"Where's the Meat?' The music of Jim Steinman

In the fall of 1977, I was having a great time. I was in college, playing football and a late night DJ on campus radio- KJSC. The radio station had been brought back to life after a dormant period by a friend, Lyman Bowling. Lyman gave DJ slots to a bunch of we willing people. Got to say, it was one of the great fun experiences I have had. I have Lymsn to thank for that. He went on to a career in radio.

That fall, I was in a record store and saw an LP cover that struck me. A dramatic, demon looking motorcycle exploding into the air from an ominous cemetery! I was intrigued by the cover, and bought the LP. Only two other times had I purchased an LP based on the album art, and both had been winners. When I put the album on my dorm room turntable, I was met with a rock and roll that muddied the lines between hard rock, ballad and Wagnerian opera! The sing, a huge man named Meat Loaf, had the big voice that shook walls, rattled windows and soared to the sky. The songs he sang were epic, complex, and metaphoric vignettes of teenage angst, rebellion and unrequited love.

Meat Loaf, or Marvin Aday, was the voice I had never heard in rock music. A Texas school boy dubbed Meat Loaf because of his huge size, eventually moved to Los Angles and started his first band. H recorded an album for Motown before joining a production of “Hair” in New York. There he auditioned for a play called “More than You Deserve” written by Jim Steinman. This was the first meeting of a future ground breaking collaboration.
Meat went on to film the role of “Eddie” in “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” His big voice and girth earned the role. He also re cored the vocals for Ted Nugent’s “Free For All” album. Bit, most importantly, it was during this time that Jim Steinman and meat began the work on what would become the “Bat Out Of Hell” LP.

When the LP hit my turntable, I was breathless. I typically had a feature LP on each of my radio broadcasts that I would play selective cuts from, mixed with other rock tunes from a variety of artists. My friend Stick, Dave Brigden, had a show on after mine. We would post notices in the cafeteria / Student Union for our shows. Stick posted the ads for my show advertising “Bat Out Of Hell” mainly to shock students at our Presbyterian College. Stick, who is now a very devote, religious person, was good at that. After all, both his parents were ministers!

With that album, I fell in love with eh writing of Jim Steinman. The “Bat Out Of Hell” LP was a giant. Not only did it feature Steinman’s writing, which straddled rock concert and Broadway play, but it was produced by pop genius Todd Rundgren. Rundgren also played guitars, sang back ground vocals and was aided by other members of his band, Utopia and Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg of the Bruce Springsteen band. The album was loaded for success. Ellen Foley (also of “Night Court”) appeared as female vocals. Her role was taken by Karla Devito on tour due to Foley’s TV show contract.
The B”Bat…” Lp has been certified Platinum 25 times over by the American Recording Industry and spent nearly 500 weeks on the British Charts. The title cut ran nearly 10 minutes. It contained a mini opera “Paradise by the Dashboard lights, and a collection of dramatic ballad and pop music.

Jim Steinman has a way with words. His song titles are often plays on words and twisted meanings. His songs rang of leather clad motorcycle gangs form Marlon Brando’s “Wild Ones” to James dean cool rebellion in “Rebel Without a Cause.” He captured the feel of youth yearning to break free and the burning longings on hot summer nights.

Steinman cut his musical teeth on musical theater. He wrote an original musical called “Dream Machine” while attending Amherst College. It foreshadowed his future work with the story of a rebel named Baal who led a gang called the tribe. It was performed there in 1969.

He also contributed music to several New York theater productions. There was a short work in progress called “Neverland”, based on “Peter Pan” that was never completed. But, it was music from that production, that Steinman and Meat Loaf, who were touring with the National Lampoon Radio Road Show, decided would be the basis of a collaboration.

How many people have sung along with the lyrics of “Paradise BY The Dashboard Lights?” The after party of my niece’s wedding resulted in a loud, drunken, frenzied rendition which the males on one side of the dance floor and the women on the other, shouting the lyrics to each other!

After the success of “Bat Out of Hell,” Steinman had prepared a follow up for Meat to record. Meat Loaf, following the exhaustion of the demanding touring show of Steinman’s music, drugs and stress caused Meat to have a break down and lose his voice. Todd Rundgren encouraged Steinman to record the album himself, with Rundgren’s assistance and production. The result for an album called “Bad For Good” that contained most of the core performers from the “Bat…” LP. The LP spawned several videos for the new MTV, including “Dance in MY Pants,” and “Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through.”

Steinman went on to pen all the tunes for the follow up Meat Loaf LP, after his recovery, called “Dead Ringer.” That same year, Steinman was producer on Bonnie Tyler's album Faster Than the Speed of Night.” He composed two of the songs on the album: "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and "Faster Than the Speed of Night". In 1983, two songs written by Steinman held the top two positions on the Billboard singles chart- "Total Eclipse of the Heart" at number one, and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All", by Air Supply, at number two. “Total Eclipse.” aired on MTV months before it became available as a single in stores.

In 1984, a “Rock and Roll fable” directed by Walter Hill was released featuring two Steinman compositions. Diane Lane lip synched two songs performed by a collection of musicians assembled by Steinman. Several of these performers, including vocalist Rory Dodd, Laurie Sargent and Holly Sherwood, who were on many of Steinman’s projects. They are credited as “Fire Incorporated” on the “Streets of Fire” movie. The songs “Nowhere Fast” and “Tonight is What It Means to be Young” follow Steinman’s theme of disaffected youth.

Steinman wrote other hits for Bonnie Tyler, including “Holding Out For a Hero” and the duet with Todd Rundgren “Loving You Is A Dirty Job.”

IN ’89, Steinman assembled a band called “Pandora’s Box” that featured the vocals of Ellen Foley, the female vocalist on the “Bat Out OF Hell” LP. They recorded “Good Girls Go To Heaven,” and the album title cut “Original Sin.” Meat Loaf would re-record a few of these tunes on his next collaboration with Steinman “Bat Out OF Hell II.” That Meat LP also featured the hit “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That),”

Steinman’s songs were recorded by artists as diverse as Celine Dion, Barry Manilow, Sisters of Mercy, and he collaborated with Andrew Lloyd Weber on a musical version of the book “Whistle Down the Wind.” Several of Steinman’s songs were featured in Roman Polanski’s play “Dance of the Vampires” based on his 1967 movie “The Fearless Vampire Killers.” It was performed in German in Vienna.

Prolific. Dramatic. Operatic. Whatever terms you use to describe the music written by Jim Steinman, it is quickly recognizable. I remember sitting at home with the radio on the first time I heard “Making Love Out Of Nothing At All” play and said “That sure sounds like Jim Steinman.”
Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman have a new release scheduled for mid-September of 2016. “Braver Than We Are.” In it, Meat sings a collection of 10 songs penned by Steinman. Ellen Foley and karla Devito reprise a role there, and Kelli Clarkson adds vocals to one song. The original musicians behind “Bat Out Of Hell” aren’t there… but there’s still that bigger than life voce from that Texas high school tackle and the word play and teen angst themes of Jim Steinman.

In 2012, Jim Steinman was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.