Sunday, November 23, 2014

Dying At the Bottom of a Pit in the Blazing Sun

So many songs to choose from as we parse the wee one’s orders to create riveting musical content by listing our favorite ten songs. However, I chose to write about just one song – the greatest song in the history of rock and roll. Not Stairway or Baba or Born to Run. I’m talking about the greatest, most indulgent, grandiose, vocally spectacular, wailing 9+ minute rock opera of them all – Meatloaf’s Bat Out of Hell. Before you scoff or chortle, you need to acknowledge (as I do) that a small part of the brilliance of this song is the spectacularly 1970’s-ish feel of this tune. It does not attempt to be transcendent. It lives within the confines of 1977, but turns the conventional pop-rock composition concept on its head. The video below of a live performance of this song is absurdly over the top and of low quality, which makes it all the more fantastic from a dramatic and unintentional comed perspective. If you want the studio version of the song, which features a less masturbatory intro, get it here.



Allow me to indulge you with possibly more than you ever cared to know about a song that was deeply impactful to my early appreciation of rock and roll. It is also a part tribute to my deceased mother, who was a hip, hip lady who turned me on to a lot of cool music as a kid and even quietly tolerated my Weird Al phase when I was eleven.


Background. While the majesty of this song is nothing without the power of Meatloaf’s pipes, his imprint on the song is vocals alone. The brainchild behind the album was arranger Jim Steinman, who wanted to make a good old rock opera. Without his ego and courage, this whole bizarre album would not have happened. And it certainly was bizarre. It had Phil Rizzuto (Phil Rizzuto!)! It had motorcycle sounds! It had a pre-Night Court Ellen Foley! And it had more graphic sexual imagery than you would want to hear from a young, husky Meatloaf.

Why the Hell Do You Care About this Song and Album So Much, TR? Let’s start with that album cover. I have vivid memories of being a young boy and going through my mom’s album collection with my older sister. It’s a shame that music won’t be as vivid a multi-sensory experience to future generations as it was to me growing up. An album was a THING. You could hold it, stare at the front, the middle, the back, the lyrics in the middle and wonder about all the thought that went into the packaging. As a kid, I remember the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine album, the Stones’ Tattoo You album, which featured a goat hoof in a high heeled shoe, and, of course, Bat Out of Hell. As a kid, you could not help but be drawn to it. It was evil and enticing all at once. There was a dude on a motorcycle. Exploding out of the ground. At night. In a cemetery. While a mega-bat sitting on a mausoleum squawks in the background. How badass is that? Very. It felt like I was doing something I wasn’t supposed to when I was staring at that thing, which made it that much better, probably because it had “the H word” on the cover. I’m not sure how much I would’ve liked Devil Went Down to Georgia at that same age without the “I’ve told you once, you son of a bitch…” line. Cursing was cool to five year-old me.

Part I - The Intro (0:00 to 1:45). I don’t know of any song that goes from 0-60 quicker. The first 105 seconds of this song (the first 100, to be precise, since it really starts ripping five seconds in) are EPIC. Pure bravado and excess. It reminds me of the conclusions to some of my favorite old Phish jams. And that’s just the start. I dare you to crank this part in your car and not feel better about your life for having done so.



Part II - The Story Unfolds (1:45 to 2:57). There is a bit of mystery as to a possible secret meaning to the lyrics. Many see it as a Springsteen tribute or Springsteen parody. Making this more intriguing is the fact that E Street Band pianist Roy Bittan and drummer Max Weinberg were the session drummers for the entire album. Bittan’s ivory tickling here is especially E Street Band-esque. We’re getting an opaque orgy of dismal imagery, offset by a boy’s love for a girl. But it’s just a tease. Meatloaf hasn’t even started wailing yet! This song was actually part of a Neverland-themed play that Steinman had composed in the past. But that’s less relevant. Who gives a shit about Peter Pan?

Part III - The Chorus (2:57 to 3:37): Meatloaf starts wailing! When I was younger, I used to think the lyrics were about a one-night stand, but who the hell knows. This part can be interpreted many ways. But most involve visualizing Meatloaf making love, so let’s not go too deep here.

Part IV – Motorcycle Conquers Teen Angst (3:37 to 5:23): Segue to traditional teen anthem – motorcycles, decaying city, teen angst. Speeding on a motorcycle will prove to be a bad thing later, Meatloaf! This section also features my favorite cheesy lyrics in the song: “Nothing really rocks and nothing really rolls.” I love this, because Meatloaf’s voice pulls off all the goofy lyrics. He could read the ingredients in a bag of Doritos and have me riveted. Maybe that’s just because I eat too much and love Doritos. But Meatloaf is pretty clear here – he is qualmless about being damned for dancing through the night with a special woman. Pretty minor offense to be damned for, IMO.

Part V – Chorus Reprise (5:23 to 6:12): Same chorus, but extra em-PHA-sis on the last words. And we get the motorcycle revving at the end, letting us know it’s time to get back on our hog for one last fateful trip.  

Part VI – Solo (6:12 to 6:54): Dueling motorcycle-piano solo!  You never hear Asia, Styx or Boston doing that. 

Part VII – Motorcycle Accident! (6:54 to 7:40): Speed proves to be Mr. Loaf’s problem, as he “…never see(s) the sudden curve ‘til it’s way too late.” More motorcycle sounds are added to reinforce the obvious. There’s been a wreck. And it's bad.

Part VIII – Is Meatloaf’s Heart Jesus Christ? (7:40 to 8:52): My favorite verse in the song gets repeated twice. First slowly, then with the power of those pipes. “I’M DYING AT THE BOTTOM OF A PIT IN THE BLAZING SUN.” Fuck. Yeah. And then we get the cathartic after-math. His heart, still beating, is breaking out of his body and flying away, like, you guessed it, a bat out of hell. And if you’re scoring at home, that’s eight seconds that he takes to hold that least hellllllllllllllllll. After his sixth time of saying that line. You try to do that shit and see how it goes. Song fades out and we all take a deep breath and think about having a smoke.

Part IX – What Comes Next on the Album: We get this gem. Tremendous intro.


27 comments:

rob said...

bravo, tr. epic.

rob said...

mayor for life's tenure is over. pour a little out for marion barry.

Clarence said...

Awesome, Tr. I am listening to the entirety of this album now. Just heard this gem:

I know you're looking for a ruby in a mountain of rocks / But there ain't no Coupe de Ville hiding at the bottom of a Cracker Jack box

Danimal said...

Nice job. The first album I listed to in full and came to know, love, and memorize all lyrics.

If you haven't seen last night's opening skit of SNL, it's a good one.

zman said...

Despite everyone's gripes this series is yielding some exceptional content. Nice job TR.

And alka seltzer is a godsend.

Squeaky said...

I have never heard this song all the way through which may have to rectified while I'm on vacation.

My cousins heavily influenced my music experience as I was growing up. Which was all the British invasion stuff. So I missed huge chucks of classic rock and roll.

Mark said...

I didn't even know Meatloaf existed until his comeback in the 90s. My early musical influences were my parents and older sisters and none of them listened to Meatloaf. Ill dive in though.

T.J. said...

it should come as no surprise that I love this sing

#classicrock4lyfe

nicely done, tr

Mark said...

I have the best fantasy team I've ever had in my big $ league. 10-1 on the season. The problem is Jay Cutler is my QB and I just know he's going to unleash a 5 int day during the playoffs and singlehandedly ruin everything.

TR said...

Thx folks. I can't emphasize enough how mindblowing it was to me as a 5-6 y/o to stare at that album cover. And the inner photo of him with a scarf was weird too, though less scary.

I stlill have the album. My record player sucks though.

zman said...

Alan Branch has an "Afronauts" tattoo.

T.J. said...

Falcons should fire Mike Smith in the locker room for the way he (once again) mismanaged the clock in today's last second loss to Cleveland

Mark said...

I was out on Mike Smith the moment I saw him wearing mandals on Hard Knocks.

zman said...

Sandals should only be worn by men under the age of 12.

Clarence said...

Or over the age of 90. When you no longer give a shit.

rootsminer said...

Whoa. Didn't see that one coming! I can't get down with the loaf, but I'll try and give this tune a try sometime TR. I need a bit to recover after yesterday's unsettling 'Meatloaf incident'.

Clarence said...

Oh, how my favorite football team gives me nausea.

Clarence said...

But I'm not bailing on them! It's like Brokeback Mountain II, they bang me in the ass but I can't quit you, Skins!

Mark said...

You know why some LSU fans bitch about Les Miles? One reason is they're spoiled, but his consistently underachieving offenses certainly have something to do with it. Last year, for example, they ranked 6th in the SEC on offense. That offense featured Zach Mettenberger, Odell Beckham, Jr., Jarvis Landry, Jeremy Hill and Alfred Blue.

rob said...

please tell me you guys saw the catch beckham just made. no hyperbole, it's the best i've ever seen.

Mark said...

The word unbelievable is overused these days but it's appropriate for that catch.

TR said...

In an otherwise disappointing Giants season, Beckham has had an amazing mid-year breakout. To appear so clearly more athletic and skilled than most NFL defenders is no small feat.

TR said...

In unrelated news, I am in Philthy tonight for a work conference tmrw. I took a Texan guy to Pat's for a cheesesteak. It was amazing. I opted for Cheez Whiz instead of provolone and got onions. I want another one now.

rob said...

he basically made that catch with three fingers.

and tr, a lover of food such as you may well already be hip to this, but the best sandwich in philly is tommy dinic's roast pork sandwich with broccoli rabe and hot peppers. in the reading terminal market, which in and of itself is a food lover's paradise.

TR said...

Thanks for raining on my culinary parade! Guess I should've thrown out a call for suggestions, although my Texan buddy was fired up to play tourist. He asked about the Rocky statue after dinner. I told him to ask the bellman about that one. He did not ask about Boyz II Men, thankfully.

#cooleyhighharmony

Danimal said...

TR, am guessing that your trip to Philly coinciding with the Philly marathon is just a coincidence?

rob said...

possibility of 6-12" of snow in the northern and western dc suburbs on wednesday evening. fuck right off, mother nature.