Post Random Music-Related Thoughts You Have

[bada]

Growing up my mom's side of the family put ketchup in the meatloaf my dads side did not. Both delicious.

[Farmer John]

Back on topic. Thank you

[Ello Sailor]

I thought Franz Ferdinand were pretty lame back in the day. Saw some recent live videos and they're kinda crushing it. Might have to walk back my hatred of this band.

[Ello Sailor]

I'm sorry I was just sick of hearing about Robert Paulson.

[Jorge]

Was it ever confirmed what "that" was in the Meat Loaf song? Pegging?

IT'S IN THE GODDAMN LYRICS I'M SO TIRED OF THIS JOKE IT'S OBVIOUS AND IT ALWAYS HAS BEEN AND I'M ANGRY AND ALWAYS HAVE BEEN STOP MAKING THIS JOKE IT'S OBVIOUS

Can you just tell us what "that" is? I don't want to have to go to all the trouble of looking up the lyrics and reading them.

Cheating

He would do anything for love except cheat? That doesn't make any sense!

"sooner or later you'll be screwing around"
"no, I won't do that"

It's literally in the song

FJ is right that it wouldn't make sense if that was all it was... or at least it would be very muddled

I didn't know the answer but after this conversation I started reading about it and Meat Loaf's own explanation is that it's a bunch of things

Each chorus introduces a thing Meat Loaf will never do:

Chorus 1:
I'll never forget the way you feel right now
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 2:
I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way tonight
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 3:
I'll never do it better than I do it with you
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 4:
I'll never stop dreamin' of you every night of my life
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

And then the bridge and outro with Lorraine Crosby introduces a bunch of other stuff he won't do, including screwing around, forget everything, and see that it's time to move on.

Is this the be-all end-all answer? Well you know how I feel about interpretations. I don't know that Jim Steinman himself would agree with what Meat Loaf says. But it's definitely at least a little ambiguous, probably by design. I wouldn't say it's obvious. It's so not obvious that it became one of the main things people discuss about the song, and the guy had to pull out a blackboard and a pointer to explain it at his Vh1 Storytellers appearance.

[Farmer John]

None of it makes any sense. He would do anything for love except for doing it better than he does it with her? Which is something someone might do for love?

If he won't never forgive himself if they don't go all the way tonight, does that mean he WILL forgive himself?

What a mess

[Jorge]

I think he's reiterating that he'll never forgive himself, no he won't

[Farmer John]

Forgiving yourself if you don't go all the way (tonight) is something that someone would do for love. But not him. He refuses. Anything but that.

[Ello Sailor]

I think he's reiterating that he'll never forgive himself, no he won't

Man stfu

[Jorge]

I won't do that

[Ello Sailor]

This man? He must be stopped.

[VinylGuy]

Guys its time to let it go.

It doesnt look good for the board of we engage in a Meat Loaf ‘s lyric discussion. I tell people this is an Art’s Forum, help me a bit please.

[VinylGuy]

“We talk about The Arts and politics, its a great place “ and boom three Pages of the lyrics of Meat Loaf

[Ello Sailor]

Guys its time to let it go.

It doesnt look good for the board of we engage in a Meat Loaf ‘s lyric discussion. I tell people this is an Art’s Forum, help me a bit please.

[epilogue]

Guys its time to let it go.

It doesnt look good for the board of we engage in a Meat Loaf ‘s lyric discussion. I tell people this is an Art’s Forum, help me a bit please.

AL

[epilogue]

Was it ever confirmed what "that" was in the Meat Loaf song? Pegging?

IT'S IN THE GODDAMN LYRICS I'M SO TIRED OF THIS JOKE IT'S OBVIOUS AND IT ALWAYS HAS BEEN AND I'M ANGRY AND ALWAYS HAVE BEEN STOP MAKING THIS JOKE IT'S OBVIOUS

Can you just tell us what "that" is? I don't want to have to go to all the trouble of looking up the lyrics and reading them.

Cheating

He would do anything for love except cheat? That doesn't make any sense!

"sooner or later you'll be screwing around"
"no, I won't do that"

It's literally in the song

FJ is right that it wouldn't make sense if that was all it was... or at least it would be very muddled

I didn't know the answer but after this conversation I started reading about it and Meat Loaf's own explanation is that it's a bunch of things

Each chorus introduces a thing Meat Loaf will never do:

Chorus 1:
I'll never forget the way you feel right now
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 2:
I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way tonight
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 3:
I'll never do it better than I do it with you
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

Chorus 4:
I'll never stop dreamin' of you every night of my life
[I will do anything for love, but I won't do that]

And then the bridge and outro with Lorraine Crosby introduces a bunch of other stuff he won't do, including screwing around, forget everything, and see that it's time to move on.

Is this the be-all end-all answer? Well you know how I feel about interpretations. I don't know that Jim Steinman himself would agree with what Meat Loaf says. But it's definitely at least a little ambiguous, probably by design. I wouldn't say it's obvious. It's so not obvious that it became one of the main things people discuss about the song, and the guy had to pull out a blackboard and a pointer to explain it at his Vh1 Storytellers appearance.

I'm just not sure how

Her: "sooner or later you'll be screwing around"
Him (immediately after, almost cutting her off): "no I won't do that"

is ambiguous, but sure. It's a really complicated pop song by a really complicated artist. We may never know the "real" answer.

[epilogue]

Regardless... So many wasted keystrokes on that Jim Steinman jam when the thing we should really be talking about is this 1981 masterpiece:

[Farmer John]

Bringing it back to the Meat Loaf song, if I may

I think what muddles the lyrics for most people is his use of “but…that”. He’s listing a bunch of grand gestures he would do for love and then saying “but not that (particular grand gesture)”

But what I guess he’s trying to say is “here’s a list of grand gestures I would do for love, and also, I won’t cheat on you”

[Higgs]

I think it's lying. He'd do anything for love except lie. At least that's how I read the lyrics.

[Chorus]
And I would do anything for love l'd run right into hell and back
I would do anything for love
I'd never lie to you and that's a fact
But I'll never forget the way you feel right now Oh no, no way
And I would do anything for love But I won't do that. No, I won't do that.

[Farmer John]

If the girl he loved committed a crime and the police were questioning him about it, he would turn her in. He wouldn't lie for love.