Tom's Turbo Twinks

Total Eclipse of the Heart went on for seven minutes, featured a pipe organ solo that sounded like it was being played by Count Dracula and was punctuated by explosions that were supposed to represent the sound of nuclear bombs being dropped: as was his wont, Steinman claimed it was heavily influenced by Wagner. It would have sounded completely ridiculous, were it not for the fact that Tyler’s vocal gave the impression she didn’t think it was ridiculous at all: she sang it as if her life depended on it. To use a modern term, she committed to the bit so completely that her voice emerged as the song’s star attraction, rather than being swallowed up by the absolute bedlam going on around it. Fast forward the song to about three and half minutes in: Count Dracula has just finished doing his stuff, a massed chorale of backing vocalists keep urging bright eyes to turn around, there are faux nuclear explosions going off left, right and centre, but when Tyler’s vocal reappears – “EVERY NOW AND THEN I FALL APART!” – you forget about everything other than her.