Best production of Meat Albums list

[proctorloaf]

Do you agree?...

Best = 1

1. Bat out of Hell 3: The Monster is Loose
2. Blind Before I Stop
3. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
4. Bat Out of Hell
5. Bat Out of Hell 2: Back into Hell
6. Welcome to the Neighbourhood
7. Couldn't have said it Better
8. Deadringer
9. Bad Attitude
10. Stoney and Meat Loaf
11. Midnight at the Lost and Found
12. Braver than we Are
13. Hell in a Handbasket

[loaferman61]

1. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
2. Couldn't Have Said it Better
3. Bat Out of Hell 2: Back into Hell
4. Bat out of Hell
5.Welcome to the Neighbourhood
6. Bat III
7. Deadringer
8.Bad Attitude
9. Blind Before I Stop
10. Braver than we Are
11. Midnight at the Lost and Found
12. Hell in a Handbasket
13.Stoney

[Monstro]

1. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
2. Couldn't Have Said it Better
3. Bat III
4. Bat II
5. Welcome to the Neighbourhood
6. Dead Ringer
7. Bat out of Hell
8. Bad Attitude
9. Midnight at the Lost and Found
10. Blind Before I Stop
11. Hell in a Handbasket
12. Braver Than We Are
13. Stoney & Meat Loaf

[Vickip]

1. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
2. Braver Than We Are
3. Hell In A Handbasket
4. Couldn't Have Said it Better
5. Bat III
6. Welcome to the Neighbourhood
7. Bat out of Hell
8. Bat Out of Hell 2: Back into Hell
9. Deadringer
10. Bad Attitude
11. Blind Before I Stop
12. Midnight at the Lost and Found
13. Stoney
__________________

[Mr. Happy]

1. Hell in a Handbasket
2. Braver Than We Are
3. Bat out of Hell

These are the only ones that sound like a band playing live in the studio. They sound natural and the songs have room to breath.

4. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
5. Midnight at the Lost & Found
6. Dead Ringer
7. Couldn't Have Said It Better
8. Bat 3
9. Welcome to the Neighborhood

These all sound like studio creations and start to sound more and more sterile the further you go down the list. You can practically hear the click track in parts of WTTN (Left in the Dark being the worst offender).

10. Bat 2
11. Blind Before I Stop
12. Bad Attitude

These are all albums where the songs actually suffer from their production. Bat 2 has all the sterility of WTTN amped up to 11, and BBIS and BA just sound dated.

Says nothing for the quality of the albums themselves, of course. Bat 2 is my favourite album despite the awful production, and HIAHB is my least favourite despite Paul's amazing work.

[samurai7]

Interesting... see in my opinion Bat 2 is THE GREATEST record ever. That and Pandoras Box made me totally convinced that Jimmy is my fave producer of all time.
Really like the vocal sound on BBIS and BA, but the rest leaves rather a lot to be desired. Found WTTN a bit dense, not enough 'air' in the tracks. Bat 1 has too much distortion on the drum tracks, especially on Bat and Paradise. DR is all over the place but has some of my favourite songs.
CHSIB was done really really well imo, but the production on everything released after doesn't sit right with me. Bat 3 had its moments, but lacked the dynamic I was craving, especially on the Steinman tracks. HCTB was nearly very very good, but is mastered too loud, so it feels stifled to me. HIAHB didn't feel 'finished' and Braver's vocals are hard to get past.
The less said about MATLAF's production the better imo. Tom Dows has done some great work, just not with Meat unfortunately.

[Evil One]

Interesting... see in my opinion Bat 2 is THE GREATEST record ever. That and Pandoras Box made me totally convinced that Jimmy is my fave producer of all time.
Really like the vocal sound on BBIS and BA, but the rest leaves rather a lot to be desired. Found WTTN a bit dense, not enough 'air' in the tracks. Bat 1 has too much distortion on the drum tracks, especially on Bat and Paradise. DR is all over the place but has some of my favourite songs.
CHSIB was done really really well imo, but the production on everything released after doesn't sit right with me. Bat 3 had its moments, but lacked the dynamic I was craving, especially on the Steinman tracks. HCTB was nearly very very good, but is mastered too loud, so it feels stifled to me. HIAHB didn't feel 'finished' and Braver's vocals are hard to get past.
The less said about MATLAF's production the better imo. Tom Dows has done some great work, just not with Meat unfortunately.
I agree with pretty much all of this, although I think CHSIB sounds a bit 'empty' in places.

[nightinr]

Surprised how low Bat 2 is on the list. Some great songs, but they are partly great in my opinion by the great production skills.

[nightinr]

As pure production ability I think Hang Cool is probably the best. Great album but just lacked the killer song(s).

[glockenspiel]

Hang Cool wins it hands down for me (ignoring entirely that I only rate a few of the songs as great songs). ...... And Blind Before I Stop is the absolute pits (I can't ignore here how great it might have been, were it not for the stinky production).

[Wario]

Production wise:

1. Hang Cool Teddy Bear
2. Couldn't Have Said it Better
3. Bat II
4. Bat III
5. Welcome to the Neighborhood
6. Bat out of Hell
7. Blind Before I Stop
8. Stoney & Meat Loaf
9. Dead Ringer
10. Bad Attitude
11. Midnight at the Lost and Found
12. Hell in a Handbasket
13. Braver Than We Are

say what you will about Desmond he made Meat sound REALLY good.

Midnight is what it is a country demo record. Bad attitude was produced and mixed very questionably. still this isnt my favorites rank its still in my number 5 spot.

HCTB, CHSIB, and Bat II are such a joy from a production stand point

[ashkent7]

Interesting... see in my opinion Bat 2 is THE GREATEST record ever. That and Pandoras Box made me totally convinced that Jimmy is my fave producer of all time.
Really like the vocal sound on BBIS and BA, but the rest leaves rather a lot to be desired. Found WTTN a bit dense, not enough 'air' in the tracks. Bat 1 has too much distortion on the drum tracks, especially on Bat and Paradise. DR is all over the place but has some of my favourite songs.
CHSIB was done really really well imo, but the production on everything released after doesn't sit right with me. Bat 3 had its moments, but lacked the dynamic I was craving, especially on the Steinman tracks. HCTB was nearly very very good, but is mastered too loud, so it feels stifled to me. HIAHB didn't feel 'finished' and Braver's vocals are hard to get past.
The less said about MATLAF's production the better imo. Tom Dows has done some great work, just not with Meat unfortunately.

Pretty much this for me too. There are certain things in Jim's production that other producers just don't do or can't do. They have tried (on songs like Lie For You, CHSITB) which are Jim-esque in their overall appearance, but there are just little things that are missing. I remember one review of the Couldn't Have Said It Better album that used the heading tag "It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that Jim", and it's something that for me has rang true ever since. I can't imaging songs like Lemon, It Just Won't Quit, Frying Pan etc being produced any better - maybe matched possibly but not bettered. There's something dark and gothic in most of his best production that completely changes the song, and for me makes all other versions lack that final ghostly presence.

Having said that, I love Braver as well. How much of that is down to the background guidance of Jim, I don't know but for me it is much better than HIAH - although that is likely down to the songs which I really didn't take to on the latter.

In the end, song overrides production for me almost every time so I don't really have much of a list. That's why there is still a special place on my ipod for the theme songs of He-Man, Fraggle Rock and all those other 80s kids shows. :D

[eltmatt]

Bat 2 is the best produced imo, and his best overall album.

[duke knooby]

my list would be in a similar progression to loaferman and monstro, just minor differences

all subjective of course

[Elijah's way]

1. Bat 2
2. Hang Cool
3. Bat 1
4. Bat 3
5. Welcome to the neighborhood
6. Bad Attitude
7. Blind Before I Stop
8. Couldn't have said it better
9. Braver than we are
10. Hell in a handbasket
11. Stoney and Meat Loaf
12. Dead Ringer
13. Midnight at the lost and found