Meat Loaf

He rode a motorcycle and got eaten in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, then became a bat out of hell... three times. Larger than life in more ways than one.

Information: Meat Loaf Official Website
Suggested First Purchase/Album: Bat Out of Hell
Suggested best of: The Very Best of Meat Loaf

Bat Out of Hell (1977) -- A triple whammy of Meat Loaf's performance, Jim Steinman's music and lyrics, and Todd Rundgren's production. The album is sort of a rock opera, but doesn't rely too much on story to be enjoyed, so it doesn't suffer the same fate as something like The Who's Tommy which just doesn't make much sense. Really, it's more of a rock album with operatic overtones, doing what all rock music does anyway, which is take teenagers seriously--only this is more realistic teenager stuff; you actually hear and feel what's inside their brain. "Bat Out of Hell" is a great, fast ten minute opener that doesn't really get old. "You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth," "Heaven Can Wait," "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad," and "For Crying Out Loud" are great ballads, and even though they take up half the album, you don't feel like it's a soft album after you're done: they rock as much as the fast numbers do. Then of course there's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light," which is a little album unto itself and the best song ever about teenagers making out and a dude trying to go all the way. Fun, jokey, but serious in its own way, this is definitely a classic album.