Day29: More Than You Deserve

Meat Loaf & Stoney didn't last long on the Motown label, but the two good friends joined up with Jack Wade and hit the road opening for Rare Earth. Meat livened up the stage (and the pit) with his grandios antics...the kind of antics that are common place for punk bands these days, but back then, not so much. 300lbs of Meat ran through audiences, egged on call & response, and generally had a big sweaty blast.

When that gig ended, he got a call from the producers of Hair. They were putting on an "All-Star" version in NYC. A few disasters with the building structure and a hostile cast sent Meat on his way to Pittsburgh, then Toronto, then Buffalo productions of the musical that paid his bills. This strange circuitous path led him to one of the most important introductions of his life:

Enter Jim Steinman

Meat auditioned for the musical "More Than You Deserve." It's written by Steinman and Michael Weller.

"I sang 'I'd Love to be as Heavy as Jesus,' and Steinman was the only one in the room. ... Now that I know Steinman really well, I know why he was the only one in the room. He doesn't like anyone to invade his space." -- From To Hell and Back: an Autobiography

He played the part of the loon Rabbit, a solider who "helps" his buddies get "home" by blowing them to Timbuktu. Meat latched on to the insanity of the character, a character whose song would later be included on Meat's 1981 Dead Ringer album.