SINGERS REACT to...'Meatloaf's 'Paradise by the dashboard light'

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[vanyadolly]

One of the best reactions to this song I've ever seen 🤣🤣🤣

[AmbassadorJenks]

I played with Meatloaf in the 90"s. He went by Meatloaf. We called him Meat. That is what he preferred.

[AnimeOtakuDrew]

The song is telling the story from the perspective of several years later, as evidenced by the first line ("I remember every little thing as if it happened only yesterday") and the part Meat Loaf (the guy) sings at the very end ("Well, it was long ago and it was far away and it was so much better than it is today"). Parts one and two (called "Paradise" and "Let Me Sleep on It, " respectively) are telling the story of how the two first got together as a couple (the implication is that it was on prom night, hence Meat Loaf wearing a tuxedo shirt and slacks) and he promised to stay with her for the rest of his life in order to . . . be with her. Part three ("Praying for the End of Time") cuts to the present, when they have been together for years and have gotten tired of each other; the guy still refuses to break his promise to stay with her until the end of time (props to him on that), so he's "praying for the end of time to hurry up and arrive" so he doesn't have to be with her any more. The point is, even though it might initially seem like an immediate reversal from trying to get with her to wanting out, it's actually just a transition from recounting the past to telling how it is now. Oh. And the lyrics she sings at the very end are "It never felt so good, it never felt so right, and we were glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife."

In case you can't tell, I have loved this song for years. It's probably my favorite song by Meat Loaf. I have know the whole song by heart for at least twenty years now, and it's definitely on my list of karaoke duets I want to do if I ever get a girlfriend that is willing to do karaoke.

[paulranger]

Meatloaf started out in musicals on theater and was in Rocky Horror. All of his music is designed to be performed. Rock opera is the genre.

[ChromeTiger]

This song, a true American classic, is indeed a one-act play. Meat Loaf himself once said "Most singers think they can act. I've always been an actor who thought he could sing."

I posted this on another reaction video, and I didn't see it here, so I figured I'd point this out:

The first line of the song:
"Well I remember every little thing, as if it happened only yesterday..."

This song is looking -back-, to this couple's beginning. It's a musical flashback...a dream sequence. They've been together for what seems like (to him, at least) an eternity when the song begins.

A line later in the song:
"I'll never break my promise, or forget my vow, but God only knows what I can do right now."

Yes, he caved to his hormonal urges, and said what she wanted to get what he felt he NEEDED at the time. But even then, he had a sense of Honor, and he kept his word as it was given.
He took her away, and he made her his wife. He never left her. He will love her till the end of Time.

He just doesn't LIKE her any more...but he will still honor his promise, while praying for its end. The end of Time cannot come soon enough.

The 'background' lines at the end of the song:
Her: "It never felt so good, it never felt so right. We would glow like the metal on the edge of a knife."
Him: "It was long ago, and it was far away, and it was so much better than it is today."

Again, he was keeping his promise. He continued to treat her with love, treat her with respect. SHE was still 'happy', though the teenage passion had obviously cooled.
But while keeping his vow, he was miserable. The glory days were gone, and now he was left with a 'job' he would not quit, because he was still an honorable man.

The depth of this song was, and still is, incredible.

[Lamm]

As you are singers, you might be interested in the fact that Meat Loaf is a Heldentenor (heroic tenor). He was offered 60.000 $/year by an opera house if he would take his time just to train his voice for 5 years. After this training time he would have gotten a well-paid job at the opera. Real Heldentenors are very rare. But he turned down the offer, because he thought that the opera would narrow him down. He wanted to do his own stuff in his own way. And he did. 😁

Meat Loaf is the singer's name. His father, an alcoholic policeman, called him Meat since he was a little child because he thought the little boy looked like a piece of red meat. Not cool in my opinion. He kept that name until today. His real Name is Marvin Lee Aday. He later changed Marvin into Michael. Meat said that the only person who called him by his real name was his mother. But she sadly died in 1967 of breast cancer, when he was only 20 years old. The band is called "The Neverland Express" because JIm Steinman, the composer of most of the songs Meat was singing is a huge Peter Pan Fan. Jim Steinman characterizes his songs as a mixture of rock, gospel and Richard-Wagner-operas. He thought Meat was the perfect singer to perform his songs. So a life-long musical partnership and friendship began.

Another characteristic detail about Meat's approach to a new song: He always emphasizes that he is in the first place an actor and in the second place a singer. So he approaches a song not as a singer but as an actor, which means he first reads the song text 10 - 20 times and tries to find the character he would play in this particular song. Only then he moves over to the musical performance. He admits that his band members are sometimes a bit annoyed about that method, because it takes a long time.

[infjjedi]

One of the most brilliant songs ever made.
And the older you get, the better the song
gets. Brilliant

[nagaslrac]

“So now I’m praying for the end of time” signals it’s years later & they’ve been married for some time.

[minnroo]

They just don’t make em like this anymore. Meatloaf was an incredible performer and singer. 🕊️

[ffjsb]

Ellen Foley did the actual original singing in this video, the girl in the video is Karla DeVito, an awesome singer in her own right that sang on tour. She also had a couple of solo albums that were pretty good. "Cool World" was her best album.

[terrystorey]

Glad you noticed that she was also praying for the end of time. A lot of people miss that part.

[jeffcamp]

Jack black was influenced by Meatloaf, Meatloaf played on Broadway in “Hair” and “Rocky horror show” and on Movies! His shirt and suspenders are costume for a prom tux, This is prom night paradise their singing about. That’s Meatloaf theatre, he said he never sang, but preformed a character on stage! Yes this is theater and even in concert they performed to character!

[WeDontWantYourWar]

RIP Jim Steinman. Master storyteller and songwriter. The world was made a better place with his music. He made us laugh at ourselves. Told the stories of raging teenage hormones and love, lust and heartbreak (in this case, all in one song)

[sombojoe]

Loved this for decades since I was young, however now when I am older the ending of the song gets me so sad.

[alecbruyns]

This was revolutionary when it came out. It blew everyone's minds.

[NicStryker]

Bat out of hell is easily one of the best rock opera albums every made. A story of two 17yr olds in a parked car (paradise by the dashboard light) he wants to go all the way (home run) she stops him asking if he will commit. He promises to love her until the end of time, at the end he wants to honor his promise despite he can't stand her anymore.

[jeannejorgensen]

The part where they can’t stand each other is supposed to be years later in their relationship.

[kathyastrom]

I’m surprised kids don’t know the baseball slang terms for the various steps of making out. First base: kissing; second: fondling with hands on top of clothes, third: hands under clothes; home run: all the way.

I was in college in the mid-‘80s, and this was still a staple in the dorm rooms and at parties. I remember in the first month of my freshman year in my dorm room one night, and there was a party in the apartment building across the alley where this song was blaring out of the windows.

[marksnyder]

Hey Lisa. I was a teenager during the 70's and you can't imagine how many nights my friends and I spent rockin out to this masterpiece. Thinking back now I literally can't stop smiling. Thanks for the critique.

[horacecock-johnson]

It might have been mentioned earlier but the female singer was the origional public defender on the 80s sitcom Night Court