I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" is a Grammy award winning song composed and written by Jim Steinman, and recorded by Meat Loaf. The song was released in 1993 as the first single from the album Bat out of Hell II: Back into Hell.
It reached number one in twenty-eight countries, the first being Ausralia on September 4, 1993, where it stayed for 8 weeks, becoming the highest selling single of the year there. It also stayed at number one for seven weeks in the UK. The single was certified platinum in the US and became Meat Loaf's first number-one single on billbord's hot 100 chart and on the UK singles chart.
The song opens with a guitar played to sound like a reveving motorcycle. This is clearly a reference to Todd Rundgren's contribution in the middle of "Bat out of Hell". Roy Bittan's piano begins to play, along with the guitars. The vocals begin at the 1:50 point, which is where many pop songs are beginning their second chorus. Steinman "alternates... [a bombastic] style with mellow moments where the hard-hitting piano licks are fleshed out with ethereal synthesizer and choral-styled backing vocals."
And I would do anything for love
I'd run right into hell and back
These opening vocals are gentle, with piano and subtle backing vocals. The song then becomes much louder as the band, predominately piano, plays the main melody for twenty seconds. It remains loud for the first verse, and then quietening again for the chorus. The chorus continues, repeating the lines:
I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of
But I just won't do that
An instrumental section, lasting over 45 seconds, follows, with piano playing the title melody, accompanied by guitar and word-less background vocals by Todd Rundgren, Rory Dodd and Kasim Sulton. The lead vocals recommence with another verse. The popular phrase "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" was censored to become "Some days I just pray to the god of sex and drums and rock and roll." The second chorus begins in stadium style, with the "But I'd never do it better than I'll do it with you..." lines more subdued.
At the 9:28 point, the song transforms into a duet .The structure of the verses remain, but the female now asks what the male would do. He answers in the affirmative for the first four sections.
Girl:
Will you make me some magic with your own two hands?
Can you build an emerald city with these grains of sand?
Can you give me something I can take home?
Boy:
I can do that!
For the final two sections, the girl guesses that he would eventually do things to upset her and their relationship: firstly that he'd forget all of their memories and feelings between them and want "to move on", and, secondly, would be "screwing around." Both times, he responds "But I won't do that."
"THAT"?????.....WHAT???
All music Guide said that "Meat Loaf sells the borderline-campy lyrics with a full-throated vocal whose stirring sense of conviction brings out the heart hidden behind the clever phrases."
Each verse comprises two things that he would do for love, followed by one thing that he would not do. It is that latter part of each verse that is the "that" of the title. However, some people misunderstand the lyrics, claiming that the singer never identifies what the "that" is which he is unwilling to do. Steinman predicted this confusion during production.An early episode of the VH1 program pop up video made this claim at the end of the song's video: "Exactly what Meat Loaf won't do for love remains a mystery to this day."A reviewer writing for All music guide also misunderstood the lyric, commenting that "The lyrics build suspense by portraying a romance-consumed lover who pledges to do anything in the name of love except "that," a mysterious thing that he will not specify." While the reviewer concludes that the mystery is revealed during the closing stages of the song, it is not observed that "that" is revealed in every chorus throughout.
Although some people assume that "that" is an exophoric references to a sex act, it is actually an anaphoric references to the varying activities and feelings that are specified as antecendes in the lyric that the singer says that he won't do.
"I'll never forget the way you feel right now ..."
"I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way tonight ..."
"I'll never do it better than I do it with you ..."
"I'll never stop dreaming of you every night of my life ..."
In addition, the female vocalist identifies two other things that the lead singer denies that he will do: "You'll see that it's time to move on" and "You'll be screwing around." To both of these, the lead singer emphatically responds, "I won't do that! No, I won't do that!"
Meat Loaf says that the question "what is 'that'?" is one of the most popular questions he is asked. In his 1998 VH1 Storytellers special, he even explained it on stage using a blackboard and a pointing stick. In a 1993 promotional interview, Steinman states that the definition of "that" is fully revealed in the song in each of the several verses in which it is mentioned.
It's sort of is a little puzzle and I guess it goes by - but they're all great things. 'I won't stop doing beautiful things and I won't do bad things.' It's very noble. I'm very proud of that song because it's very much like out of the world of Excaliber. To me, it's like Sir Lancelot or something - very noble and chivalrous. That's my favorite song on the record - it's very ambitious.
Jimmy always said, "You know what? Nobody's gonna get it." And he was right..............
It reached number one in twenty-eight countries, the first being Ausralia on September 4, 1993, where it stayed for 8 weeks, becoming the highest selling single of the year there. It also stayed at number one for seven weeks in the UK. The single was certified platinum in the US and became Meat Loaf's first number-one single on billbord's hot 100 chart and on the UK singles chart.
The song opens with a guitar played to sound like a reveving motorcycle. This is clearly a reference to Todd Rundgren's contribution in the middle of "Bat out of Hell". Roy Bittan's piano begins to play, along with the guitars. The vocals begin at the 1:50 point, which is where many pop songs are beginning their second chorus. Steinman "alternates... [a bombastic] style with mellow moments where the hard-hitting piano licks are fleshed out with ethereal synthesizer and choral-styled backing vocals."
And I would do anything for love
I'd run right into hell and back
These opening vocals are gentle, with piano and subtle backing vocals. The song then becomes much louder as the band, predominately piano, plays the main melody for twenty seconds. It remains loud for the first verse, and then quietening again for the chorus. The chorus continues, repeating the lines:
I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of
But I just won't do that
An instrumental section, lasting over 45 seconds, follows, with piano playing the title melody, accompanied by guitar and word-less background vocals by Todd Rundgren, Rory Dodd and Kasim Sulton. The lead vocals recommence with another verse. The popular phrase "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" was censored to become "Some days I just pray to the god of sex and drums and rock and roll." The second chorus begins in stadium style, with the "But I'd never do it better than I'll do it with you..." lines more subdued.
At the 9:28 point, the song transforms into a duet .The structure of the verses remain, but the female now asks what the male would do. He answers in the affirmative for the first four sections.
Girl:
Will you make me some magic with your own two hands?
Can you build an emerald city with these grains of sand?
Can you give me something I can take home?
Boy:
I can do that!
For the final two sections, the girl guesses that he would eventually do things to upset her and their relationship: firstly that he'd forget all of their memories and feelings between them and want "to move on", and, secondly, would be "screwing around." Both times, he responds "But I won't do that."
"THAT"?????.....WHAT???
All music Guide said that "Meat Loaf sells the borderline-campy lyrics with a full-throated vocal whose stirring sense of conviction brings out the heart hidden behind the clever phrases."
Each verse comprises two things that he would do for love, followed by one thing that he would not do. It is that latter part of each verse that is the "that" of the title. However, some people misunderstand the lyrics, claiming that the singer never identifies what the "that" is which he is unwilling to do. Steinman predicted this confusion during production.An early episode of the VH1 program pop up video made this claim at the end of the song's video: "Exactly what Meat Loaf won't do for love remains a mystery to this day."A reviewer writing for All music guide also misunderstood the lyric, commenting that "The lyrics build suspense by portraying a romance-consumed lover who pledges to do anything in the name of love except "that," a mysterious thing that he will not specify." While the reviewer concludes that the mystery is revealed during the closing stages of the song, it is not observed that "that" is revealed in every chorus throughout.
Although some people assume that "that" is an exophoric references to a sex act, it is actually an anaphoric references to the varying activities and feelings that are specified as antecendes in the lyric that the singer says that he won't do.
"I'll never forget the way you feel right now ..."
"I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way tonight ..."
"I'll never do it better than I do it with you ..."
"I'll never stop dreaming of you every night of my life ..."
In addition, the female vocalist identifies two other things that the lead singer denies that he will do: "You'll see that it's time to move on" and "You'll be screwing around." To both of these, the lead singer emphatically responds, "I won't do that! No, I won't do that!"
Meat Loaf says that the question "what is 'that'?" is one of the most popular questions he is asked. In his 1998 VH1 Storytellers special, he even explained it on stage using a blackboard and a pointing stick. In a 1993 promotional interview, Steinman states that the definition of "that" is fully revealed in the song in each of the several verses in which it is mentioned.
It's sort of is a little puzzle and I guess it goes by - but they're all great things. 'I won't stop doing beautiful things and I won't do bad things.' It's very noble. I'm very proud of that song because it's very much like out of the world of Excaliber. To me, it's like Sir Lancelot or something - very noble and chivalrous. That's my favorite song on the record - it's very ambitious.
Jimmy always said, "You know what? Nobody's gonna get it." And he was right..............
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