Nobody writes a song like Jim Steinman does!



I could stop my review there and suggest strongly that you locate a copy of this CD... it's that good... but some of you would have questions... like:

Who is Jim Steinman?
What makes this album so good?
If it's that good, why have I not heard of it?

Wow! You ask some pretty good questions! Let me try to give you sufficient answers...

Who

Jim Steinman was and is the creative genius behind Meat Loaf's multi-million selling album "Bat Out of Hell. Over the course of two-plus decades, he's written hit songs for an impressive list of artists: Air Supply, Bonnie Tyler, Celene Dion, Barry Manilow, Barbara Streisand, and (of course) himself and the afore-mentioned Mr. Loaf!

Now, if that sounds like an odd cross-section of the music industry... well, it is! But one thing is true and that is that Jim Steinman has an unmistakable flair and power to his work. From songs like "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" (Air Supply) to "Holding Out For A Hero" (Bonnie Tyler) to "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (Celene Dion), you realize a simple truth, his compositions cry out to you, with a common and unmistakable voice: "I AM A JIM STEINMAN SONG!"

There is the same passion and the same power in those songs as there was in Meat's greatest hits... "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad", "Paradise By The Dashboard Light", or "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)"... a recognizable and tangible quality that is nowhere else in the music industry or universe! I've never been able to put my finger on it... is it the articulation of his words, the incredible sound he wrings from the sheet of music, or perhaps the quality he demands and coaxes from his hand-picked musicians who perform his songs... (Yes, even on other performers records, you will find HIS musicians handling the chores for HIS songs!)

Personally I think it's a meshing of the three...

What

What makes this album so good is, that besides being a complete album of Steinman originals, it was intended to be the sequel to "Bat Out of Hell!"

The story goes... Meat virtually blew his voice out during the incredible tour that accompanied the mind-boggling "Bat" album... it made both men stars... but left Meat unable to record the new album. Steinman had always wanted to record his own album and so he and Meat agreed that he should go ahead...

This album had a couple of strikes against it, however, when it was released. First while the world recognized Meat Loaf's name, few knew that Jim Steinman was the "creator" of the music Meat performed. Second Virtually every song on the album had been written specifically with Meat Loaf's incredible vocal range in mind... Steinman's voice is to Meat Loaf's as Steinman's size (or lack thereof) was to Loaf's then-gargantuan girth! And Third Ironically, due to various problems with production and post production and the like, Bad for Good was not timely, and ended up almost competing with Meat Loaf's next release after his voice had healed!(an album called "Dead Ringer")

Why

This is a truly great album! From the opening song, the title track... actually from the "Overture" that precedes that track... this album sends chills up your spine and reverberates your ears and your soul!

The album yielded one bona-fide hit, the top-20 single, "Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through." Several of the other songs were just as memorable; but the single was the one song that Steinman wrote more in his range than Meat's!

Tracks

1. The Storm (Overture/Prologue)
2. Bad for Good
3. Lost Boys & Golden Girls
4. Love & Death & the American Guitar
5. Stark Raving Love
6. Out of the Frying Pan (and Into the Fire)
7. Surf's Up
8. Dance in my Pants
9. Left in the Dark
10. Rock & Roll Dreams Come Through

Highlights

The Storm is a full-fledged philharmonic production. What Beethoven might have sounded like in the 20th century!

Love & Death & the American Guitar was more of a spoken word (or SCREAMED word) than a song, and was actually optioned by one television network (CBS I believe) who considered it as a possible TV Movie!

Stark Raving Love contains one of the most incredible multiple guitar solo's I've ever heard!

Surf's Up (along with Love & Death & the American Guitar) were finally performed by Meat Loaf on his "Bat Out of Hell 2" in the late 1990's!

Left in the Dark was the song that Barbara Streisand covered into a top-40 hit single!

Final Thoughts

If you've never heard this CD and you really, really like intelligent rock & roll; this is a must hear! (Once you've heard, it'll be a must have...)

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Driving