10 Greatest UK No.1 Singles Of The 1990s
6. Meat Loaf - I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)
*Insert joke about what "that" is here*
Dropping in 1993, "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)" was written by Mr. Loaf's long-term collaborator, Jim Steinman.
It featured on Bat Out Of Hell II: Back Into Hell, the follow-up to the original Bat Of Hell album that launched Meat Loaf's career in the late 70s.
"I'd Do Anything..." topped the charts in over 25 countries in 1993, including the US and the UK, the first and only of Meat's tracks to do so. In fact, this track was the best-selling song in the UK for the entirety of 1993.
Not bad for an aging rocker named after a low-cost meal.
The song's success was helped by the fact that record executives persuaded Steinman to cut the track down from its initial 12 minute length. The single version is still a chunky one - 5 minutes and 13 seconds. Still, a drop in the ocean compared to the other gargantuan tracks in Steinman's back catalogue.
A rock-baroque classic from one of the most memorable musicians in all of rock, Meat Loaf earned his place at the top of the charts, even if it just was the once.