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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Brown album, March 13, 2003
Rundgren returned in 1974 with another head-trip - this time, even more difficult, challenging and a little darker than his previous monster _A Wizard, A True Star_. However, given it's lengthy and highly experimental nature, the album is not without a large dosage of variety. Some styles include: neo-proto-electronica (I made that up), show tunes, rock, proto-punk and even some pop can be found amongst all the chaos.
This album in some ways reminds me of Hendrix's _Electric Ladyland_, in that they both were sprawling double LP's opening with a short, spacy/galactic track, then seguing into a trippy ballad, followed by a large serving of variety - and not without the main material being spaced-out and mind-expanding. Both albums were also centered around love, soul-searching, and a degree of spirituality.
"How About A Little Fanfare" starts out with a German-esque voice (Todd's) saying the name of the track. It then turns into a frenzied cornucopia of spiralling synths. At just over a minute, I wish that Todd would have extended this number for at least another thirty seconds, as the build-up didn't seem to last long enough. But, there's always the repeat button, right? "I Think You Know" is a reflective, melodic and somewhat trippy ballad. "The Spark Of Life" (like the opening track) is an electronica piece. This time, the tempo is slowed down considerably, and the sonic intensity continually builds until reaching the final few seconds. "An Elpee's Worth Of Tunes" is a short, quirky and humorous number with Todd possibly sneering at critics and/or fans alike who weren't pleased with his direction following _Something/Anything?_ (with the line "No, no, no, a little more humanity please?") Actually, that line comes from the ending of "Spark," but, it's pretty much relevant. "A Dream Goes On Forever" is one of the few pop gems on here. A very melodic number, with moving vocals from Todd.
Fans of show tunes, and/or British whimsy (e.g. Queen, Jethro Tull, Gentle Giant and the non-British, but equally whimsical Frank Zappa) will probably soak up the Gilbert & Sullivan cover "Lord Chancellor's Nightmare Song." Todd does an excellent job on his roadrunner-speed and jingle-like vocals. Moogy Klingman of Todd's future band, Utopia, is playing the elegant and virtuosic keyboard work. Moogy also appears in other places on this disc (as well as earlier Todd albums.) "Drunken Blue Rooster" is another show tune-like number. A short instrumental with Todd playing some odd, but elegant and fancy chords. "The Last Ride" is an excellent ballad. A slow, minor-key number, it's really almost painful to listen to this, due to Todd's plaintive vocals, the sad instrumentation and other factors. There's a nice sax section, as well as a blistering, fiery and passionate guitar solo from Todd at the end. Devastatingly moving. "Everybody's Going To Heaven/King Kong Reggae" changes up the pace, as a fiery rocker, with Todd pulling out a punchy riff revolving around a (near, but not quite) C major pentatonic scale, before the rough and ready vocals kick in. His guitar playing overall is impressive on here. "No. 1 Lowest Common Denominator" is literally the only track on this smorgasbord that doesn't do too much for me. But, it's considerably Hendrix-like in tone. Features a sci-fi-esque vocal in the middle from Todd, which brings reminiscence to Hendrix's "Third Stone From The Sun" (from _Are You Experienced_.)
"Useless Begging" (in a perfect world) could have become a hit. It's show tunes-like in atmosphere, but the vocals and melodies are quite catchy and hummable. Quirky, but lovable and charming. "Sidewalk Cafe" is a hard number to describe. It's a short instrumental that bridges r&b-soul, show tune, symphonic and rock flavors, but on a more electronic level. Pretty inventive stuff. "Izzat Love?" is an up-tempo r&b number, but way too short - at least this is what fans of this track would say. "Heavy Metal Kids" is a blistering rocker with punk-esque verses. The lyrics are quite sarcastic and sinister (and arguably hilarious.) There's some blistering heavy metal soloing near the end. "In And Out The Chakras We Go" is another electronica piece. This time, there's a section in the middle featuring some chant-like vocals, which give the track a new age-esque and ethereal feel. There's another vocal section before the track closes out on an explosively intense note. "Don't You Ever Learn" starts out with some fairly spooky piano lines, before kicking into a melodic and moving ballad. I especially like how Todd sings along to those opening spooky piano lines. He does this somewhere in the middle of the track. "Sons Of 1984" features a recording of two different audiences (reminding many of choirs), which gives this track a weird kind of feel - mostly one with high reverberation. This can either be seen as appealingly adventurous, or it will annoy listeners who feel like this detracts something from an otherwise fine track.
Overall, this album is best recommended to the diehard Todd Rundgren fan, as the casual fan (of Todd's pop tune) will probably be frustrated with all the adventurousness and experimentation crammed throughout the disc. But, for the diehard, and/or listener who wants something out of the ordinary, my thumbs go up.
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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Neglected, overlooked, masterful, July 21, 2003
The British magazine Uncut recently ran an appreciation of "Todd" that persuaded me to find a copy and play it again for the first time in about 20 years. It was most rewarding. I like this album a lot better now than I did when I first purchased it on my 18th birthday. Back then, I tended to skip over the heavily synthesized instrumental tracks and focus on what seemed to be the good stuff--the tuneful songs like "The Last Ride," "Izzat Love," "A Dream Goes on Forever," and "Sons of 1984." The format of the original album, four sides of a double album, tended to interrupt the flow of what, on a single-disc CD, is clearly a singular artistic statement best enjoyed at one sitting. What's Todd up to on this? He's trying very hard to articulate it in words, and doesn't quite get there, but the music says it all. This album most reminds me of "Pet Sounds," the Beach Boys' classic that not only discussed love lyrically, but conveyed love through every track. Compared with Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren is more contradictory--way out there beyond the moon sometimes, other times wise-cracking, ironic and self-deprecating. Rundgren is a like a streetwise, east coast kid who stumbled across a religious vision. He can't quite give up the smart-(aleck) side of himself, but also can't avoid talking about the cosmos that has just opened up to him and that he wants to share with everyone. Musically, this album takes you on quite a ride. It is synthesizer-drenched, but short of Stevie Wonder, no one has ever had a warmer feel for how to make these 70s-era electronic instruments play music. Some of the cuts feature a full band, but the mix is highly eccentric. I love the suite "Everyone's Gone to Heaven/King Kong Reggae," in part because it mixes the drums way up front, and the guy plays with unbelievable fury. Some of the best cuts are slow ballads that begin like songs off his earlier, more pop albums, but then develop into extended instrumental pieces--most notably "The Last Ride" and "Don't You Ever Listen." His guitar solos are extraordinary flights. but just about every cut also features Rundgren's great feel for pop melody and harmony, no matter how spacey the instrumentation or subject matter of the lyrics. Later in his career, especially with his band Utopia, Rundgren seemed to make an effort to shed all traces of his trademark pop inventiveness in favor of even more strenuous efforts to convey the cosmos. But on "Todd," he balances the two strains beautifully. In retrospect, this may be Rundgren's greatest album, even though it was hardly regarded so at the time it came out.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Genius at Play, June 17, 2000
Taken together with its two predecessors, "Something/Anything?" and "A Wizard, A True Star", "Todd" is the last third of a potent trilogy of albums that established him as THE pop genius of the 70s. These are three of the most ambitious albums ever made during any era of pop and like the two that came before it, "Todd" is mostly successful.The opening salvo of "How About a Little Fanfare", "I Think You Know" and "The Spark of Life" document Todd's growing involvement with synthesizers and give an indication of things to come. He pokes fun at himself on "An Elpee's Worth of Toons" before giving you a slice of pure pop heaven - "A Dream Goes on Forever". But the real standout is the guitar ballad "The Last Ride", one of the finest and most haunting songs Rundgren has ever penned. The guitar solo climax is powerful and affecting - some of the best guitar work he's ever done. "No. 1 Lowest Common Denominator" sounds like it was taken straight out of the Jimi Hendrix songbook. Also excellent is the segue from the bubblegum-tinged "Izzat Love?" into "Heavy Metal Kids" which sounds just like its title would indicate. Very few artists can incorporate those kinds of influences and make albums this seamless (Prince comes to mind). And yes, the synthesizer doodling of "In and Out the Chakras We Go" is still annoying after 26 years and I mean that in a good way. It's the only real blemish here. This is Todd's last pre-Utopia album when the songs became somewhat pretentious and bloated for a time. As such it is a must-have for any Rundgren fan or any music lover who wants to know what this guy is all about. A portrait of the artist/genius at play...
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~ Todd Rundgren
~ Todd Rundgren
~ Todd Rundgren
~ Todd Rundgren
~ Todd Rundgren
by Todd Rundgren 
