A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren in the Studio is more than just a look at the life of an amazing man's incomparable career. It's a nostalgic look back at The Golden Age of Production. A time before we bowed to the God of Convenience and let computers do the work for us. I use computers all the time, obviously, but I think that as we gain from using them, we also lose something precious.
The 70's and 80's were the age of the great music producers. Sure, geniuses like George Martin, Brian Wilson, Frank Zappa, and Phil Spector paved the way in the 1960's, it was in the 70's when things broke loose for everyone else. Experimentation abounded and artists were taking risks and trying new things. And no one was doing with more success than Todd Rundgren.
There was a time when Todd was the highest paid record producer in the world. He produced albums for dozens of artists. From underground mavericks like the Patti Smith Group, Sparks, The Lords of the New Church. and New York Dolls; to big name dinosaur acts like Grand Funk, Rick Derringer, The Band, Badfinger, and Darryl Hall and John Oates.
The great thing about Todd always was his utter fearlessness in taking on decidedly noncommercial acts for the sake of producing great art. Sometimes it wasn't financially lucrative. Other times he hit the jackpot, like with Meat Loaf and Bat Out of Hell. No one would touch this bizarre project by an untested composer (Jim Steinman) and an overweight, unsightly singer. People thought it was some kind of comedy act. But Todd saw the potential and everyone was surprised when Bat Out of Hell became one of the highest grossing records of all time.
Todd saved the careers of acts who were on the way to decline, such as Grand Funk and XTC. As a result, respectively, We're An American Band and Skylarking were enormous successes.
Todd Rundgren has made a reputation for himself over the years as being a bit of a tyrant in the studio. Perhaps even a bully, as some have suggested. Especially so in the case of the production of XTC's Skylarking. In A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren in the Studio, he is portrayed as a brilliantly driven man with a peerless vision and an uncanny knack for knowing just what sounds his artists needed. Even when the artists vehemently disagreed with him. More often than not Todd won, and he sometimes left bitter feelings in his wake. Yet virtually everyone that ever worked with Todd Rundgren praised his vision, the astonishing speed in which he worked, and the end result of the production. The word, genius, comes up in quotes quite often in the book.
Then there is the recording career of Todd Rundgren himself. He is one of the most schizophrenic talents in music history. Starting out doing ballads like Hello It's Me, and I Saw The Light, Todd was praised as some kind of pop savior. Then he did relentlessly experimental works like A Wizard, A True Star and the self-titled Todd LP, which endeared him to the prog enthusiasts. But Todd would confound all but his most ardent fans, of which I certainly consider myself. His releases became increasingly unpredictable: An entire album of a cappella songs, one with his greatest hits reworked as bossa nova numbers. Todd rapped, he rhymed. At age 60 he released Arena, which was easily the hardest rocking album of his career. His most recent release is the humorously-titled Todd Rundgren's Johnson, in which he covers songs by the Blues legend, Robert Johnson.
The focus on A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren in the Studio is on the earlier productions. The work from abut 1990 to present is merely skimmed over. Being the Todd fan that I am, I would have gladly read a thousand page book on his career. Especially one as well-written as this book is. But I understand the emphasis on the early days when the recording of an album was much more of a hand's on process. I won't take anything away from the talents of today, but it was harder back then. And I think that extra effort shined through in the finished products.
A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren is an informative work, and an entertaining one. One that I believe will appeal to a broader audience than the hardcore Todd Rundgren fans. It's fascinating, and it's often hilarious, but it's also a little sad to read about the decline of the great days of the studio producers.
Now I want to go back and hear the songs again. This time with more educated ears. To hear again how he helped make Grand Funk's cover of The Locomotion one of the best-sounding rock songs of all time. How he brought the very best out of bands like The Tubes, and Psychedelic Furs. How despite the anguish behind making it, XTC's Skylarking became one of the most beautiful and memorable records ever. And of course how Todd's own ever-evolving, challenging, glorious own music was made. Made on his terms, despite the howling protests of the corporate suits that would, if they had their way, keep music safe, boring, and uninteresting forever.
The 70's and 80's were the age of the great music producers. Sure, geniuses like George Martin, Brian Wilson, Frank Zappa, and Phil Spector paved the way in the 1960's, it was in the 70's when things broke loose for everyone else. Experimentation abounded and artists were taking risks and trying new things. And no one was doing with more success than Todd Rundgren.
There was a time when Todd was the highest paid record producer in the world. He produced albums for dozens of artists. From underground mavericks like the Patti Smith Group, Sparks, The Lords of the New Church. and New York Dolls; to big name dinosaur acts like Grand Funk, Rick Derringer, The Band, Badfinger, and Darryl Hall and John Oates.The great thing about Todd always was his utter fearlessness in taking on decidedly noncommercial acts for the sake of producing great art. Sometimes it wasn't financially lucrative. Other times he hit the jackpot, like with Meat Loaf and Bat Out of Hell. No one would touch this bizarre project by an untested composer (Jim Steinman) and an overweight, unsightly singer. People thought it was some kind of comedy act. But Todd saw the potential and everyone was surprised when Bat Out of Hell became one of the highest grossing records of all time.
Todd saved the careers of acts who were on the way to decline, such as Grand Funk and XTC. As a result, respectively, We're An American Band and Skylarking were enormous successes.
Todd Rundgren has made a reputation for himself over the years as being a bit of a tyrant in the studio. Perhaps even a bully, as some have suggested. Especially so in the case of the production of XTC's Skylarking. In A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren in the Studio, he is portrayed as a brilliantly driven man with a peerless vision and an uncanny knack for knowing just what sounds his artists needed. Even when the artists vehemently disagreed with him. More often than not Todd won, and he sometimes left bitter feelings in his wake. Yet virtually everyone that ever worked with Todd Rundgren praised his vision, the astonishing speed in which he worked, and the end result of the production. The word, genius, comes up in quotes quite often in the book.
Then there is the recording career of Todd Rundgren himself. He is one of the most schizophrenic talents in music history. Starting out doing ballads like Hello It's Me, and I Saw The Light, Todd was praised as some kind of pop savior. Then he did relentlessly experimental works like A Wizard, A True Star and the self-titled Todd LP, which endeared him to the prog enthusiasts. But Todd would confound all but his most ardent fans, of which I certainly consider myself. His releases became increasingly unpredictable: An entire album of a cappella songs, one with his greatest hits reworked as bossa nova numbers. Todd rapped, he rhymed. At age 60 he released Arena, which was easily the hardest rocking album of his career. His most recent release is the humorously-titled Todd Rundgren's Johnson, in which he covers songs by the Blues legend, Robert Johnson.
The focus on A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren in the Studio is on the earlier productions. The work from abut 1990 to present is merely skimmed over. Being the Todd fan that I am, I would have gladly read a thousand page book on his career. Especially one as well-written as this book is. But I understand the emphasis on the early days when the recording of an album was much more of a hand's on process. I won't take anything away from the talents of today, but it was harder back then. And I think that extra effort shined through in the finished products.
A Wizard, A True Star: Todd Rundgren is an informative work, and an entertaining one. One that I believe will appeal to a broader audience than the hardcore Todd Rundgren fans. It's fascinating, and it's often hilarious, but it's also a little sad to read about the decline of the great days of the studio producers.
Now I want to go back and hear the songs again. This time with more educated ears. To hear again how he helped make Grand Funk's cover of The Locomotion one of the best-sounding rock songs of all time. How he brought the very best out of bands like The Tubes, and Psychedelic Furs. How despite the anguish behind making it, XTC's Skylarking became one of the most beautiful and memorable records ever. And of course how Todd's own ever-evolving, challenging, glorious own music was made. Made on his terms, despite the howling protests of the corporate suits that would, if they had their way, keep music safe, boring, and uninteresting forever.
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