Meat Loaf: 3 Bats Live (2007)

In 1977, Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman released their classic "Bat out of Hell" produced by Todd Rundgren on Epic/Cleveland International Records. It contains such standards as "You Took the Words Right out of my Mouth (Hot Summer Night)", "Two out of Three Ain't Bad", "Paradise by the Dashboard Light", and of course, the title song. Really, this whole album is standards. The original "Bat" tour followed over the next two years.

Fifteen, sixteen years later, Meat Loaf and Jim returned to the well with "Bat out of Hell II: Back into Hell" released on Virgin/MCA Records in 1993. With Jim producing, the album yielded "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", "Rock And Roll Dreams Come Through", and "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are", featuring videos directed by Michael Bay. Another legendary tour would follow. The achievement of "Bat II" would be hailed as one of the greatest comeback stories in rock.

In the years to come, Meat and Jim experienced plenty of success in their own right, with Meat releasing his 1995 follow-up album "Welcome to the Neighbourhood", and Jim writing lyrics for Andrew Lloyd Webber on "Whistle down the Wind" and music for "Tanz der Vampire". And then there was Celine Dion's version of "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", which Andrew Lloyd Webber apparently once called "the record of the millennium". And really, that doesn't surprise me. Because that song!!

Every now and then, the question would arise: "Would Meat and Jim reunite a second time to give the world a Bat out of Hell III which would create a trilogy?" From there, they multiply: "Would Jim produce? Would Todd put in an appearance somewhere behind the scenes? What kind of songs would Jim write? Would there be more covers? Where would the covers come from? How would Meat Loaf sound? Would there be an orchestra like there was on Bat out of Hell?" And one I always wondered about: "What would the cover be like?" Even following up the covers by Richard Corben and Michael Whelan is an incredible exercise in itself.

In 2003, in the wake of Meat Loaf's "Couldn't Have Said it Better", and the resulting tour which was being called "The Last World Tour", there were stories coming through to the media that Meat and Jim were going to release a "Bat III". I mean, talk about stop the music press!

The result, for me, was the somewhat divisive "Bat out of Hell III: The Monster is Loose" Songs by Jim Steinman and Desmond Child. I never thought a "Bat" album would have to grow on me?

This leads, of course, to "3 Bats Live" which follows on from the DVD release of the same name.

Recorded live at the John Labatt Centre in London, Ontario, Canada on 18 March, 2007, Meat Loaf and his band the Neverland Express are giving us this show. At the end of the night, I can say with much pride and conviction: they are giving it absolutely everything they’ve got. And it is soaring high into the heavens, above the smog and the wilderness, flying away like a... like a... like a bat out of hell!

I fear for Meat Loaf here. I fear for the band. There are times I don't know if they're going to make it through. But they prove, as they have proved before on four other live occasions which have been documented for all time that they make it through and then some!

First, I want to credit the people who are involved here: The CD has been Executive Produced by Allen Kovac, featuring Kasim Sulton on Bass, also serving as the band's Musical Director, John Miceli on Drums, Paul Crook and Randy Flowers providing Guitars, Mark Alexander on Piano/Keyboards, Dave Luther playing Saxophone and Keyboards, C.C. on Backing Vocals and Special Appearance from Marion Raven (what a name!) on the duet "It's All Coming Back to Me Now".

Is there someone missing from these credits perhaps? Yes and her name is Patti Russo, but damn it, everybody is giving it everything they've got on "3 Bats Live" you can't help but be distracted, and Aspen and the band is really giving it their all. It's Meat Loaf after all. They're not doing things by halves. They're doing it more than whole?

As I said before, this CD was also released as a DVD, but with considerably more songs. There are eight, so if you want to get the fuller picture here, definitely see the DVD if you haven't already. Perhaps the most notable omission from the CD for me is "Objects in the Rear View Mirror". I'm not really sure why this happened, but I just have to go with what we have. So you may want to check out both.

Without any further ado!

"All Revved up with No Place to Go"---firstly, the show is structured in the order of the albums' releases, so naturally we begin with "Bat 1". This version is like the one from "VH1: Storytellers", but this time we get the cool Roseanne-like saxophone of Dave Luther to add to the mix. I love that sound! I love this damn sax!

"Paradise by the Dashboard Light"---Aspen Miller has big boots to fill, not just because of Patti by the way, but all the other performers who have ever dueled with Meat on this song, and I can see her doing this in a Broadway show. She could have been in the "Bat" musical. She does hold her own. It would have been fun to see her come back on a later tour.

"I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)"---CD wise anyway, we move on to "Bat II" relatively quickly, and we get this version of the 1993 Number 1. For a moment, I just find myself thinking: "if only there had been a Number 1 from this album too." Everyone is doing mean work here. Well done.

"Rock and Roll Dreams come through"---it is always, always brilliant to hear this one live and I want to thank Meat and the band for every single time they did this onstage and in rehearsals. This is no exception.

"Bad for Good"---we have already moved on from "Bat II" so we get this surreal version of Meat singing "Bad for Good" live, because I still find it quite surreal than anyone is singing this onstage at all. Dave's sax is killer as ever.

"If It Ain't Broke Break It"---this song to me is really "Only When I Feel", which Meat introduced on the "Hair of the Dog Tour" before "Bat III" in 2005, but these live versions do help you to forget, but more so the one from the Sydney, Australia concert a few years later. Well done again.

"Blind as a Bat"---this is one of the highlights from "Bat III". This also feels like the extended version (you should be able to find it on YouTube) that I feel should have been on the actual album. Meat and the band are soldiering through.

"It's All Coming Back to Me Now"---they actually invite Marion Raven from the album version to come onstage to sing this with Meat. I'm trying not to mention the other versions of this song, but I just can't help it with this one because it's always missing the verses that Elaine and Celine did, and knowing how much Meat and Marion sell this, I think it would have raised it even more.

"Bat out of Hell"---how thrilling to go from that song from "Bat III" to the big bad bat from the original. Oh yes. I feel like Meat is rising above an almighty storm here. It could almost be "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" from "The Twilight Zone". And he makes it off the plane triumphant. Again, this is thrilling stuff.

"Black Betty"---we wrap it up with a song which they might as well have put on "Bat III", considering the non-Steinman material included, but it's on the "All Coming Back" B side (a single which wasn't even released in Oz) and this album here, so yay! Of course I love that Meat and the band are actually doing a version of this. It just fits right in. Oh yeah! All right!

And that folks brings us to the end of "3 Bats Live". Definitely check out the DVD as well. My copy comes with a backstage documentary about Meat Loaf called "In Search of Paradise".

Thank you,

Ryan.