I'd do anything for love (but I won't do that) - Meat Loaf

When Meat Loaf sang that he would do anything for love but he won't do 'that', a lot of people were left with the question: what, exactly, is 'that'? At the song's conclusion, the female vocalist predicts two things that the protagonist will do: 'You'll see that it's time to move on and you'll be screwing around'. To both of these, he replies, 'I won't do that!'. Although Meat Loaf believed that the lyrics were unambiguous, the singer recalls that Steinman predicted that they would cause confusion. Meat Loaf says that the question, 'What is 'that'?' is one of the most popular questions he is asked.

Clocking in at over 7 minutes, it's another one of those epic Jim Steinman tracks that Meat Loaf became so popular with at the end of the Seventies. The single was taken from Meat Loaf's 1993 album 'Bat out of hell II: Back into hell' and reached number 1 in 28 countries.

My collection: 7" single no. 1987
Found: HMV, London, October 18, 1993
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'I'd do anything for love (but I won't do that)' / 'Back into hell'

Paradise by the dashboard light - Meat Loaf

Although the label on this single claims that 'Paradise by the dashboard light' has a running time of 7 minutes and 55 seconds, it is actually only 5 minutes and 25 seconds - which means it is a single edit of the epic album version, excluding the lengthy baseball commentary and some minor musical bits. I would regret this if I was actually planning on listening to this song ever again - which I won't for another decade or two.

Still, I have to concede that 'Paradise by the dashboard light' is a classic track, one that is forever synonymous to Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman's brilliant collaboration. I wish it wasn't played so damn often though.

My collection: 7" single no. 378
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1985
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Paradise by the dashboard light' / ''Bat' Overture'

You took the words right out of my mouth - Meatloaf

According to his autobiography, Meat Loaf asked Jim Steinman to write a song that wasn't 15 or 20 minutes long, and, in Meat Loaf's words, a 'pop song'. The song was reportedly written in 1975, and a key factor in Meat Loaf and Steinman deciding to do an album together.

The single was released as the follow-up to 'Paradise by the dashboard light', one of the biggest hits of the Seventies. This single did comparatively worse, reaching number 33 in the UK singles chart and number 3 in the Dutch Top 40.

I bought this copy with a picture sleeve because I only had an American copy from 1978 without a picture sleeve. The B-side of that single features a heavily edited version of 'Paradise by the dashboard light'. Or is it the other way around? I can't tell from the single itself.

My collection: 7" single no. 4354
Found: Record mania, Amsterdam, December 30, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'You took the words right out of my mouth' / 'Two out of three ain't bad'

My collection: 7" single no. 317
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1985
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'You took the words right out of my mouth' / 'Paradise by the dashboard light'