then I would have feigned a hernia.

On Tuesday evening I was ambushed by an unexpected visit from Craig Stanley and Nicholas Edward Sheppard. Granted they called beforehand but they failed to mention the whole party of people following. Despite the unexpected circumstances, I was glad for the company.

Next evening, I was the host of a poker game. It has been a while, however, I think the evening went okay. Although James Leather broke the Cuckoo clock, which is still being repaired.

I have missed a few hours of sleep these last few days. I almost fell asleep on the way home from work today, even with the air conditioning running it was still a little warm, and my eyes were getting a bit heavy. Also I think my car was leaking transmission fluid the other day. Now I am paranoid when shifting gears if the gearbox is about to explode. No where in the manual does it show you how to check the transmission fluid. Oh well, maybe it will be alright.