A Journey Into The Mind of Meat Loaf

Well, that’s how the man is describing it himself – not in so many words, but when the Bat Out of Hell rocker talks about his new album, Hang Cool Teddy Bear, he reveals that, “It’s the one that tells you the most about me. It tells you about how my mind works.”

For that opportunity, he credits producer Rob Cavallo, who reportedly allowed Meat Loaf to be the “the captain” during the process of creating the new album. Whether or not that was a wise choice will be revealed by the numbers that follow the April 23rd release.

The new album is not without controversy, even before hitting store shelves. A certain track that revolves around the story of a man that falls for a prostitute is comprised partly of lyrics that are not likely to be well-received by some. The passage in question is on a track entitled “California Isn’t Big Enough,” and it makes reference to the size of a certain part of the male anatomy. Not too tough to figure that one out.

The 62-year-old rocker sounds as if he had some reservations about going ahead with the controversial lyrics, but in the end, he decided that it really was something that was important to convey the message in that particular song.

He makes an interesting point as he compares the lyrics to the content one might be exposed to while watching an R-rated movie. Certainly a thought-provoking viewpoint, considering that, technically, the language used on “California Isn’t Big Enough” does not even include any profanity. It’s more a contextual thing, I suppose, but there are bound to be very strong opinions on both sides of the argument.

Joining Meat Loaf on the new album are some other well-known names – some surprising and some not so much. Jack Black duets on a track called “Like A Rose,” while British actor Hugh Laurie of House fame plays piano on “Can’t Have You.” Not long ago, Meat Loaf was a guest star on an episode of House, and the two struck up a friendship, which led to an invitation to play on the new album.

Meat Loaf, like a lot of other rockers in his age group, has no plans to slow down. “I’m like the Energizer rabbit right now. I don’t even need to be plugged in. I need to be unplugged,” he says.

There’s more to be read regarding Meat Loaf and his new album at MSN.