Hell in a Handbasket

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This article is about a music album. For the phrase, see to hell in a handbasket.
Hell in a Handbasket
HIAH.jpg
North American cover
Studio album by Meat Loaf
Released September 30, 2011 (Australia)
February 27, 2012 (UK)
March 13, 2012 (US)
Recorded Summer 2011
Genre Hard rock, heavy metal, country rock, hip hop
Length 53:05
Label Legacy
Producer Paul Crook, Lil Jon
Meat Loaf chronology
Hang Cool Teddy Bear
(2010)Hang Cool Teddy Bear2010		 Hell in a Handbasket
(2011)		 Live in Sydney
(2012)Live in Sydney2012
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source Rating
Metacritic 44/100[1]
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 3/5 stars[2]
The A.V. Club C-[3]
Consequence of Sound D-[4]
Goldmine 3/5 stars[5]
The Guardian 3/5 stars[6]
The Independent 2/5 stars[7]
London Evening Standard 4/5 stars[8]
Popmatters 3/10[9]
Record Collector 2/5 stars[10]
Spin 2/10[11]

Hell in a Handbasket is the 12th studio album by Meat Loaf, released September 30, 2011 in Australia and New Zealand, through Legacy Recordings (Sony Music Entertainment). A wider global release followed in early 2012.[12]

Background

The album was produced by Neverland Express guitarist Paul Crook.[13] Songwriters who had worked on his previous album also made a return, including Gregory Becker and John Paul White ("Let's Be in Love") and Tommy Henriksen (co-author of the digital bonus track "Prize Fight Lover"). Also prominently featured on the album is songwriter Sean McConnell, whose contributions were originally developed for Hang Cool Teddy Bear but wound up being discarded as the album took a different direction creatively (however, he is still thanked in that album's liner notes).[14] The album was released on Legacy Recordings, the catalog division of Sony Music Entertainment, which overseas Meat Loaf's back catalog of releases on the Sony-owned Epic and Arista labels.

Due to the lengthy gaps between releases in various regions, Meat Loaf has intimated in response to public demand that there is still time for longtime collaborator Jim Steinman to make a contribution to the album in its internationally-released form. Meat Loaf concluded by noting "don't rule it out."[15] This was a more specific variation on a previous statement, namely that he would work with Steinman again but that Steinman "doesn't know it yet."[16] Speculation has since occurred as to what the contribution may be. As recently as September 2008, Steinman stated on his website he was creating an album as a promotional tie-in to the forthcoming Bat Out of Hell musical with a working title of Bat Out of Hell: The Climax or The Final at Bat, which would feature "new versions of classic BOOH 1&2 songs, and ALL the brand newest songs, sung by many amazing artists." He hastened to add that there was "NO REASON Meat couldnt [sic] sing these too."[17]

Title

The title "Hell in a Handbasket" refers to the popular saying that things are going "to hell in a handbasket." According to Meat Loaf, he chose the title because "the world's gone to hell in a handbasket and every day that I listen to the news, I think the handbasket is getting bigger."[18]

Track listing

Australian/German version[19]

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "All of Me"   Dave Berg 5:17
2. "Fall from Grace"   Gregory Becker, Bobby Huff, Bleu McAuley 3:46
3. "The Giving Tree"   Evan Watson 4:54
4. "Mad Mad World/The Good God Is a Woman and She Don't Like Ugly" (Special appearance by Chuck D) Tom Cochrane, Paul Crook, Carlton Ridenhour 4:05
5. "Party of One"   Dave Kushner, Franky Perez 3:59
6. "Live or Die"   Gregory Becker, Tommy Henriksen, John Paul White 4:27
7. "California Dreamin'" (Duet with Patti Russo) John Phillips, Michelle Phillips 4:05
8. "Another Day"   Wade Bowen, Sean McConnell 5:03
9. "40 Days"   Bill Luther, Justin Weaver 5:23
10. "Our Love and Our Souls" (Duet with Patti Russo) Sean McConnell 4:00
11. "Stand in the Storm" (Special guest appearances from Lil Jon, John Rich and Mark McGrath) Barry Dean, J. Smith, Troy Verges 4:37
12. "Blue Sky"   Sean McConnell 2:57

North American/European version[20][21][22]

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "All of Me"   Dave Berg 5:17
2. "The Giving Tree"   Evan Watson 4:54
3. "Live or Die"   Gregory Becker, Tommy Henriksen, John Paul White 4:27
4. "Blue Sky/Mad Mad World/The Good God Is a Woman and She Don't Like Ugly" (Special appearance by Chuck D) Tom Cochrane, Paul Crook, Sean McConnell, Carlton Ridenhour 4:58
5. "California Dreamin'" (Duet with Patti Russo) John Phillips, Michelle Phillips 4:05
6. "Party of One"   Dave Kushner, Franky Perez 3:59
7. "Another Day"   Wade Bowen, Sean McConnell 5:03
8. "40 Days"   Bill Luther, Justin Weaver 5:23
9. "Our Love and Our Souls" (Duet with Patti Russo) Sean McConnell 4:00
10. "Stand in the Storm" (Special guest appearances from Lil Jon, Trace Adkins and Mark McGrath) Barry Dean, J. Smith, Troy Verges 4:42
11. "Blue Sky"   Sean McConnell 2:57
12. "Fall from Grace"   Gregory Becker, Bobby Huff, Bleu McAuley 3:46

Personnel

Musicians

The Neverland Express

Regular Meat Loaf studio sidemen

Session musicians

  • Ginny Luke – violin (track 5)
  • Caitlin Evanson – fiddle (track 6)
  • Glen Duncan – mandolin (track 9)
  • Bruce Bowden – pedal steel (track 11)
  • Jerry Flowers – backing vocals (track 4)

Guest appearances

Singles

"Stand in the Storm", featuring special guest appearances from Meat Loaf's Celebrity Apprentice teammates Mark McGrath, John Rich, and Lil Jon, was the first promotional single released digitally in May 2011, to benefit their respective charities.[25]

The first physical and second digital single, "All of Me", the album's opening track, was released for download exclusively through iTunes Australia on August 26, 2011.[26]

The album's seventh track, a cover of "California Dreamin'" (originally by The Mamas and The Papas) featuring Patti Russo, has since been released to radio in Australia as of early September 2011.

Tour

Meat Loaf embarked on the Guilty Pleasure Tour across Australia and New Zealand in October 2011 in support of the album, receiving mixed reviews for his vocal performance.[citation needed] The show in Sydney was recorded for DVD release.

References

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  12. ↑ Video on YouTube[dead link]
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  23. ↑ Australian release only
  24. ↑ North American/European release only
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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