After the commercial success of Bat Out of Hell and Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell, and earning a Grammy Award for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for the song "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", Meat Loaf nevertheless experienced some difficulty establishing a steady career within the United States. The key to this success was his popularity in Europe, especially in the United Kingdom and Ireland. He received the 1994 Brit Award in the United Kingdom for best-selling album and single. He appeared in the 1997 film Spice World and he ranked 23rd for the number of weeks spent on the UK charts in 2006. He ranks 96th on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock". Meat Loaf appeared in over 50 films and television shows, sometimes as himself or as characters resembling his stage persona. His film roles include Eddie in The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) and Robert Paulsen in Fight Club (1999). His early stage work included dual roles in the original Broadway cast of The Rocky Horror Show. He also appeared in the musical Hair, both on and Off-Broadway.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meat_Loaf
Studio albums
Bat Out of Hell (1977)
Dead Ringer (1981)
Midnight at the Lost and Found (1983)
Bad Attitude (1984)
Blind Before I Stop (1986)
Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell (1993)
Welcome to the Neighbourhood (1995)
Couldn't Have Said It Better (2003)
Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose (2006)
Hang Cool Teddy Bear (2010)
Hell in a Handbasket (2011)
Braver Than We Are (2016)
Living On The Outside
Meat Loaf Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A bottle in one ear and a spike in my chest
A nickel in my boot and my finger in a damn
I hang out with a bunch of losers I call my friends, and we sing
Oooh
Oooh
Oooh
But I'm headin' out today, I'm goin' down Elijah's way
Spinnin' wheels on fire, with my speed needle between my jeans
So darlin', show my what you're hiding behind that ring
Behind your pink silhouette, young lust balcony
C'mon baby, just ride with me
C'mon baby, just ride with me
C'mon baby, just ride with me
We got two-thousand miles between here and home
They won't even know we're gone
I got mama's smile and my daddy's gun
You got your honest face and your liar's tongue
Until Armageddon takes me
It's just you and my baby
Running like the only sinners left
Loving like the only sinners left
Livin' like the only sinners left alive
Livin' on the outside
I got one shot to steal this world
If you wanna go with me you can be my girl
Here's a bullet for your thoughts and a penny for the train
Next time I'm here they'll be diggin' my grave
C'mon baby, just ride with me
C'mon baby, just ride with me
We got two-thousand miles between here and home
They won't even know we're gone
I got mama's smile and my daddy's gun
You got your honest face and your liar's tongue
Until Armageddon takes me
It's just you and my baby
Running like the only sinners left
Loving like the only sinners left
Livin' like the only sinners left alive
Livin' on the outside
Livin' on the outside (hey hey hey)
Livin' on the outside (oh, yeah yeah, livin')
Livin' on the outside (yeah yeah yeah yeah, ooh)
Livin' on the outside (oh yeah, oh yeah, oh hey)
Well, if I gotta go, I'm going in style
You're gonna find me running down that Calvary mile
A beggar's son on the potter's tree
C'mon, baby just ride with me
C'mon, baby just ride with me
C'mon, baby just ride with me
Come on!
Come on!
We got two-thousand miles between here and home
They won't even know we're gone
I got my mama's smile and my daddy's gun
Bring your honest face and your liar's tongue
Until Armageddon takes me
It's just you and my baby
Runnin' like the only sinners left
Livin' like the only sinners left
Lovin' like the only sinners left alive
Livin' on the outside
The lyrics to Meat Loaf's "Living on the Outside" paint a picture of a rebellious spirit who is living life on his own terms. The singer seems to be living with a reckless abandon, as shown through the lines "A bottle in one ear and a spike in my chest/A nickel in my boot and my finger in a damn." He also refers to himself and his group of friends as "losers," suggesting that they may be living on the fringes of society.
Despite his wild ways, the singer seems to have found a connection with someone special. The lines "So darlin', show me what you're hiding behind that ring/Behind your pink silhouette, young lust balcony" suggest an intimate relationship with someone he cares for deeply. The singer invites this person to "just ride with me," suggesting that they run away together and live outside society's conventions.
As the song progresses, the singer's rebellious spirit only grows stronger. He sings about stealing the world and running away with his love interest, with the intention of living like the "only sinners left alive." The lyrics are are powerful expression of defiance against a society that often tries to put people in a box and force them to conform.
Line by Line Meaning
I've got steel on my fingers, granite on my breath
I am exerting strength and power in my actions and words
A bottle in one ear and a spike in my chest
I am feeling numb and unfeeling due to my drinking and drug use
A nickel in my boot and my finger in a damn
I am constantly ready for a fight, even when it is not necessary
I hang out with a bunch of losers I call my friends, and we sing
I surround myself with people who are not successful, but we find joy in singing together
But I'm headin' out today, I'm goin' down Elijah's way
I am leaving my current situation and going towards a new adventure
Spinnin' wheels on fire, with my speed needle between my jeans
I am driving recklessly and dangerously
So darlin', show my what you're hiding behind that ring
I am curious about your secrets and what you are not revealing to me
Behind your pink silhouette, young lust balcony
Your youthful beauty and sexual allure are irresistible to me
We got two-thousand miles between here and home
We are far away from our homes and our old lives
They won't even know we're gone
Nobody will even realize that we have left
I got mama's smile and my daddy's gun
I am a combination of my parents' traits, both good and bad
You got your honest face and your liar's tongue
You have qualities of both honesty and deceitfulness
Until Armageddon takes me
I will continue living my life this way until the end of the world
It's just you and my baby
You and I are the only ones who matter in this moment
Running like the only sinners left
We are living recklessly and irresponsibly, like the only people left on earth
Loving like the only sinners left
We are showing love and affection wildly and passionately
Livin' like the only sinners left alive
We are living our lives like we are the only ones left on earth
We got one shot to steal this world
We have one opportunity to conquer and take control of this world
If you wanna go with me you can be my girl
If you want to join me in this adventure, you can be my partner
Here's a bullet for your thoughts and a penny for the train
I am giving you a way to pay for your thoughts and transportation
Next time I'm here, they'll be diggin' my grave
I am living my life recklessly, and I know it will probably lead to my early death
Well, if I gotta go, I'm going in style
If I have to die, I am going to make it memorable and grand
You're gonna find me running down that Calvary mile
When I die, I want to be remembered as someone who made a statement
A beggar's son on the potter's tree
I will be remembered as an underdog, but also someone who was capable of great things
Come on!
Encouragement to take action and live life to the fullest
Lyrics © Bluewater Music Corp., Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Rick Brantley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
wolfoshea
this should have had a video for it. or at least been used in a movie.
Mike Ryan
kick-ass song!!!!!!
shango02005
Awesome! Meat Loaf is just Badass!!!
Paul Scaife
great song. nice opening riff...
Jeff Wilhelm
Its good in all but its not like the classic Meat Loaf that i like if he goes back to his classic ways, the music industry might be in trouble because he was one of the best artists in the 70s and 80s.
KayoteThunder
@masterofdisaster691 This is very classic. What was meatloaf like before? Very theatrical. When I hear this song I keep thinking how it belongs in musical theater.
Hardcore Bunny
@masterofdisaster691 I think Bat Out of Hell was pretty rocking, Peel Out on his Dead Ringer album, he has done alot of rocker type music. Have you listened to all his albums?
Jeff Wilhelm
@KayoteThunder Meatloaf's music does fit in theatrical movies and what not but the Meatloaf that i know wasn't as hard rock except for I want my money back and the Monster is Loose album. His classic music, to me, had better meaning and just sounded better
CyanideMotors
@eddiestriker How is it WalMart can edit CDs the way that they do, yet sell R rated DVDs with extremely in-depth sex/rape scenes. Not much of a "family store" if you ask me. Bunch of hypocrites.
m13ald
@CyanideMotors dude they little tikes can't buy R rated movies though, its BS iknow