BORN ON THIS DAY - SUCCESS BROKE MEAT LOAF AFTER BAT OUT OF HELL

BORN ON THIS DAY — SUCCESS BROKE MEAT LOAF AFTER BAT OUT OF HELL

The album that transformed Meat Loaf into a star was followed by a nervous breakdown and the loss of the very voice that had made him famous. 🦇

Born on September 27, 1947, Meat Loaf spent years fighting to be heard before Bat Out of Hell arrived in 1977. Created with songwriter Jim Steinman and producer Todd Rundgren, its theatrical, oversized rock initially built momentum slowly—then became a phenomenon. 🔥

By 1978, Meat Loaf was touring the world. His performances were intensely physical, and the work continued beyond the stage: morning radio, soundchecks, interviews, concerts and sometimes more promotion afterward. 🎤

He later reflected that success had been harder for him to handle than failure. After the exhausting Bat Out of Hell tour, he suffered a nervous breakdown. In a later interview, he explained that being called a star was something he could not cope with at the time.

Then came another devastating blow: while working on the intended follow-up, Meat Loaf lost his singing voice. The singer whose power had driven Steinman’s epic songs suddenly could not record them. 💔

Steinman continued developing the material while waiting for Meat Loaf to recover. When his voice did not return in time, Steinman recorded the project under his own name, singing much of it himself. It was released in 1981 as Bad for Good. 🎹

Bat Out of Hell had opened the door to unimaginable success, but what waited on the other side was pressure, exhaustion and years of turmoil. The triumph sounded larger than life; the struggle behind it was painfully human. 🕯️

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