Country superstar Eric Church celebrated a recently departed rocker during a Saturday night (Jan. 22) concert in Detroit by performing a verse of Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)."
The crowd at Little Caesars Arena sang along to the signature crossover hit from Meat Loaf's 1993 album Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell. The now-iconic power ballad topped the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 in America as well as charts in 27 other countries.
Church and his band's tribute to one rock legend segued seamlessly into a crowd pleaser that name drops another, "Springsteen."
Lovely Meat Loaf tribute last night from @ericchurch. pic.twitter.com/7kTVUe2DMY
— Courtney Hoekstra (@cshillz) January 23, 2022
In an April 2021 interview with Rolling Stone, Church shared that Heart & Soul songs "Heart of the Night" and "Russian Roulette" were inspired by Meat Loaf.
Other set list selections of note from the Detroit concert include a couple of songs by Motor City legend Bob Seger: "Get Out of Denver" and "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man." Church told Apple Music last year that an early career opportunity to open on tour for Seger after losing a high-profile gig with Rascal Flatts "saved my career" in Nashville and "saved my faith in music."
Read More: Story Behind the Song: Dolly Parton's 'Love is Like a Butterfly' Put the 'W' in Dollywood
Meat Loaf (real name Marvin Lee Aday) died on Thursday (Jan. 20) at age 74. The rock superstar's 1977 opus Bat Out of Hell remains among the top 10 best-selling albums of all time. Meat Loaf also gained notoriety as an actor, appearing in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Fight Club, Wayne's World and over 60 additional films.
Church is currently on the road for his Gather Again tour. He's touring behind his multi-album project from 2021, Heart & Soul. The 55-date arena tour began last year and wraps up with a May 20 appearance at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
