12 Most Overlooked Meat Loaf Songs From Every Album

And here we come to Meat Loaf's final album. Braver Than We Are saw considerable involvement from Jim Steinman, at least on the face of it. Initially, the veteran songwriter and producer was earmarked to provide three tracks, but by the end the album was wall to wall Steinman - but not as an album of new compositions.

Instead, Braver Than We Are is a compilation of largely unreleased or previously released Jim Steinman songs, dating back at least a decade, in some cases considerably more. Loving You Is A Dirty Job (But Someone's Got To Do It) is a new version of a 1986 Bonnie Tyler single, released on her Secret Dreams And Forbidden Fire album as a duet with Todd Rundgren.

Thirty years later, Meat Loaf's version is leaner and meaner than the original, bolstered by a heavier, more propulsive arrangement. Tyler's version is at least two minutes too long, with an oddly r n' b style production; in comparison, Meat Loaf's version paces and snarls.

Unlike many of Steinman's duets, this song is not actually a duet at all - it's from the point of view of a paramour who is loyal to the end, despite his lover's shortcomings - so it's mystifying why Tyler and Steinman felt the need to recruit Rundgren for the original version, especially given that his contribution veers wildly from an impassioned bellow to weird caterwauling and yipping noises.

Ordinarily you might have seen Meat Loaf, always an intuitive interpreter of Steinman's material, correcting that awkward mistake. However, let's address the elephant in the room: Meat Loaf's voice had significantly deteriorated between 2011's Hell In A Handbasket - where he still had great range and power - and Braver Than We Are.

Only five years later, all he could sustain was a gutsy low timbre and plenty of emotion. He's ably supported by that roiling Steinman tune, but it's Stacy Michelle's soaring co-vocal that saves him from having to carry that gorgeous melody on his own and gives him space to breathe and emote.

This song - and really, the whole final album - feels a little like a dying king taking one final ride through the streets of the capital: still a majestic, powerful presence, even with the guys on either side holding him up…