# Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell
**Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell** is a 1993 rock album by the American singer [Meat Loaf](https://www.edgepedia.org/meat-loaf), with songs written by [Jim Steinman](https://www.edgepedia.org/jim-steinman), and the sequel to the 1977 album *Bat Out of Hell*. It marked Meat Loaf's commercial comeback after more than a decade of diminished success, driven by the single "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", which went to No. 1 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and many other countries.[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html) • [2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 1993; first UK chart date 18 September 1993, on the Virgin label (catalog number CDV2710)[3](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/meat-loaf-bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell/) |
| Lead single | "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", a new Steinman song that went to No. 1[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html) |
| UK chart performance | Peak position 1; 11 weeks at No. 1, 23 weeks in the Top 10, and 68 weeks in the Top 100[3](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/meat-loaf-bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell/) |
| US chart and sales | No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in October 1993 for 1 week, 55 weeks on chart; certified 5x Platinum by the RIAA in April 1995[2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm) |
| Other certifications | UK 6x Platinum (BPI, December 1994); Germany 2x Platinum (1994)[2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm) |
| Length | 75 minutes, half as long again as the 1977 original[4](https://www.loudersound.com/music/jim-steinman-best-albums) |
| Song sources | Several songs salvaged from Steinman's back catalog alongside new material[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html) |
## Background
The 1977 album *Bat Out of Hell*, produced by [Todd Rundgren](https://www.edgepedia.org/todd-rundgren) with songs by Jim Steinman, had sold more than 14 million copies in the United States alone.[5](https://www.mmusicmag.com/features/V3-02/Meat-Loaf-MarchApril-2012.pdf) A sequel had a long and tangled history. Meat Loaf lost his voice, and Steinman went on to release the songs he had intended for *Bat Out of Hell II* as his 1981 solo album *Bad for Good*, singing them himself except for the ones he could not sing, which were vocalized, uncredited, by Rory Dodd.[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html)
The project surfaced elsewhere before it was made. While producing [Def Leppard](https://www.edgepedia.org/def-leppard)'s *Hysteria* in the mid-1980s, Steinman was, in the words of the band's singer [Joe Elliott](https://www.edgepedia.org/joe-elliott), "doing Bat Out Of Hell II in his head and in his hotel room till nine in the morning", a habit that contributed to Def Leppard dismissing him from the project.[6](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/mutt-said-give-it-a-go-and-if-it-doesnt-work-get-rid-of-the-guy-and-thats-exactly-what-we-had-to-do-because-jim-was-less-than-useless-why-def-leppard-couldnt-make-their-monster-hit-hysteria-with-jim-steinman-as-producer)
## Production
Steinman favored the title *Bat Out of Hell II* from the beginning, saying in a 1993 promotional interview that "it really does feel like an extension of that" first album.[7](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell) He brought in his long-term collaborators, including Steven Rinkoff behind the mixing board, the synthesizer player Jeff Bova, guitarist Eddie Martinez, drummer Jimmy Bralower, and the singer [Lorraine Crosby](https://www.edgepedia.org/lorraine-crosby), whom he was managing at the time, as a duet partner. Meat Loaf brought in members of his live band, including the bassist Steve Buslowe, who had played on the original *Bat* tour.[7](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell) The album was mixed by David Thoener, with the exception of three tracks mixed by Rinkoff.[7](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell)
The production was more modern than that of the 1977 record, and several songs were salvaged from Steinman's back catalog alongside the new material.[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html) According to Meat Loaf, he and Steinman had only one "big fight" during the album's production, which occurred during the mixing of "Life Is a Lemon".[7](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell)
## Songs
The album opens with "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)", the new song written for the record, which went to No. 1 "all over the universe", as one retrospective put it.[1](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html) Its length is reported differently by reviewers: the AllMusic review says the song justifies its 12-minute length the way the original album's title track did,[8](https://www.allmusic.com/album/bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell-mw0000101866) while a later retrospective on Steinman's catalog calls it a nine-minute song.[4](https://www.loudersound.com/music/jim-steinman-best-albums) Other tracks include "Life Is a Lemon and I Want My Money Back" and "Out of the Frying Pan (And into the Fire)".[7](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell) • [8](https://www.allmusic.com/album/bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell-mw0000101866)
One Steinman song was deliberately held back. "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", which became a hit for [Celine Dion](https://www.edgepedia.org/celine-dion) in 1996, was originally slated for *Bat II*. Meat Loaf recalled that Steinman told him, "Let's wait for 'Bat III,'" and said he was still disappointed, using what he called a stronger adjective, that he did not get first crack at the song.[9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2006/BB-2006-11-04.pdf)
## Commercial performance
In 1993 Meat Loaf returned to the international spotlight with the album, which a promotional biography calls the sequel to the third biggest album in history.[10](https://manuals.plus/m/0ce197a36210108d725ed4a304d9a363aa36f4558019e98a5586cfac29d8dd95.pdf) In the United Kingdom it entered the Official Albums Chart at No. 1 on 18 September 1993 and spent 11 weeks at the top, with a 52-week consecutive chart run to 10 September 1994 and later returns in 1995, 1996, and 2022.[3](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/meat-loaf-bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell/) In the United States it topped the [Billboard](https://www.edgepedia.org/billboard-magazine) 200 for one week in October 1993 and spent 55 weeks on the chart; it was the eighth-biggest album of 1993 on the Billboard year-end list.[2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm) It also reached No. 1 in Canada (5 weeks), Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Australia (4 weeks), and New Zealand (4 weeks), and No. 1 on the European chart for 4 weeks in November 1993.[2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm)
Certifications followed: 5x Platinum from the RIAA in April 1995, 6x Platinum from the BPI in December 1994, and 2x Platinum in Germany in 1994.[2](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm) The album's success helped make the *Bat Out of Hell* series, with more than 50 million copies sold worldwide, the most successful album series in music history according to Billboard.[9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2006/BB-2006-11-04.pdf)
## Sequels and aftermath
A third album, *Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose* (2006), was made without Steinman, following his attempt to trademark the title in 1995 to prevent Meat Loaf from using it.[11](https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000194850) The loudersound retrospective on Steinman's catalog described *Bat II* as brilliant in "the supernatural magnitude of its sound and the sheer conviction of its delivery", asking who else could serve up a nine-minute song titled "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" and keep a straight face.[4](https://www.loudersound.com/music/jim-steinman-best-albums)
## References
1. [To Bat Out Of Hell And Back, Record Collector (via jimsteinman.com)](https://www.jimsteinman.com/batmusical/record-collector-may-18.html)
2. [Album artist 103 - Meat Loaf, Chart2000](https://pop.news.chart2000.com/music/55erum.htm)
3. [BAT OUT OF HELL II - BACK INTO HELL - MEAT LOAF, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/albums/meat-loaf-bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell/)
4. [Nine Jim Steinman albums you should listen to and one to avoid, Louder Sound](https://www.loudersound.com/music/jim-steinman-best-albums)
5. [Meat Loaf interview, Music & Musicians, March/April 2012](https://www.mmusicmag.com/features/V3-02/Meat-Loaf-MarchApril-2012.pdf)
6. [Why Def Leppard couldn't make Hysteria with Jim Steinman as producer, MusicRadar](https://www.musicradar.com/artists/mutt-said-give-it-a-go-and-if-it-doesnt-work-get-rid-of-the-guy-and-thats-exactly-what-we-had-to-do-because-jim-was-less-than-useless-why-def-leppard-couldnt-make-their-monster-hit-hysteria-with-jim-steinman-as-producer)
7. [Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell, Jim Steinman Wiki (Fandom)](https://jimsteinman.fandom.com/wiki/Bat_Out_of_Hell_II%3A_Back_Into_Hell)
8. [Meat Loaf: Bat Out of Hell II - Tracks & Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/bat-out-of-hell-ii-back-into-hell-mw0000101866)
9. [Billboard, 4 November 2006 issue (Meat Loaf and the Bat Out of Hell series)](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2006/BB-2006-11-04.pdf)
10. [Meat Loaf biography booklet (BAT OUT OF HELL II: BACK TO HELL)](https://manuals.plus/m/0ce197a36210108d725ed4a304d9a363aa36f4558019e98a5586cfac29d8dd95.pdf)
11. [Meat Loaf: Bat Out of Hell - Tracks & Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000194850)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical practice and theory › Popular music genres › Rock works, labels, discographies, awards, and infrastructure › Rock studio albums › 1990s rock albums*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license