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| re: MEAT LOAF RECONCILES WITH STEINMAN | |
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pidunk 11:25 pm UTC 05/09/07 |
| In reply to: | re: MEAT LOAF RECONCILES WITH STEINMAN - John_Galt 07:09 pm UTC 05/09/07 |
> Thanks for posting this, Daniel. It is a good gesture to post news articles, however this time Daniel posted something that was already on discussion in the board, from the sources of interviews viewed and heard in which Meat expressed himself to the listenership and the parameters of the article did not expand upon it. What the article did was create a wall of illusion that grew beyond the wall of illusion that Meat and Jim WERE actually, imminently, and intentionally to be working together, which it does not appear that they are; certainly not anything that's been said, has indicated it yet. Daniel as a media watcher, makes his contributions by posting the articles. He does not seem to qualitatively evaluate the articles themselves. During the course of the past year I have come to see Daniel as the media cheerleader of the Rockman Record. He does the same with Hotel Steinmania. It would be ideal if Daniel, as appreciated as these articles may be, could add his own inference as to what the article means, other than repeating the headline. Sadly, I've been studying, headlines have been playing fast and loose with the contents of the articles they are purported to represent. > > I'd love to see Steinman working with Meat Loaf in the > studio, again. I think that most people are in agreement with you. To put a sardonic note of caricature on this, however, if things go along the same way as Meat is describing, in the studio would be Meat's attorney and Jim's attorney trying to figure out how to work the console. The pair obviously are having difficulties communicating. Smeg and others whose judgment I value > have noted that Meat's live performances are not what they > should be these days. I think that evaluations of performances, reviews, and the experience that Smeg and others bring to the board are top-notch and rare in form and quality. I value their opinions as well. As for Meat's performances, I wonder if the scale is made not to fit him, by the expectations that Jim brings to the table. Jim's larger-than-life, greater-than-breadth production values, when they form the template of expectation, is hard for any performer to match without his guidance. Therefore it would not surprise me that Meat may have an otherwise technically and aesthetically pleasing show, other than the expectations placed into it. In comparison to shows Meat has done with Jim, I do venture to say that Meat cannot match them by himself. Even if that is so, it would be > great to have a number of new studio recordings of new > Steinman songs. I believe that Jim has mentioned that in the future there will be if the future could hold fast to itself. I'm waiting with enthusiastic patience for those. Meat Loaf is an artist where his base > audience demands Steinman's sound and nothing too > contemporary -- that alone gives him a big advantage in my > book. I'm not sure if those in the Rockman Record or the Meat Loaf forums are representative of "base audience" but the expectations are set by the proliferation that these units provide to the media. The age ranges are showing that Meat appeals to an audience that is younger and contemporary, and I believe that Meat delivers contemporary, because what contemporary is, paints itself with a wide pallette, especially these days. People aren't born with teething rings made of Steinman notes. Demand for Steinman works exists not just in Meat, but in every standard setting where one compares Steinman works with non-Steinman works. > > I wasn't overly excited about Bat Out of Hell: The > Musical. I've been convinced for some time that a > powerful libretto and a firm committment to story dynamics > are what Jim needs for his next success in musical > theater. The songs must serve the story and not the other > way around. The songs were made for a story unperformed. Jim will build it seamlessly and it will astound you. I get the impression that the show will be a > spectacular cabaret that loosely connects unrelated songs > and unrelated special effects. The reason why you have the impression is because you are getting the material backwards, and you just need to see the other part filled in. I have every faith that Jim will deliver the goods. It'll probably be the best > spectacular in years, but still not what Jim needs for his > next musical theater success. If Jim's hands stay on it as they should, it should exceed the lauds given to Tanz. (On the other hand, I've > always said I'd rather see Jim do pop recordings than > musical theater if it weren't for the huge potential > upside in a hit musical theater show and the more > stimulating artistic types Jim would get to work with > doing theater -- this project has the potential to give > him both of these things.) The reason why Jim does not attempt a United States openning is because many people in media power in this country tend to agree with you. Jim's soul screams theatre to him, and the opinion that pigeon-holes his works constricts it. I don't see that there is financial gain greater in musical theatre, but I see that there is greater artistic reward for Jim who craves it. The project indeed could help straddle these influences, as you suggest. > > Maybe... and this would make sense for both Jim and > Meat... Maybe Meat Loaf has agreed to star in Bat Out of > Hell: The Musical. Jim is not going to permit this as far as I could see. It is a rumor that started someplace and wishful thinking may proliferate it, but it is Jim Steinman's Bat Out Of Hell, and the involvement Meat has thus far with it is the court settlement order not to interfere. Meat Loaf is still a big name in > London -- at least as big as Michael Crawford. If the > show is a spectacular cabaret a la Mama Mia, but on > steroids, there's no reason for Smeg to get too angry with > Jim. I don't lend much weight to one fan's anger at the artist not performing according to one's specifications. I also do not see where it is meaninful to compare Meat Loaf with Michael Crawford or anyone else. Mama Mia was written by outsiders, best as I know, based on a loved compilation of already existing, single-standing songs which had no story designed in their creations. Jim has said in every interview on the subject that he pictures each song in a movie that has not been made yet, or a story that he sees the visual of. He is the one putting all these together, and they together, sight and sound, will fit his vision. It won't be anything like Mama Mia. After all, Meat Loaf will just be another laser > effect that sells tickets. The way things are being conducted, the attitude being given to Meat Loaf by his people gives Meat the characteristic of a laser defect that detracts from Jim. If they together can figure out how to balance this, and if Jim feels that Meat is suitable for any performance with him again, I am sure it will be worked out. But it can't happen in anyone's imaginatins, not ours, Meat's, or the media's. The next recording that Jim > and Meat do together can be called an original west end > cast recording. The next recording that Jim and Meat can do together can be called a miracle. It would make good drama for Meat to > support "Jim Steinman's Bat Out of Hell" the same way Jim > supported "Meat Loaf: Bat Out of Hell" in 1977. This is the misperception. It was not supposed to just be Meat Loaf, it was supposed to be both their names, but Jim's name was taken off. Jim created the duo, it was his works, and of course he went with it in "support". Meat has nothing to do with Jim Steinman's Bat Out Of Hell. But he can attend a performance and send a bouquet. > > You know that $producers$ would find it a more tempting > gamble if Meat Loaf was attached to the project... I think that Jim has all he producer's backing he requires on his own terms. Meat Loaf is not in any of the Tanz productions. | |
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