Hot Patootie – Bless My Soul
"Hot Patootie – Bless My Soul" is the seventh song in The Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack and is sung by Eddie, an ex-delivery boy. It expresses Eddie's love for 'Saturday night' rock and roll and a past love that was (presumably Columbia) his girlfriend. A chorus of Transylvanians sing background vocals; Phantoms have this responsibility in the stage play.
| "Hot Patootie - Bless My Soul" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Meat Loaf | |
| from the album The Rocky Horror Picture Show | |
| Language | English |
| Released | 1975 |
| Songwriter(s) | Composer: Richard O'Brien, Richard Hartley Lyricist: Richard O'Brien |
| The Rocky Horror Picture Show track listing | |
| |
Eddie rides out of the freezer on his frozen motorcycle to Columbia's surprise and glee while Dr. Frankenfurter stands protectively near his creation Rocky's side. It does not end well for Eddie yet he is determined to finish his ode to rock and roll.
Entitled "Hot Patootie" and billed as "Meat Loaf as Eddie," the track was released as a single in Australia in 1975, and re-released in 1978.[1] Entitled "Hot Patootie (Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?)", the song also appears on Meat Loaf's Live Around the World album.
Origin
The song, originally titled "What Ever Happened to Saturday Night?", was written by Richard O'Brien for the original stage production. The song was intended for its author, Richard O'Brien, to sing in, but director Jim Sharman convinced O'Brien to portray the character of Riff Raff instead of Eddie. Its high vocal range had not yet been accomplished by any other actor performing the character and the arrangement had to be altered until Meat Loaf took the part in the Los Angeles production in 1974. Meat Loaf reprised the role from his debut in the Roxy Theatre run of the Rocky Horror Show and the film.
Progression
Meat Loaf is known for successfully including all of the lyrics in the arrangement properly. Richard O'Brien claimed that Meat wouldn't be able to achieve the feat, after the actor playing Eddie in the original London production did so clumsily enough. The verse has a classic chord progression of C#-A#m-C#-A#m-F#-G#-F#-G#, reminiscent of '50s and '60s music. The chorus has a more rock-style progression of C#-D#-F#-C#. The song modulates one half-step (one key) up after the second saxophone solo with a D-E-G-D progression in the chorus. The song has a common rock instrument arrangement with the addition of a saxophone.
Cover versions
Brian May of the band Queen, included a cover version as a bonus track on the Japanese version of his 1998 album, Another World.
In The Rocky Horror Glee Show, Dr. Carl Howell (portrayed by John Stamos) sings the song in an audition for the production of Rocky Horror. The song appears on the Glee: The Music, The Rocky Horror Glee Show extended play. The song was renamed "Whatever Happened To Saturday Night?".
In Fox's 2016 televised tribute, The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do The Time Warp Again, Adam Lambert performed the song, playing the part of Eddie.
This song was also covered by the Oakland, California band The Phenomenauts.