MEMORIES:
kendra remembers...This man has a one of a kind voice. 'Two Out of Three...' is probably my favorite from Mr. Loaf;) More »
Posted on 03/08/08
PHOTOS:
CATCH PHRASE:
“Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad” – “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad”
Two out of three ain’t bad, unless you’re Meat Loaf, and you’ve just released the third Bat Out of Hell. Michael Lee Aday is his real name, and he was born in Dallas, Texas in 1947. There are lots of rumors and speculations for his stage name, but according to him, the name started when his father called him “Meat” as a two-year-old. As time went on, his schoolmates started calling him Meat Loaf, and there our story begins.
In 1967, Meat Loaf moved to Los Angeles, California, and formed his first band, Meat Loaf Soul. Their first gig was opening for Them, Van Morrison’s band, in Huntington Beach at the Cave. After a few name changes, they settled on Floating Circus, and started getting gigs around southern California, opening for Taj Mahal and Janis Joplin, The Who, The Stooges, MC5 and the Grateful Dead. Once the Floating Circus broke up, he picked up several odd jobs and eventually auditioned for the musical Hair. He went on to do the show in Los Angeles and Detroit, Michigan.
With that publicity, Meat Loaf was invited to a record with Motown Records, on a duet with Stoney Murphy. In 1971, the album was completed and released as Stoney & Meatloaf. The single went to #36 on the R&B charts, and the duo went on to open up for Richie Havens, Bob Seger, Alice Cooper and Rare Earth. Once the tour was over, Meat Loaf went to the Broadway production of Hair. After working in a few productions of various musicals and plays, he got a call to play the part of Eddie and Dr. Scott in The Rocky Horror Show. The success of the play resulted in the filming of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, where Meat Loaf picked up the role of Eddie.
In 1977, came Bat Out of Hell, which was produced by Todd Rundgren. The producers shot four videos for the album using the singles “Bat Out of Hell,” “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” “You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth” and “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad.” The album became a hit, but not in the instant sort of way. It grew. Bat Out of Hell continues to sell around 200,000 copies a year, and to date has sold about 34 million copies worldwide.
In the middle of recording his second album, Bad for Good, Meat Loaf lost the ability to sing. It’s unclear of the exact cause, and physically he was fine; doctors felt that the problem may have been psychological. The strain and intensity of success and touring sidelined his ability to sing. Over time, he got his singing voice back, and changed managers. In 1984, Meatloaf went to England to record Bad Attitude, which included a duet with Roger Daltrey. In 1986, he recorded Blind Before I Stop, which became a critical failure after the producers put a dance beat under every song.
Trying to get his career back off the ground, Meat Loaf began touring small venues, rebuilding a faithful following. He soon played to larger venues, and touring around the world. The success of his concerts spawned Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell which came out in 1993. It was a huge success and is one of the greatest comebacks in music history. The album produced hits with “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)” which reached #1 in 28 countries around the world, and earned Meat Loaf the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance. The album also found success for the singles, “Rock & Roll Dreams Come Through” and “Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are.”
On the heels of that success, in 1995, Meat Loaf released Welcome to the Neighborhood. It was a success and went platinum in the U.S. and in the U.K. and spawned the hits “I’d Lie for You (And That’s the Truth)” and “Not a Dry Eye in the House.” In 2003, he released Couldn’t Have Said It Better, which became a minor hit worldwide.
His most recent album Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster is Loose, was released at the end of 2006. The first single from the album, a duet rendition of Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back To Me Now” with Marion Raven has become a radio success, giving his fans hope that they’ll have to make more space for new albums from the rock star.
