theguardian.com
Meat Loaf will do anything for love – but he won’t sing on his new tour
The Bat Out of Hell star is reportedly going on the road – but with the American Idol winner Caleb Johnson doing the actual singing. Is this proof that any job can be outsourced?
Name: Michael (formerly Marvin) Lee Aday.
AKA: Meat Loaf.
Age: 70.
Appearance: Loveable schlub.
Shtick: Preposterously overblown gothic rock with unexpected movie cameos.
Ah yes. I remember him from such films as The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Fight Club. That’s right. But he is probably best known for the albums Bat Out of Hell (1977) and Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell (1993), which between them sold eight billion copies.
Sign up for the Sleeve Notes email: music news, bold reviews and unexpected extras
Read more
Are you exaggerating? Only slightly. The point is that there are a lot of Meat Loaf fans out there, and soon they will get the chance to see him perform again.
You mean he’s going back on tour? That’s right. It is reported to be called the Back Out of Hell tour.
Then why do I detect a hint of reservation in your voice, as if you were holding back some crucial detail? Does he tour quite often? He does. He even does farewell tours quite often. But this will definitely be something new.
In a good way? I suppose that depends on your point of view. If this information is reliable …
That’s a fairly mighty “if”. Well, yes, but if so, on his next tour, Meat Loaf himself will not do any actual singing.
Uh-oh. The dreaded lip-sync. Actually, no. Meat Loaf’s reported plan is to bring in a lad called Caleb Johnson to sing the songs for him.
Eh? Apparently, “Meat Loaf is concerned he isn’t up to some of the bigger numbers after losing his voice a couple of years ago.”
I suppose the type of singing required by Meat Loaf’s greatest hits must take its toll. Yes. They certainly call For Crying Out Loud. Johnson is 27 and won American Idol four years ago. Meat Loaf praised him at the time, saying: “It’s great to see him tearing it up and putting some real rock’n’roll back on primetime TV!”
It makes sense, in a way. “I’m tired of words and I’m too hoarse to shout,” Meat Loaf probably told Johnson.
But what will Meat Loaf himself do? “His involvement will be telling stories of how he met Jim Steinman, who he has worked with since the 70s, and other anecdotes.”
So basically it’s like going to see a tribute act, with the original for company? You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth. As indeed does Johnson.
Wait a minute … Are you secretly filling our conversation with Meat Loaf song titles? Actually, one of them was just a lyric.
I suppose Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad. Hey!
Do say: “Anything for love.”
Don’t say: “That.”
Since you’re here…
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. And unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can. The Guardian’s editorial independence means our only agenda is to provide trustworthy reporting for our readers around the world. Facts are sacred; so is our independence. So you can see why we need to ask for your help.
The Guardian’s independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our perspective matters – because it might well be your perspective, too.
Meat Loaf will do anything for love – but he won’t sing on his new tour
The Bat Out of Hell star is reportedly going on the road – but with the American Idol winner Caleb Johnson doing the actual singing. Is this proof that any job can be outsourced?
Name: Michael (formerly Marvin) Lee Aday.
AKA: Meat Loaf.
Age: 70.
Appearance: Loveable schlub.
Shtick: Preposterously overblown gothic rock with unexpected movie cameos.
Ah yes. I remember him from such films as The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Fight Club. That’s right. But he is probably best known for the albums Bat Out of Hell (1977) and Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell (1993), which between them sold eight billion copies.
Sign up for the Sleeve Notes email: music news, bold reviews and unexpected extras
Read more
Are you exaggerating? Only slightly. The point is that there are a lot of Meat Loaf fans out there, and soon they will get the chance to see him perform again.
You mean he’s going back on tour? That’s right. It is reported to be called the Back Out of Hell tour.
Then why do I detect a hint of reservation in your voice, as if you were holding back some crucial detail? Does he tour quite often? He does. He even does farewell tours quite often. But this will definitely be something new.
In a good way? I suppose that depends on your point of view. If this information is reliable …
That’s a fairly mighty “if”. Well, yes, but if so, on his next tour, Meat Loaf himself will not do any actual singing.
Uh-oh. The dreaded lip-sync. Actually, no. Meat Loaf’s reported plan is to bring in a lad called Caleb Johnson to sing the songs for him.
Eh? Apparently, “Meat Loaf is concerned he isn’t up to some of the bigger numbers after losing his voice a couple of years ago.”
I suppose the type of singing required by Meat Loaf’s greatest hits must take its toll. Yes. They certainly call For Crying Out Loud. Johnson is 27 and won American Idol four years ago. Meat Loaf praised him at the time, saying: “It’s great to see him tearing it up and putting some real rock’n’roll back on primetime TV!”
It makes sense, in a way. “I’m tired of words and I’m too hoarse to shout,” Meat Loaf probably told Johnson.
But what will Meat Loaf himself do? “His involvement will be telling stories of how he met Jim Steinman, who he has worked with since the 70s, and other anecdotes.”
So basically it’s like going to see a tribute act, with the original for company? You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth. As indeed does Johnson.
Wait a minute … Are you secretly filling our conversation with Meat Loaf song titles? Actually, one of them was just a lyric.
I suppose Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad. Hey!
Do say: “Anything for love.”
Don’t say: “That.”
Since you’re here…
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. And unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can. The Guardian’s editorial independence means our only agenda is to provide trustworthy reporting for our readers around the world. Facts are sacred; so is our independence. So you can see why we need to ask for your help.
The Guardian’s independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our perspective matters – because it might well be your perspective, too.
