In 1928, a little-known French actress named Renee Falconetti appeared in the silent film The Passion of Joan of Arc. In the eyes of more than a few film scholars, it is the greatest performance in the history of cinema.
Falconetti never came close to equaling that performance, and as such, she is rarely remembered in the same league as the legends of her craft. Imperfectly, pop music lost its own version of Falconetti this week when Bonnie Tyler died.
To be clear, the parallels between the two artists only run so far. Falconetti virtually disappeared from the world after her career-defining moment. She suffered from mental illness. Some say, without anything to support the claim, that the ordeal of playing Joan was a contributing factor.
Bonnie Tyler was more than one song, but that one song was monumental
Bonnie Tyler, on the other hand, continued a successful performing career, releasing a lot of albums, scoring one more decent-sized hit after her breakout, and maintaining one of the best voices in modern pop music until the end.
Of course, the Passion of Joan of Arc from Tyler was 1983’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” She had scored a couple of top ten hits before “Total Eclipse.” “Lost in France,” from her debut, had charted big in the UK, and “It’s a Heartache,” from her follow-up album, climbed all the way to number 3 in the USA.
But for the most part, Bonnie Tyler remained a sensational voice in search of the right song – and the right production. In terms of vocal authority, she could compete with Janis Joplin. But her version of “Piece of My Heart,” backed by a string ensemble and sounding more like a show tune than a rock song, pales next to Janis.
Give a listen to her Tom Petty cover “Louisiana Rain,” from the same album that produced “It’s a Heartache.” The glorious rasp that she would become known for is on full display.
But that voice doesn’t match the Fern Bar backing. “Sometimes When We Touch,” from her third album, is an even more egregious mismatch. Bonnie Tyler could have made something grand out of that song, but she didn’t really get the chance.
That all changed when she met up with Jim Steinman. Tyler had been aware of the man behind Meat Loaf’s roaring success with Bat Out of Hell back when she was just beginning her career. She wanted to work with that songwriter. It took a while, but the two eventually teamed up.
There are other good songs on their first album together – 1983’s Faster Than the Speed of Night. A jittery piano (provided by E Street’s Roy Bittan) sets up the CCR cover “Have You Ever Seen the Rain.” The song builds beautifully, and Tyler sings the hell out of it. Later on the album, she does the same on a full-scale cover of the Ian Hunter-penned “Going Through the Motions.”
And between those two numbers, she takes on Steinman’s epic “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” The song is seven minutes of hook after hook, calling on the singer to mine emotional depths and scale vocal heights unlike any other song I know. Tyler delivers a Falconetti-level performance.
Janis on “Me and Bobby McGee.” Whitney on “I Will Always Love You.” Bonnie Tyler on “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Choose your own fourth, but that’s three-quarters of the Mount Rushmore of greatest vocal performances in modern pop.
I won’t say anymore about the song itself other than to refer you to Tom Breihan’s marvelous discussion in his “Number Ones” series. Yes – the song did go to number one in the States in October 1983 and remained there four straight weeks. The emotional ballad that replaced it – “Islands in the Stream” – sounds sappy in comparison.
Bonnie Tyler would never get back to number one. Another Steinman song – “Holding Out For a Hero,” from the 1984 movie Footloose - made it into the top 40 on Billboard and stalled out at number two in the UK. And that was it in terms of hit records.
But Tyler kept singing, and some of her later releases were quite good. She never lost that voice. You could hear it beginning a slight decline on her final album – 2021’s The Best is Yet to Come. The controlled rasp is still in full effect, but perhaps the power wanes just a bit.
Still, the title track and “When the Lights Go Down” are solid tracks. And hearing her take on the ultimate whiner “I’m Not in Love” is great fun. When Eric Stewart sings it in the 10cc original, he is clearly still in love. When Bonnie does it, that’s debatable. And I sure as hell am not going to question her about it.
Or go back to her duet with Status Quo’s Francis Rossi, “Someone’s Rockin’ Your Heart,” from 2019’s Between Heaven and the Stars. Approaching 70, Bonnie Tyler was still a rock star. Not for nothing, she also did duets with Rod Stewart and Cliff Richard on that album.
Tyler died on July 8 at 75. She had been in an induced coma, but doctors were hoping she would recover. Sadly, that did not happen.
Was her career ultimately damaged by the massive success of “Total Eclipse…?” Maybe. She never found another creative outlet that could help her evolve in a changing musical landscape. Her songs forever sounded trapped in the 1980s. Steinman, as monstrously talented as he was, was also something of a creative cul-de-sac. The theatricality of his vision suited Tyler very well, but did not allow for growth.
But she kept right on performing at a very high level. And no one is ever toppling “Total Eclipse…” from its perch.
You know how I know that? Because it has been more than 40 years and hardly anyone has even tried. Sure, there have been a few time-specific covers. Nicki French had a dance-pop hit with it in the ‘90s. Westlife – the definitive Brit success that no one in the USA has ever heard of – tried in the aughts. Even with two singers sharing vocals, they couldn’t come close to Bonnie.
No – the closest to the original came from an obvious source. Four members of the cast of Glee, including the prodigious vocal talents of Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff, among others, did a credible version. But Bonnie Tyler still owns the song, and always will.
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