“Holy cow, I think he’s gonna make it!”
Some tunes are tied to a particular person, time, or place. Others are broader in their appeal.
Then there are some songs that are tied to a particular time of life. This is one of the latter. Enjoy.
The male singer was, well . . . to be charitable, he was homely. But the man could indeed sing. (The ladies involved – there were two – were anything but homely.) And Jim Steinman could certainly write catchy rock-n-roll.
Yeah, it’s rather cliche; it’s overdone, and it’s dated. But then again: don’t everyone’s teen years always seem that way in retrospect? (smile) And IMO this one captures some aspects of that time of life better than most.
A few bits of trivia about Paradise by the Dashboard Light, courtesy of Wikipedia:
1. Yes, that’s indeed MLB Hall of Famer and longtime Yankees announcer Phil Rizzuto doing the “play-by-play”. Whether he knew the context in which his vocals were to be used has been disputed. Rizzuto later claimed he did not know the intended context when he recorded the vocal. However, Meat Loaf (the male vocalist, who was present at that recording session) later stated that Rizzuto was fully aware of the intended context but later feigned ignorance to deflect criticism. Decide for yourself who you want to believe.
2. The lady singing in the audio here is not Karla DeVito, who appeared on the song’s music video (above) and toured with Meat Loaf; it’s Ellen Foley. DeVito lip-synched Foley’s vocal for the video; she sang it on tour. Both ladies are accomplished singers (as well as quite attractive).
You may recognize Foley from her work on television a few years after this tune was recorded – she played the character Billie Young during the second season of the TV series “Night Court”.
3. Todd Rundgren played guitar on the tune; Edgar Winter played saxophone. The song’s author Jim Steinman played keyboards and is also credited with “lascivious effects” on the recording. (smile)
4. Meat Loaf had previously appeared in the now-cult-classic film “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”. Due to that fact, a recording of a live performance of the song was made on 35mm film and distributed to theaters showing “Rocky Horror” for use as a short subject before midnight screenings (the film was beginning its journey to midnight feature cult classic at the time).
Category: Pointless blather, Who knows
Probably one of the most popular Karaoke songs out there, but not many examples I’ve heard are up to par with the original.
Oh, I’m first and second.
Still a great album. Have it around here somewhere.
May have been homely, but his voice had a powerful presence in most all he sang. Could never forget the one that went, “But I WON’T do that!”. The video you posted was over eight minutes long, far longer than the average tune, but still good to the last drop. Other than Pink Floyd, there were not a lot of lengthy songs back in the day. The lascivious effect would not even raise an eyebrow in today’s entertainment venue. The song itself lacked four letter words (but I sure could have written some for him in that video) sufficient to stimulate today’s teens. Thanks for bringing back some good memories.
One of the criticisms of musicians from late 60s thru 70s was extreme excess: Sex, drugs, double albums, convoluted concept albums, and….long a$$ tracks exceeding 8, 10 or even 20 minutes (sometimes taking up an entire side of a record). Most notable artists (especially prog rockers) of the era were “guilty” to varying degrees…
About 8 months ago, I was at The Rock It Grill on King Street in Old Town Alexandria, and someone selected In-A-Godda-Divida. Not the radio version. The long version. The really long version. Twenty minutes and some change. I wanted to commit ritual suicide. If you are not dropping acid, that song really sucks.
This is one of my favorite songs and I still listen to it fairly regularly.
Pardon the pun, but my beef with Meat Loaf is his live shows. He only sang 13 songs in the hour and forty five minute concert I went to. Almost mind numbingly too long for each song.
I grew up in an Irish Catholic house. How Catholic were we? My mother would motley us listen to Meat Loaf on Fridays.
This song came on the radio on the way home last night, it was promptly cranked to 11! I’m sure the passing drivers appreciated my singing as well. What I lack in talent, I make up for in volume.
His first album I still have. The second? Never bought it.
And yeah, I’ll admit it. Spent way too many weekends at midnight showings of Rocky Horror, Song Remains the Same, or The Warriors.
Warriors, come out and play.
http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/watch-the-warriors-recreate-their-last-subway-ride-home-20150923
A tip of the hat to Bobo for sharing this.
oh yeah..threw the popcorn, lit the lighter..lot’s of fun
Wow…bring back high school why don’t ya! Meat Loaf was the thing around then. He could write some serious stuff that still stands up.
and as they said in The Commitments “that boy could sing, brother”