Customer Reviews

Bat Out of Hell The Original Tour UK/US

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

From June of 1978 comes this German television special that captures one of the original Bat Out of Hell tour concerts. The album was just exploding into its cult status at the time and everyone's very young and energetic.

THE GOOD: Well, it's a good view of a period of live Meat Loaf that hasn't been widely seen before. This is the tour where he started to destroy his voice, but he hasn't done it quite yet (though he does struggle with the high notes due to his reckless vocals). The result is a young, powerful voice that hits a lot of good notes. During his performance of "Heaven Can Wait," Meat pulls a Patti Labelle and finishes the song without a microphone emphasizing the size of his voice. Karla DeVito is gloriously fun as Meat's first rock chick. Rory Dodd doesn't really stand out, but it's great to see and hear him performing live. And of course, seeing Jim Steinman live and on stage is a tickle. The German TV interview offers an interesting look at Jim and Meat's early relationship (especially in contrast to what it later became).

THE BAD: The video isn't atrocious, but it sure isn't great. It's about as good as it can be considering its 1-inch videotape roots I suppose, but that isn't saying much. The audio mixing is a complete mess. The drums are trebled, forward, and really quite grinding. Everything else just mushes together into a poorly defined single-layer mess that's entirely too thin for the type of music. The camerawork and lighting are uniformly horrid. This band cannot hold a candle to the Neverland Express that Meat constructed years later. The German interviewer doesn't speak much English and seems absolutely clueless as to what he's doing.

THE CONFUSING: Amazon seems to be fixing how this product is advertised compared to what you actually get, but it was (at least originally) posted as including "River Deep, Mountain High" and "Johnny B. Goode" which are certainly not on the North American disc. Amazon listed this as containing a DTS audio track which is not true; there is only a Dolby Stereo track. And Amazon listed the run-time as 105 minutes, but it is actually only 74 minutes of concert. Amazon's mistakes don't affect my rating but are here just as an FYI.

THE VERDICT: This one's very middle-of-the-road for me. As a historical record, it's interesting. As an opportunity to hear Meat's voice pre-destruction, it's a valuable point of interest for die-hard fans. As a concert video, there's no way you'd reach for this audio mess when you could pop in Meat's "3 Bats" DVD. For the fan, the DVD is dirt cheap and probably a decent buy. For the curious onlooker, I'd advise looking at the more sonically and visually stunning Meat concerts. Ultimately, 2½ stars out of 5 for me.

Bat Out of Hell: The Original Tour gives you a great feeling like you're travelling through time back to 1978 when Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman were solidly on top of the world. The dvd features a pre-show interview, cut short by an anxious Meat Loaf who wants to get ready to go out and sing.

The show itself is great. It may lack the huge bombastic excesses of the Live with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and 3 Bats Live concert dvds, but the same level of energy from Meat Loaf and the band is there.

When I first learned of the source material, I was a bit worried that it might just be tinny audio with only a very limited number of camera angles and shoddy video but I was definitely surprised. The video is very crisp considering its roots, although there are a few moments where slight horizontal color lines show up and occassional blurs, but overall I was definitely impressed.

The audio, while not top-notch dvd quality, was at least equal to that of hearing the music raw and live at an actual concert. There were some instances where one instrument overpowered another or the sound got a little abrasive, but it wasn't constant.

If you're more of a casual fan just looking for a concert dvd Live with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is definitely more epic and, obviously, being more recent has remarkably better quality. But if you just have to see what it was like back when Meat Loaf only had one album out, still had the long hair and several extra pounds, and still toured with Jim Steinman, this DVD delivers as much power as you'd expect from Meat Loaf and better quality than you'd expect from a made-for-Tv concert from 32 years ago. Besides, it's also pretty much your only option on DVD for a Meat Loaf concert before 1999, so at least us Meat Loaf fans haven't been scammed with some bottom of the barrel quality recording being sold just because it's the only one of its kind.

What I would not have given to be able to see Meat Loaf in his prime with his ruffled shirt, red hanky, Jim Steinman on piano, and Karla DeVito singing along for the very first Bat Out of Hell tour. Well thanks to DVD, the fans finally get that shot with Bat Out of Hell The Original Tour UK/US. I suppose there has to be a ton of fans considering Bat Out of Hell is the third most sold album of all time only eclipsed by Michael Jackson's Thriller and AC/DC's Back in Black.

The footage used comes from a tour stop in 1978 at the Stadthalle Offenbach in Germany. This is where a television special for the European series Rockpalast was taped, so the source material is over thirty years old. It's on video, and looks and sounds extremely raw in comparison to what could be done with current technology. There's some controversy about this release not including the entire set list of Meat Loaf's original tour. Missing are covers of "River Deep, Mountain High" and "Johnny B Goode". Originally Amazon and other online retailers listed this release as 105 minutes long, but final product reveals only 89 minutes made it to the disc. The set list follows the exact song order on the original Bat Out of Hell album with the exception of eliminating two ballads "Heaven Can Wait" and "For Crying Out Loud". "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" is moved to the end after "Paradise by the Dashboard Lights", and there is a reprise of "All Revved Up With No Place To Go" to serve as a finale. There are seven songs if we include the instrumental introduction piece "Great Boleros of Fire".

The DVD transfer looks as good as it can be considering the source material is video for television in the '70s. It has a decidedly low tech texture, but the clarity is amazing under the circumstances. The stereo sound is rough and tumble with vocals dropping in and out due to technical issues at the venue.
Extras include a pretty good German interview with Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman together from 1978. Steinman seems to take the lead in the fifteen minute session, and they discuss the Bat Out of Hell album from inception to execution. They talk about the follow-up project in great detail which became the Steinman solo album Bad for Good. Also included in the DVD are liner notes from Matt Friedman talking about what this album and tour meant.

Little more than over a month after this performance was taped Meat Loaf had an onstage accident which left him with a broken leg. He played Nassau Coliseum in New York from a wheelchair and then canceled the rest of this tour. So in all honesty the DVD is probably the best way to see a show that few fans got to see even the first time around.

This was awesome!!! Should have listened to my old girlfriend when Meatloaf came to Buffalo on this tour... If we went we may still be together...

just to say i am a fan of music. i love meat loaf. i didnt have any old dvds of his concerts. i purchased this one as i read some others who have bought it. well its a good concert. the only thing i was disappointed about was karla devito. i felt she was a little behind in the music. i feel patty russo works better with meat and love her voice and candid playfulness.
Thanks Thomas...

The UK edition includes the tracks "Johnny B. Goode" and "River Deep, Mountain High".

Full Tracklisting: 'Great Boleros Of Fire', 'Bat Out Of Hell', 'You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)', 'All Revved up With No Place To Go', 'Paradise By The Dashboard Light', 'Introducing The Band', 'Johnny B Goode', 'River Deep, Mountain High', 'Johnny B Goode (reprise)', 'Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad', 'All Revved Up With No Place To Go (reprise)'.

Good to see Meat Loaf in his prime.

This is Meat Loaf in his prime on the Bat Out Of Hell tour. The performance is excellent, the energy, passion and intensity is there in full glory. Im so glad this DVD was released, I hope they have more to release. Loved this. Perfect item that puts you right into the Bat out Hell era all over again.

I enjoyed this DVD very much, but like the person who posted before me I was disappointed that it wasn't as advertised. The show was shorter than listed on Amazon and there were no covers of 'Johnny B Goode' and 'River Deep, Mountain High'. Other than that, the concert footage was quite enjoyable.

The DVD was supposed to include "River Deep, Mountain High" and "Johnny B. Goode". They were not on the DVD I received.