"Todd Rundgren's Utopia/Another Live" by TODD RUNDGREN'S UTOPIA (2012 Edsel 2CD Reissue with 1990 Rhino Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...In A Time Unique...In A Time Devine..."

A clever pairing by Edsel of the UK - Todd's Prog masterpiece "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" from 1974 and "Another Live" - the atmospheric live album that followed in 1975 - a record done in front of an audience (instead of in the studio) which concentrated on mainly new material penned by the same 'Utopia' line-up. 

But as one reviewer has pointed out - there's a mastering error on the "The Ikon" from "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" that's been carried over from the 1990 Rhino Remaster CD onto this Edsel Reissue. But frankly Frank - it lasts five seconds at the most and I can live with it. Here are the Freedom Fighters and Freak Parades...

UK released 27 February 2012 (6 March 2012 in the USA) - "Todd Rundgren's Utopia/Another Live" by TODD RUNDGREN'S UTOPIA on Edsel EDSD 2127 (Barcode 740155212735) is a 'Collector's Edition' that offers straightforward transfers of 2LPs (1974 and 1975) onto 2CDs and plays out as follows:

Disc 1 (59:22 minutes): 

1. Utopia

2. Freak Parade

3. Freedom Fighters

4. The Ikon [Side 2]

Tracks 1 to 4 are the album "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" by TODD RUNDGREN'S UTOPIA - released November 1974 in the USA on Bearsville BS 6954 and November 1974 in the UK on Bearsville K 55501. Produced and Engineered by TODD RUNDGREN - it peaked at No. 34 in the USA (didn't chart in Britain). "Utopia" (aka "Utopia Theme") was recorded live at The Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia in November 1973 - the rest of the album is studio.

The Band:

TODD RUNDGREN - Guitars and Vocals

MOOGY KLINGMAN - Keyboards

(Jean-Yves) M. FROG LABAT - Synthesizers

RALPH SCHUCKETT - Keyboards

JOHN SIEGLER - Bass and Cello

KEVIN ELLMAN - Percussion

Disc 2 (46:09 minutes):

1. Another Life

2. The Wheel

3. The Seven Rays

4. Intro/Mister Triscuits

5. Something's Coming

6. Heavy Metal Kids

7. Do Ya

8. Just One Victory

Tracks 1 to 8 are the album "Another Live" by TODD RUNDGREN'S UTOPIA - released November 1975 in the USA on Bearsville BS 6961 and October 1975 in the UK on Bearsville K 55508. Produced by TODD RUNDGREN - it peaked at No. 66 in the USA (didn't chart in Britain).

The Band:

TODD RUNDGREN - Guitar and Vocals

ROGER POWELL - Moog Synthesiser, Trumpet and Vocals

RALPH SCHUCKETT – Keyboards, Accordion and Vocals

MOOGY KLINGMAN – Keyboards, Harmonica, Glockenspiel and Vocals

JOHN SIEGLER - Bass

JOHN WILCOX - Drums

DAVID LASLEY, ARNOLD McCULLER and PHILLIP BALLOU - Backing Vocals

The 20-page booklet is a fabulous thing to look at – original artwork, press clippings, band photos, trade adverts, live shots, lyrics, concert posters – and all of it washed down with new liner notes from Rundgren expert PAUL MYERS – Author of "A Wizard A True Star: Todd Rundgren In The Studio". Although its credited at a PHIL KINRADE master (at Alchemy) - Edsel have used and licensed the Rhino 1990 Remasters complete as we've already said with a mastering error on "The Ikon" between 16:15 and 16:20 minutes where the music pours into the right speaker for five seconds in a very bad panning mistake. Personally I can live with it - but I can wholly understand the rage of fans that could have expected Edsel to notice this and perhaps correct it. As the February 2016 "Bearsville Albums Collection" Box Set for Todd Rundgren 'doesn't' include Utopia material - original Rhino and Edsel reissues appear to be the only place you can get the "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" album digitally. There are no Audio issues with the "Another Live" set. To the music... 

When I bought "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" in November 1974 on Vinyl – I was already steeped in ELP, Yes, Genesis, Camel, Van Der Graaf Generator, East Of Eden, Greenslade and god knows what all from the preceding five years. Its long tracks didn’t make my musical resolve buckle - in fact I found it utterly mesmerising. I loved everything about the LP - the cover art - the virtuoso playing – the hippy-babble lyrics that talked of inner exploration - never mind the sheer deluge of musical ideas and themes going on in Side Two’s 30-minute opus "The Ikon". Along with "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway", Greenslade's "Spyglass Guest" and "Relayer" by Yes (all 1974) - Rundgren's first "Utopia" LP represented the height of Progressive Rock for me (and the end of its golden era too). It still feels that way.

It opens with "Utopia" (co-written with Dave Mason) – a difficult 13-minute guitar driven Progster recorded live in Atlanta, Georgia at The Fox Theatre – a full year prior to the album's release. The three/four minute Todd Rundgren "I Saw The Light” pop songs of old had gone for good - and in their place had come 'exploratory' pieces – many of enormous length and complexity and primarily based around his guitar and a bank of four uber-fluent keyboard players - Moogy Klingman, Ralph Schuckett, M. Frog Labat and Roger Powell (Powell would join him for the live set and all Utopia albums afterwards). Given that it was not the norm – huge guitar passages that had more to do with Zappa than the Brill Building - the crowd’s roar of approval reaction at the end of "Utopia" with it's "City In My Head" lyrics is celebratory – like they’d heard the beginnings of something new and exciting. As the crowd applause fades at the beginning of "Freak Parade" we segue into a brilliant funky keyboard riff that's very Stevie Wonder but soon settles into a drunk Bluesy guitar thing. It's 10:18-minutes chops and changes from slow to Rock to Funky and are utterly brilliant. The four-minute riffage of "Freedom Fighters" is the nearest the album comes to what could have been a single - but it's "Soldier Of The Mind" lyrics and manic pace and wall-of-sound production keep it firmly in the 'we don't play this Progressive stuff on the radio' category.

But then comes the monster - the 30-minute Side 2 magnum - "The Ikon". Because they owned the studio - they spent months preparing the multiple segments before recording and editing the lot. There are fast parts - slow parts - trippy parts - freak-out passages - finally ending in an instrument-builder passage like Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells" did. I can't be rational about - as a Progressive Rock piece its without peer - think "The Gates Of Delirium" from "Relayer" only 10 minutes longer and musically more imaginative. According to the liner notes there's another 30 or 40 minutes of it that couldn't be fitted onto an almost 60-minute vinyl LP (unheard of at the time).  I once inflicted this 30-minute density on The Grove in Clontarf before the dancing proper started (forgive me Cecil)...

After the hard work of "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" - the "Another Live" set comes as a clever musical counterpoint. Mostly all new material recorded 'live' instead of in the studio to give it that 'oomph' – but as far as I'm concerned it only partially worked. This is one of those infuriating live records that could have been a masterpiece but doesn't get there. But man-oh-man that good stuff. "Another Live" has moments of undoubted brilliance like "The Wheel" and stunning emotional finisher "Just One Victory" and even features a cool cover of The Move’s “Do Ya”.

The album opens with the trippy Brass Funk of "Another Life" complete with backing Singers and Roger Powell giving some Herb Alpert on the Trumpet as Todd sings of "...certain things affect me certain ways..." But that's soundly trumped by the beautiful melody in "The Wheel". As the crowd are settling and shouting from the excitement of the previous Prog Rocker - Rundgren is impervious to their demands and opens with an Acoustic Guitar. The gorgeous lullaby is soon joined by Moogy Klingman giving it some Fred Neil Harmonica while Powell adds Trumpet and Schuckett does a fairground Accordion refrain as the 'Ferris Wheel' lyrics eventually have the crowd clapping - Rundgren going Acapella for the final passage to huge applause. Although "Seven Rays" is good - you wish it had been a studio recording because somehow this live version lacks something despite its jaunty disposition.

We enter Mahavishnu Orchestra Fusion with the wild keyboard soloing of "Intro/Mister Triscuits" that is both brilliant and dreadfully self-indulgent at one and the same time.  This bizarrely but effectively segues into Leonard Bernstein's "Something's Coming" from "West Side Story" which I feel is a cover to far no matter how much fun it must have been to arrange and play. We return to 1974's "Todd" double album for the hard-hitting "Heavy Metal Kids" which features a wild guitar solo and they then do an excellent cover of Jeff Lynne's "Do Ya" (the B-side of "California Man" from 1972 by The Move). But the whole record is redeemed by a fabulous live version of that "A Wizard, A True Star" classic "Just One Victory" where the layered vocals are so well done. The crowd feels it all the way as he sings "...we've been praying for it all day...give us just one victory...and we're on our way..."

To sum up - a clever pairing of albums even if it is a mixed batch of genius, knob and self-indulgence. And sloppy mastering error or no - I love it.

As the pre-amble liner notes to "The Ikon" on the back cover of the "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" LP says - "...men discover themselves to be mankind and joyfully begin to adjust their thinking along these lines..." 

Amen to that baby...

"Hermit Of Mink Hollow" by TODD RUNDGREN (2014 Edsel 'Case Bound Book Edition CD' Reissue - Rhino/Peter Rynston Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…Heartbreak’s Never Easy To Take..."

Back in May 2014 - Edsel of the UK began celebrating TODD RUNDGREN albums with ‘Deluxe Edition’ packaging upgrades – hardback book editions of key albums in his extensive back catalogue. The first three were "Something/Anything?" (a double-album from 1972), "A Wizard A True Star" (a single album from 1973) and "Todd" (another double from 1974). So here’s the next batch of three for September 2014 – "Runt" - his debut solo album from December 1970 on Ampex Records now extended into a double-CD edition with bonuses – "Initiation" from June 1975 (see review) and this - "Hermit Of Mink Hollow" from May 1978 on Bearsville Records – one of his most popular Seventies albums. Here are the people who can’t be friends…

UK released 9 September 2014 (16 September in the USA) - "Hermit of Mink Hollow: Deluxe Edition" by TODD RUNDGREN on Edsel EDSA 5033 (Barcode 740155503338) is a single-CD reissue of their February 2012 2CD set which combined  "Healing" and "The Ever Popular Tortured Artist Effect" - only this time it's just the album straight in a 'Case Bound Hardback Book' Edition (35:48 minutes).

1. All The Children Sing

2. Can we Still Be Friends?

3. Hurting For You

4. Too Far Gone

5. Onomatopoeia

6. Determination

7. Bread [Side 2]

8. Bag Lady

9. You Cried Wolf

10. Lucky Guy

11. Out Of Control

12. Fade Away

The attached 12-page booklet within has liner notes by Paul Myers from his superb tome "A Wizard, A True Star – Todd Rundgren In The Studio" and is an excellent read. There's photos of Rundgren's house on Mink Hollow Road in Lake Hill where he built his Utopia studio and recorded the album. The front and rear sleeve artwork of the May 1978 Bearsville vinyl album is here (BSR 6981 in the USA and K 55521 in the UK) – as are the lyrics. The hard card case bound book has a details sticker on the outer shrink-wrap that easily peels off (if you want to attach it to the book cover). There are no extras.

There is no new remaster that I can hear – this is the Edsel February 2012 version - that in itself was a Peter Rynston UK master using the 1993 American Rhino remasters. Don't get me wrong – the sound is superb. The only upgrade here is the cool-looking book packaging – which is a rather lovely thing to behold…

After the full-on Synth and Prog excesses of "Todd Rundgren's Utopia" (1974) and "Initiation" (1975) – Rundgren seemed to get back to 'tunes' with 1978's "Hermit Of Mink Hollow" – containing as it does some of his most beloved songs to this day – "Hurting For You" and the magical "Can We Still Be Friends?" (lyrics above). Other goodies include "Too Far Gone" – even the silly-word song "Onomatopoeia" is great fun. "Determination" combines that 'guitar-and-keyboards' sound he gets into a cool upbeat song that would have made a great single too. He called Side 2 "The Difficult Side" and it opens with a song about poverty – the brilliant "Bread". But my favourite – and for my money one of his greatest songs – is the aching homeless anthem "Bag Lady" ("...fifty cents rent goes pretty far when you live in a subway car…"). The hurting "Lucky Guy" is excellent too. It finishes with "Out Of Control" and "Fade Away" – a superb duo of layered deep melodies.

1978's "Hermit Of Mink Hollow" was a 'return to form' for many (a return to songs). Personally I think Rundgren never left – like Bowie he just went in musical directions most wouldn’t have tried - and I for one dug them all.

I’ve loved rehearing this gem of an LP again – a very sweet and pretty looking CD reissue…

PS: see also my reviews for "Runt" (1970), "Something/Anything?" (1972), "A Wizard, A True Star" (1973) and "Todd" (1974) in this series of 'Book Edition' CD reissues...

"John B. Sebastian/The Four Of Us/Tarzana Kid/Welcome Back/BBC In Concert 1970 DVD" by JOHN SEBASTIAN (2014 Edsel 2CD/1DVD Reissue & Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry…

UK released February 2014 - "John B. Sebastian/The Four Of Us/Tarzana Kid/Welcome Back and BBC IN Concert DVD" by JOHN SEBASTIAN on Edsel EDSG 8039 (Barcode 740155803933) - this 2CD/1DVD triple features the four Reprise albums John Sebastian made after he left The Lovin' Spoonful in 1968. It also sports a Previously Unreleased Concert recorded for England’s BBC "In Concert" TV Program (broadcast 16 October 1970) that is approved by the artist himself and making its DVD debut here. Here is a stacked-up spoonful of loving details...

Disc 1 (75:57 minutes):

1. Red-Eye Express

2. She’s A Lady

3. What She Thinks About

4. Magical Connection

5. You’re A Big Boy Now

6. Rainbows All Over Your Blues

7. How Have You Been

8. Baby, Don’t Ya Get Crazy

9. The Room Nobody Lives In

10. Fa-fana-fa

11. I Had A Dream

Tracks 1 to 11 are his debut solo LP "John B. Sebastian" - release January 1970 in the USA on Reprise RS 6379 and April 1970 in the UK on Reprise RSLP 6379

12. Well Well Well

13. Black Snake Blues

14. I Don’t Want Nobody Else

15. Apple Hill

16. Black Satin Kid

17. We’ll See

18. Sweet Muse

19. The Four Of Us

Tracks 12 to 19 are his 2nd studio album "The Four Of Us" - released in the USA August 1971 on Reprise RS 2041 and Reprise K 44149 in the UK

Tracks 20 and 21 are "Give Us A Break" and "Music For People Who Don't Speak English" - released February 1972 - they are the non-album A&B sides of a USA 7" single on Reprise 1074

Disc 2 (63:25 minutes):

1. Sitting In Limbo

2. Friends Again

3. Dixie Chicken

4. Stories We Could Tell

5. Face Of Appalachia

6. Wild Wood Flower

7. Wild About My Lovin’

8. Singing The Blues

9. Sportin’ Life

10. Harpoon

Tracks 1 to 10 are his 3rd studio album "Tarzana Kid" - released in the USA September 1974 on Reprise MS 2187 and November 1974 in the UK on Bearsville K 54028

11. Hideaway

12. She’s Funny

13. You Go Your Way And I’ll Go Mine

14. Didn’t Wanna Have To Do It

15. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

16. Welcome Back

17. I Needed Her Most When I Told Her To Go

18. A Song A Day In Nashville

19. Warm Baby

20. Let This Be Our Time To Get Along

Tracks 11 to 20 are his 4th studio album "Welcome Back" - released in the USA April 1976 on Reprise MS 2249 and Reprise K 54074 in the UK

DVD “In Concert: John Sebastian Sings John Sebastian”

1. Lovin’ You

2. You’re A Big Boy Now

3. She’s A Lady

4. Rain On The Roof

5. Daydream

6. Jug Band Music

7. Goin’ To German

8. Nashville Cats

9. Improvisation On Harmonica

10. Darling Be Home Soon

The presentation on this reissue is top-notch - a four-way foldout digipak with a chunky 36-page booklet featuring recording details, lyrics, photos, an essay on his career by noted writer PAUL MYERS, pictures of the original album labels and even personal photos supplied by Catherine Sebastian. PHIL RYNSTON at Tall Order has done the mastering and the sound is uniformly great throughout.

The first album sounds amazing if not stylistically mixed up and out of time (recorded in 1968 but released until early 1970). The clarity on tracks is thrilling - "What She Thinks About" with Harmony Vocals by Graham Nash and my personal favourite - the trippy acoustic "How Have You Been" with Paul Harris later of Manassas on Harmonium. "Baby Don't Ya Get Crazy" is awful (even if it features Stephen Stills on Lead Guitar) but "I Had A Dream" ends the platter on a swirling upbeat note.

I've always thought the 2nd album was a massive improvement over the first opening with the bluesy Josh White cover "Well, Well, Well" which would later become "In My Time Of Dying" at the hands of Led Zeppelin on 1975's "Physical Graffiti". It continues with Clifton Chenier's "Black Snake Blues" - again in slide guitar boogie mode. "I Don't Want Nobody Else" intros like an Eddie Hinton song and is pure Sebastian Lovin' Spoonful melody - great stuff. After the pretty ditty "Apple Hill" - it's back to rocking on "Black Satin Kid". The piano of "Sweet Muse" sounds so clear now as does the acoustic guitar on the finisher title track. It's also a genuine blast to hear the non-album single "Give Us A Break" after all these years on a scratchy 45 - and with its superb instrumental B-side "Music For People Who Don't Speak English" sounding not unlike a War outtake with Lee Oskar on Harmonica.

The "Tarzana Kid" album features a huge cast of guests and is the funkiest of the four - there's Russell DaShiell of The Don Harrison Band, Lowell George of Little Feat, Emmylou Harris, The Pointer Sisters, Ry Cooder, Phil Everly, Buddy Emmons on Pedal Steel and David Lindley on Fiddle. The lovely "Face Of Appalachia" is co-written with Lowell George and features his signature style of guitar playing - it's a nugget. The Traditional "Wild About My Lovin'" features a perfectly complimentary Ry Cooder giving it some cool Mandolin and Slide. And I've often put the Rock-Funky instrumental "Harpoon" on many a 70's FEST CD-R compilation (always has folks asking after it).

The opener for album number four "Hideaway" sounds like Dave Edmunds while the title track "Welcome Back" became an unlikely US number 1 on the back of a John Travolta TV program called Welcome Back, Kotter. It's all a bit poppy on "She's Funny" but gets better on "You Go Your Way And I'll Go Mine". He returns successfully to The Lovin' Spoonful's 1966 hit "Didn't Want To Have To Do It" by making it slower but still as lovely. The melody of "I Needed Her Most When I Told Her To Go" is so The Band - and in a good way.  Jeff Baxter plays Pedal Steel on the country "A Song A Day In Nashville" will tickle Gram Parsons fans. It ends nicely on the harmonica and strings of "Let This Be Our Time To Get Along" - as lovely a song as he's even penned.

But while the music may be 4 out of 5 - what gives this reissue that extra star is the real prize - the DVD. Stood alone in front of an appreciative and tiny British audience (maybe 30 people) - Sebastian is dressed in tie-dye shirt and trousers and enthusiastically works his way through new songs and a few Spoonful classics like "Rain On The Roof" and a storming version of "Daydream". He switches between acoustic, electric acoustic and electric lead - holding the stage easily and having great fun and banter with the crowd. He even puts in a fabulous Harmonica Solo towards the end and wraps it all up with a superlative rendition of the Spoonful's beautiful "Darling Be Home Soon". Defaulted to Full Aspect - the picture quality is great considering it's been in the can for 43 years. There's no extras on here - but man what a find - it's a real jewel in this reissue's crown.

It's not all genius by any means - there are clunkers on the CDs - and his mid Seventies voice was never the most emotive nor effective. But there is also so much to admire. This is impressive stuff - and you have to say that Edsel have done John Sebastian's musical legacy a solid with this superb release. Well done to all involved...