todd rundgren live at the bbc album download Todd Rundgren Nearly Human Tour Japan '90 Review. This is a paradigm of what a good live album should be with Rundgren and his. Deleted since the mid Nineties, Todd Rundgren's 1989 album, Nearly Human, must be his most underheard and overlooked album. This is a shame: it was an extraordinary return to form, a soulful exercise recorded live in the studio with the usual luscious, but slightly pinched, production and featuring classic Rundgren tracks, such as ''The Want of a Nail'' and ''Hawking''. In 1990 Todd took his 11-piece band out on the road, compete with a roster of backing singers and guest musicians, to promote the album and showcase his greatest hits, and this double CD set of the extravaganza was recorded at the Sun Plaza in Tokyo. This must have been some show. Rundgren came on in a Western-style costume, according to the liner notes, hamming it up and gyrating across the stage looking like Michael Jackson and sounding like Marvin Gaye. All but two of the outstanding tracks from Nearly Human are featured. The stomp and groove of ''Unloved Children'' must have got the Japanese audience on their feet. Once up, ''Can't Stop Running'' keeps them pounding like a soundtrack to a workout. ''The Want of a Nail'', a powerful bone-shaker with its Bobby Womack-style opening, leaves you gasping for air. ''Hawking'', perhaps the strongest track on Nearly Human, is a beautiful, moving soul song, brilliantly recreated here with Todd in full flood. ''Parallel Lines'' is the greatest single he never had. The collection also includes striking versions of some of Rundgren's greatest and best-loved songs from the Seventies: the ballad ''Compassion'', from Healing; ''Can We Still Be Friends'', from Hermit of Mink Hollow; ''Real Man'' and the much-cherished ''Hello, It's Me''. He also races through a couple of Utopia rockers: ''Love in Action'' from Oops! Wrong Planet and ''Rock Love'' from 1980s Adventures in Utopia. Add to this terrific interpretations of ''Secret Society'', with a soaring guitar from Todd, and the heartfelt ''Mated'', a hit for David Grant and Jaki Graham in the Eighties. Rundgren brings it home on the gospel-tinged closing number, ''I Love My Life'', an energetic 13-minute wall-of-sound echoing the live performances of Bruce Springsteen. This is a paradigm of what a good live album should be with Rundgren and his soccer-team-sized band of musicians on top form. Until someone pulls their finger out and reissues a much-needed digitally remastered Nearly Human, this is a worthy substitute. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence. If you choose to use this review on your site please link back to this page. Todd Rundgren & Utopia - At The BBC 1972-1982 (2014) Artist : Todd Rundgren & Utopia Title : At The BBC 1972-1982 Year Of Release : 2014 Label : Esoteric Genre : Psychedelic Rock, Classic Rock, Progressive Rock Quality : Flac (tracks, .cue, log) Total Time : 02:44:33 Total Size : 1,1 Gb (full scans) WebSite : Album Preview. CD1 - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1972 & BBC Old Grey Whistle Test, 1975: Todd Rundgren - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1972 (Recorded at The Paris Theatre, London - July 6, 1972) 1. I Saw The Light 2. It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference 3. Piss Aaron 4. Hello It's Me 5. Be Nice To Me 6. Black Maria. Todd Rundgren & Utopia - BBC Old Grey Whistle Test, 1975 (Recorded At The Old Grey Whistle Test - October 14, 1975) 7. Real Man 8. The Seven Rays. CD2 - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1975: Todd Rundgren & Utopia - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1975 (Recorded at Hammersmith Odeon - October 9, 1975) 1. Freedom Fighters 2. Mister Triscuits 3. Something's Coming 4. The Last Ride 5. Sunset Boulevard / Le Feel Internacionale 6. Heavy Metal Kids 7. The Wheel 8. Open My Eyes 9. Sons Of 1984 10. Do Ya 11. Couldn't I Just Tell You. CD3 - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1977: Todd Rundgren & Utopia - BBC Radio One "In Concert", 1977 (Recorded at Oxford Polytechnic - January 25, 1977) 1. Overture: "Mountain Top And Sunrise"/ Communion With The Sun 2. Love Of The Common Man 3. Sunburst Finish 4. Jealousy 5. Windows 6. Singring And The Glass Guitar 7. Utopia Theme. Todd Rundgren / At The BBC 1972-82: four-disc box set. Esoteric Recordings will issue a new four-disc Todd Rundgren box next month, compiling all of the surviving radio and television broadcasts in the BBC archive transmitted in the UK between 1972 and 1982. The 3CD+DVD set features a nine-song BBC Radio One In Concert performance, Todd Rundgren and Utopia at Hammersmith Odeon (on their first ever UK tour) and a 1977 performance at the Oxford Polytechnic. The (NTSC, region-free) DVD features three performances from The Old Grey Whistle Test ; the 1975 Todd Rundgren and Utopia session, a film of Todd Rundgren & Utopia at the Bearsville Picnic in 1977 (performing Singring and the Glass Guitar ) and the entire recordings made for a 1982 solo Todd Rundgren Whistle Test special (including two songs not featured on the original TV broadcast). At The BBC 1972-1982 is released on 27 October 2014. The set comes packaged in a clamshell box and features an illustrated booklet with essay. • UK Pre-order: At The BBC 1972-1982 • USA Pre-order: At the BBC 1972-82 • CANADA Pre-order: At the BBC 1972-82 • GERMANY Pre-order: AT THE BBC 1972-1982. Disc: 1 1. I Saw The Light 2. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference 3. Piss Aaron 4. Hello It’s Me 5. Be Nice To Me 6. Real Man 7. The Seven Rays 8. Black Maria 9. Todd Rundgren & Utopia. BBC RADIO ONE “IN CONCERT” RECORDED AT THE PARIS THEATRE, LONDON 6TH JULY 1972. FIRST BROADCAST 15TH JULY 1972. Disc: 2 1. Freedom Fighters 2. Mister Triskets 3. Something’s Coming 4. The Last Ride 5. Sunset Boulevard / Le Feel Internacionale 6. Heavy Metal Kids 7. The Wheel 8. Open My Eyes 9. Sons Of 1984 10. Do Ya 11. Couldn’t I Just Tell You. RECORDED AT HAMMERSMITH ODEON, 9TH OCTOBER 1975 FIRST BROADCAST ON BBC RADIO ONE ON 1ST JANUARY 1976. Disc: 3 1. Communion With The Sun 2. Love Of The Common Man 3. Sunburst Finish 4. Jealousy 5. Windows 6. Singring And The Glass Guitar 7. Utopia Theme. RECORDED AT OXFORD POLYTECHNIC, 25TH JANUARY 1977 FOR BBC RADIO ONE. Disc: 4 1. Real Man 2. The Seven Rays. THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST – 14TH OCTOBER 1975. 3. Bearsville Picnic featuring Singring and the Glass Guitar. THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST – 2ND MAY 1978. 4. Love Of The Common Man 5. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference 6. Too Far Gone 7. Can We Still Be Friends 8. The Reason Why 9. Compassion 10. Lysistrata 11. Tiny Demons 12. Time Heals (Promotional Video) 13. One World 14. A Dream Goes On Forever. Todd Rundgren – Archive concert (1994) Todd Rundgren recorded live at the London Forum in 1994 performs his album No World Order as well as other classic Todd Rundgren tracks. Todd Rundgren- Interactive, or 'TR-I' as the show is known, is a historical new concept where the audience can participate. His 29th album 'No World Order' is featured along with new arrangements of old classics. Todd's first band was The Nazz which was formed in 1967. They split up in 1970. His first self-titled album 'Runt' was in 1970- closely followed by 'The Ballad of Todd Rundgren' in 1971. The concert was recorded by the BBC at The Forum, London, on 7 October 1994. Tracks include : — World Epiphany — International Feel — Proactivity — Secret Society — Fever Broke — Property — There's My Inspiration — Love Of A Common Man — Tiny Demons — No World Order — Day Job. Review: Todd Rundgren / At the BBC 1972-1982: 4-disc box set. When Esoteric announced they would be plundering the Todd Rundgren archive, promising some unreleased nuggets from the vaults, there was much excitement amongst Rundgren fans. However, the initial offerings, the reissue of the previously available (in Japan) and only marginally interesting Disco Jets , along with the Live At The Electric Ballroom 1978 show (which sounds like the compressed, pre-mixed radio broadcast that it is) were welcome, but somewhat disappointing. Only the excellent Live At The Warfield 1990 offset the disappointment. However, Esoteric have now come up trumps with a fantastic 3CD+DVD set, At The BBC 1972 – 1982 . The clamshell box houses the four discs, which are packaged in cardboard sleeves, each featuring a different colour picture of Rundgren, along with a 16-page booklet with a very informative essay by Mark Powell, some great pictures and complete recording, track and personnel info. Disc one (which is in mono only, as per the original recording) features a complete 30-minute 1972 In Concert broadcast where Rundgren (as he did in some other live shows in the ’70s and ’80s) plays along to pre-recorded backing tracks on I Saw The Light and Black Maria , while accompanying himself on piano on the other four tracks, including a lengthy Piss Aaron . The remaining two tracks on this CD feature the audio from the 1975 Utopia Old Grey Whistle Test performance (also included on the DVD). Top Rundgren scholars may note the omission of Todd’s 1972 Whistle Test performance – mentioned by Mark Powell in his essay – but this is due to the fact that that show (along with many other pre- 1973 shows) were wiped soon after broadcast. The second disc features the legendary and much-bootlegged 9th October 1975 Hammersmith show, featuring the four-piece Utopia (trimmed down from the six-piece ‘Another Live’ band but still featuring John Siegler on bass) augmented by two backing vocalists, one of whom is Luther Vandross . Although this ‘Another Live’ era show did get an official release on Shout Factory in 2012, this latest version also includes a previously unreleased version of Bernstein’s Something’s Coming , is mastered at a slightly lower level than the previous release, and sounds a little tighter. The final CD in this set offers the first official release of the much-bootlegged 25th January 1977 Utopia Oxford Polytechnic show. Featuring the longest running incarnation of Utopia (as a four-piece with Kasim Sulton on bass), the show contains several tracks from their current Ra album including the complete live version of Singring And The Glass Guitar and all in excellent quality audio. The killer though is disc four, a 70-minute DVD , which opens with Rundgren, Roger Powell (surrounded by banks of synthesisers), John Wilcox, John Siegler plus vocalists Anthony Hinton and Luther Vandross in the Whistle Test studios almost 40 years ago. Rundgren showcases his soul and progressive leanings, delivering a soulful Real Man at the piano before picking up his guitar for The Seven Rays which he precedes with one of his quirky introductions. This segues into what is probably the only live footage in existence from Utopia’s 1977 Ra Tour. Totalling 15 minutes, it was originally broadcast in 1978 on a Whistle Test special from the Bearsville Picnic. We see the Rundgren/Wilcox/Powell/Sulton quartet on the elaborate stage set for the US leg of the tour (UK dates were played without the fancy staging), playing Singring And The Glass Guitar complete with individual instrumental solos. The footage culminates with Todd climbing to the top of a large pyramid, jumping off and subsequently smashing the glass (ice) guitar. The segment also includes some interview footage of Todd in his video studio. The final 40 minutes comprise Todd’s complete May 1982 Whistle Test recording from BBC TV centre, including Song Of The Viking and Lysistrata , neither of which were aired on the original broadcast. Todd was in great form, playing piano and guitar, with a set list including classics such as It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference and Can We Still Be Friends alongside newer tracks including Tiny Demons . If one is looking to be picky about omissions, I believe the BBC also aired a radio broadcast of a May 1982 Rundgren show recorded at London’s The Venue but it was a very similar – although longer – show to the 1982 Whistle Test recording, so perhaps that is why it’s not included here. That aside this set is an absolutely essential purchase for all Rundgren fans. Live At The BBC 1972 – 1982 is out now. Review by Brent Keefe for SuperDeluxeEdition. • UK Pre-order: At The BBC 1972-1982 • USA Pre-order: At the BBC 1972-82 • CANADA Pre-order: At the BBC 1972-82 • GERMANY Pre-order: AT THE BBC 1972-1982. Disc: 1 1. I Saw The Light 2. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference 3. Piss Aaron 4. Hello It’s Me 5. Be Nice To Me 6. Real Man 7. The Seven Rays 8. Black Maria. BBC RADIO ONE “IN CONCERT” RECORDED AT THE PARIS THEATRE, LONDON 6TH JULY 1972. FIRST BROADCAST 15TH JULY 1972. Disc: 2 1. Freedom Fighters 2. Mister Triscuits 3. Something’s Coming 4. The Last Ride 5. Sunset Boulevard / Le Feel Internacionale 6. Heavy Metal Kids 7. The Wheel 8. Open My Eyes 9. Sons Of 1984 10. Do Ya 11. Couldn’t I Just Tell You. RECORDED AT HAMMERSMITH ODEON, 9TH OCTOBER 1975 FIRST BROADCAST ON BBC RADIO ONE ON 1ST JANUARY 1976. Disc: 3 1. Communion With The Sun 2. Love Of The Common Man 3. Sunburst Finish 4. Jealousy 5. Windows 6. Singring And The Glass Guitar 7. Utopia Theme. RECORDED AT OXFORD POLYTECHNIC, 25TH JANUARY 1977 FOR BBC RADIO ONE. Disc: 4 1. Real Man 2. The Seven Rays. THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST – 14TH OCTOBER 1975. 3. Bearsville Picnic featuring Singring and the Glass Guitar. THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST – 2ND MAY 1978. 4. Love Of The Common Man 5. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference 6. Too Far Gone 7. Can We Still Be Friends 8. Song Of The Viking 9. Compassion 10. Lysistrata 11. Tiny Demons 12. Time Heals (Promotional Video) 13. One World 14. A Dream Goes On Forever.