The Story Behind How Rock Critic Richard Meltzer Helped Write Blue Öyster Cult’s 1981 Hit “Burnin’ for You”

When Blue Öyster Cult was engaged on their eighth album, Fire of Unknown Origin, rock critic Richard Meltzer ended up writing one of many band’s greatest hits. Meltzer, who had already co-written a sequence of songs with the band all through ’70s—”Stairway to the Stars,” “She’s as Beautiful as a Foot,” “Harvester of Eyes,” “Death Valley Nights,” and extra—initially titled his new tune “Burn Out The Night.”

Like Patti Smith, who additionally shared her poetry and wrote or co-wrote songs for the band, together with author and producer Sandy Pearlman, and others, Meltzer would typically go away behind pages of typewritten lyrics for the band to peruse and work round.

At first, Blue Öyster Cult guitarist Don “Buck Dharma” Roeser wished to make use of Meltzer’s newest tune for his 1982 solo album, Flat Out, earlier than he added his lyrics round Meltzer’s and switched the title to “Burnin’ For You.”

[RELATED: 6 Songs You Didn’t Know Patti Smith Wrote for Blue Öyster Cult]

“Richard would write on a typewriter and we’d have sheets of lyrics and on the web page and it could look simply appear like poetry with a number of decrease case and free type, free affiliation,” stated Roeser in 2017. “I don’t know the way lengthy I’d had his lyric however it was about 1980 and we’d moved to Connecticut. Originally it was going to be on my solo report, however Sandy [Pearlman] satisfied me to present it to BOC (Blue Öyster Cult).”

Roeser added, “I wrote it in my storage studio. I’m fairly pleased with it. It’s certainly one of Richard’s extra sentimental lyrics—one thing he’s not identified for.”

Home

The starting verses of the tune are centered round dwelling, which is repeated, and captures a sense of longing and never belonging.

Home within the valley
Home within the metropolis
Home isn’t fairly
Ain’t no dwelling for me

Home within the darkness
Home on the freeway
Home isn’t my manner
Home won’t ever be

The refrain wraps round an anything-goes mentality—hopelessly burning via days and nights.

Burn out the day
Burn out the evening

I can’t see no motive to place up a combat
I’m dwelling for giving the satan his due
And I’m burning, I’m burning, I’m burning for you
I’m burning, I’m burning, I’m burning for you

Time

In the tip, dwelling, nor time, is on anybody’s aspect.

Time is the essence
Time is the season
Time ain’t no motive
Got no time to sluggish

Time eternal
Time to play B sides
Time ain’t on my aspect
Time won’t ever know

“Burnin’ For You” was successful for Blue Öyster Cult, topping the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart and making the highest 40 of the Hot 100. Fire of Unknown Origin additionally turned the band’s highest-charting album hitting No. 24 on the Billboard 200.

A Nineteen Fifties Monster Movie Video Set

The tune was additionally tied to the primary music video Blue Öyster Cult launched, and it was filmed on the identical website as a well-known Nineteen Fifties monster film. “We made [‘Burnin’ for You’] within the storm drains of LA,” remembered singer Eric Bloom. “If anybody has seen the [1954] film about large ants known as ‘Them!’ with James Whitmore, it was filmed in the identical place.

The video was filmed the identical day as one other shot for “Joan Crawford,” which additionally seems on Fire of Unknown Origin. “I believe we had been there an excellent 12 straight hours,” added Bloom. “We had a bunch of extras and pyro as a result of we burned a automotive. And that was all performed as on a budget as doable, and with low manufacturing values and unhealthy modifying. But we had enjoyable doing it as a result of it was new to us.”

Bloom added, We thought [the car on fire scene] was very Hollywood, very cool. They needed to have a Hollywood movie/pyro man there, who was licensed to burn shit up. He had propane tanks, and he needed to have a hulk of a automotive to burn. It was enjoyable. It was a bit style of Hollywood for us.”

Photo: Pete Cronin/Redferns