Meat Loaf, the heavyweight rock singer best known for his Bat Out of Hell record and dramatic, dark-hearted songs such as Paradise by the Dashboard Light, Two Out of Three Ain't Bad, and I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That), has died.

According to a family statement on his official Facebook page, the musician, born Marvin Lee Aday, died Thursday.

"Our hearts are broken to announce the untimely passing of the incomparable Meat Loaf," the statement read. "We understand how much he meant to so many of you, and we are very appreciative of your love and support as we navigate this difficult time of mourning the loss of such an incredible artist and handsome man... From his heart to yours, never cease to rock!"

There was no indication of a reason or information, but Aday had repeated health scares throughout the years.

In 1977, he released Bat Out of a Hell, a platinum-selling duet with songwriter Jim Steinman and producer Todd Rundgren that established him as one of rock's most famous vocalists.

The long-haired singer's booming vocals and the comedic non-romance of the title tune, You Took The Words Right Out of My Mouth, Two Out of Three Ain't Bad, and Paradise By The Dashboard Light, an operatic cautionary tale about going all the way, won over fans.

Paradise was a duet with Ellen Foley that included play-by-play from New York Yankees broadcaster Phil Rizzuto, who claimed – to widespread skepticism – that he was ignorant of many different interpretations of reaching third base and headed for home.

After a slow start and mixed reviews, Bat Out of a Hell quickly became one of the best-selling albums of all time, selling more than 40 million copies worldwide.

Meat Loaf was hardly a prolific hit creator, much more so following his years-long feud with Steinman. However, he remained connected to his fans through his fierce live performances, social media, and numerous television, radio, and cinema appearances, including Fight Club and cameos on Glee and South Park.

Following Bat Out of Hell, his most significant commercial triumph was Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell, a 1993 reunion with Steinman that sold over 15 million copies and included the Grammy-winning track I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That).

Steinman was assassinated in April.

Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose, Hell in a Handbasket, and Braver Than We Are were released by Aday.

A Dallas native, Aday was the son of a school teacher who raised him on her own following the divorce of his alcoholic father, a police officer. Aday began singing and acting in high school (Mick Jagger and Ethel Merman were early favorites) and attended Lubbock Christian College and what is now known as the University of North Texas.

Among his more vivid childhood recollections are seeing John F. Kennedy arriving at Love Field in Dallas on November 22, 1963, then learning of the president's assassination and heading to Parkland Hospital, where he witnessed a bloodied Jackie Kennedy exit a car.

He was still a youngster when his mother died, and it was during this time he received the moniker Meat Loaf, the origins of which range from his weight to a mother's favorite dish. After graduating from college, he relocated to Los Angeles and quickly became the frontman of the band Meat Loaf Soul. He spent years alternating between music and the stage, temporarily recording for Motown, opening for artists such as The Who and the Grateful Dead, and acting on Broadway in Hair.

By the mid-1970s, he had landed the role of lobotomized biker Eddie in both the stage and film adaptations of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He worked as an understudy for pal John Belushi in National Geographic Lampoon's stage production and began collaborating with Steinman on Bat Out of Hell. Wagner, Phil Spector, and Bruce Springsteen influenced the dense, hammering production, whose comrades Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg contributed to the album. Rundgren initially envisioned the album as a spoof of Bruce Springsteen's opulent approach.

Steinman had known Meat Loaf since the singer starred in his 1973 musical More Than You Deserve, and several of the songs on Bat Out of Hell, including All Revved Up With No Place to Go, were initially written for a theatre production based on Peter Pan's story.

The Bat From Hell took more than two years to find a buyer after numerous record executives rejected it, including RCA's Clive Davis. He disparaged Steinman's songs and admitted that he had misjudged the singer: "The songs came across as very theatrical, and Meat Loaf, despite his powerful voice, just didn't look like a star," Davis wrote in his memoir, The Soundtrack of My Life.

Bat Out of Hell was acquired by Cleveland International, a subsidiary of Epic Records, with another Springsteen sideman, Steve Van Zandt. The album received little attention until several months after its release. A performance video for the title track was featured on the British television show The Old Grey Whistle Test.

In the United States, his association with Rocky Horror aided his efforts to get producer Lou Adler to use a video for Paradise By The Dashboard Light as a promo for the cult film. However, Meat Loaf was so unknown at the time that he began his Bat Out of Hell tour in Chicago as the opening act for Cheap Trick, the world's hottest band at the time.

"I recall pulling up to the theatre and seeing a sign that read, 'TODAY: CHEAP TRICK, WITH MEAT LOAF.' And I said to myself, 'These people believe we're giving food,'" Meat Loaf explained on his syndicated radio show In the Studio in 2013.

"And as we walk out on stage, these folks, who were such Cheap Trick fanatics, immediately boo us. They were rising and pointing at us. The first six rows sprang to their feet and screamed. When we were completed, the majority of the boos had subsided and we were on the verge of receiving applause."

Deborah Gillespie, his wife since 2007, and daughters Pearl and Amanda Aday survive him.