Meat Loaf

The mammoth, operatic rock career of Meat Loaf is no less gripping and thrilling than the everyday life of the man himself (christened Marvin Lee Aday in Texas, 1947). Bitter lawsuits, cult movies, and the loss of his thunderous voice are only part of the full picture. We give you Mr. Loaf's most impressive facet: his tonsils.

A large part of Meat Loaf's genius lies in his ability to transform from rabble-rousing rock hooligan to sweet and tender balladeer — often on the same track. No matter which path he treads, every Meat Loaf note quakes with passion, whether it's the over-revving "Bat Out of Hell" or the shirt-soaking "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad".

Meat Loaf's two most thunderous, world-wide successes (Bat Out of Hell and Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell) were scored in close partnership with pianist and all-round maestro Jim Steinman. But you'd be nuts to overlook high-voltage solo belters like "Modern Girl" (on Bad Attitude). Give it some welly, Loaf!

Too many rockers have epic pretensions — they're all talk and no trousers — but not Meat Loaf. If he's given a project laced with lunacy, bombast, and transcendent piano riffery, you can bet your rent money he'll rest the whole shebang on his sturdy shoulders and blow you away with the hurricane power of his ten-gallon lungs. Like he tells Cher during their duet, "Dead Ringer for Love", the three most important things in life are a woman's love, rock 'n' roll, and brew. We can't argue.