Todd Rundgren on RundgrenRadio tonight

RundgrenRadio.com airs TONIGHT at 8:30pmET with special guest TODD RUNDGREN!

Please don't freak out when you go to the URL and see the beginning of our new website :-), just click on the "LISTEN TO RUNDREN RADIO" box on the right vertical menu. If that's too confusing, just go to www.BlogTalkRadio.com/runt .

Todd will be on to discuss his upcoming album and April tour (insert Johnson joke here

www.RundgrenRadio.com

updates from RundgrenRadio

Todd is our guest tomorrow night on the show so be sure to pencil in 8:30pm ET on Tuesday if you want to hear about TR's Johnson from the man himself :-).

For the Lincolnshire, IL gig we are the only source for the VIP tickets -- early entrance and dinner for $60. We have general admission too for $40 and the conv fee is $1.50 versus Ticketmaster's $6.50.

https://www.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=251117

The reason I'm telling you this today is because we only have 22 VIP left and they are going to be gone pretty soon. Don't want any of you to miss out on VIP if that's the route you want to take and you've been procrastinating :-).

I'm not 100% on this but the TRJ album may be out earlier than June 15th which is the projected date on Amazon. I've heard early April but knowing HiFi it could very well be June even though the album is completely ready.

mp3 podcast "come taste the band" review of AWATS

http://tinyurl.com/ybwvjgd

Pete and Scott (WARNING: This podcast contains a lot of Scott) discuss Todd Rundgren's 1973 album and also their opinions of the live staging of the album earlier this year at the Hammersmith Apollo.

Poster for Dallas Tree's show 4/20/10

click on image for full size

updated tour dates

Todd Rundgren's Johnson
Fri 4/02/10 Engelwood, NJ Bergen County PAC
Sat 4/03/10 Salisbury, MA Blue Ocean Music Hall (Same Place, New Name)
Mon 4/05/10 Sellersville, PA Sellersville Theater Tickets
Wed 4/07/10 Newark, OH Midland Theater
Fri 4/09/10 Greensburg, PA Palace Theater
Sat 4/10/10 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun - Wolf Den
Sun 4/11/10 Ridgefield, CT Ridgefield Playhouse presale 2/1 onsale 2/5
Tue 4/13/10 Alexandria, VA The Birchmere
Wed 4/14/10 Annapolis, MD Rams Head On Stage
Fri 4/16/10 Lincolnshire, IL Cubby Bear North A Rundgren Radio Production
Sat 4/17/10 Kansas City, MO Beaumont Club tickets now on sale at TicketMaster
Sun 4/18/10 TBA TBA
Mon 4/19/10 TBA TBA
Tue 4/20/10 Dallas, TX Trees A Rundgren Radio Production
Wed 4/21/10 Memphis, TN New Daisy Theater A Rundgren Radio Production
Thu 4/22/10 Nashville, TN Polk Theater
Sat 4/24/10 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park w/ Hall and Oates

Miscellaneous One-offs
Fri 7/09/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration
Sat 7/10/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration
Sun 7/11/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration
Fri 7/16/10 North Lawrence, OH Rock N Resort Music Festival


Rundgren Radio Presents "Todd" and "Healing" Live
Sun 9/05/10 TBA TBA Rundgren Radio Birthday Bash III
Wed 9/08/10 TBA TBA A Rundgren Radio Production
Fri 9/10/10 TBA TBA A Rundgren Radio Production
Sat 9/11/10 TBA TBA A Rundgren Radio Production
Tue 9/14/10 TBA TBA A Rundgren Radio Production
Wed 9/15/10 TBA TBA A Rundgren Radio Production

VIP tickets available for lincolnshire IL show 4/16

VIP tickets for the Lincolnshire IL gigs are now EXCLUSIVELY available from rundgrenradio

http://www.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=251117

RundgrenRadio. Features guest Todd Rundgren 3/30/10 and more news...

Todd will be a guest on Rundgren Radio on Tuesday, March 30 at 8:30 PM EDT. http://rundgrenradio.com.

and this from Roger at his amazing site.

Roger Linder at trconnection says:

A three song EP from Todd's upcoming "Todd Rundgren's Johnson" release entitled "Todd Rundgren's Short Johnson" is now available for purchase as a download in the Amazon.com or iTunes music stores. Info on the Amazon site suggests the full release won't be available until June. It features the songs "Stop Breakin' Down," "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" and "Kind Hearted Woman." The price is only $2.97.

As of this writing, the EP is #1 in Blues Bestsellers and Hot New Releases Amazon charts, and #36 & #13 in Amazon's Rock Hot New Releases and Rock Bestsellers charts, respectively. I'll continue to post upwards progress on the TR Connection Twitter feed.

You can purchase the Amazon MP3 download at http://bit.ly/8ZQbsU (a convenient short address for a much longer one) or by going to the TR Connection web site and clicking on the Amazon item.

Todd will be touring "Todd Rundgren's Johnson in April, with three shows sponsored by Rundgren Radio. Todd will be a guest on Rundgren Radio on Tuesday, March 30 at 8:30 PM EDT. Tune in at http://rundgrenradio.com. An archive of the show will be made available on the TR Connection ToddCast the following day.

For Todd's 2010 tour activity, see the tour page at http://TRConnection.com/tour/t2010. When known, additional dates may be added.

Watch also in April for an update for locations on the Todd performs "Todd" and "Healing" tour in September. This is a limited run of six dates, also sponsored by Rundgren Radio. RR has a special page at http://www.sonsof1984.com/ devoted to info about the tour.

TR'S short JOHNSON CD. artwork and samples

click on this amazon link to hear samples of 3 new songs
http://www.amazon.com/Todd-Rundgrens-Short-Johnson/dp/B003CV7QU6/ref=pd_nr_dm_al_6_i?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic

new shows announced

Fri 7/09/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration

Sat 7/10/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration

Sun 7/11/10 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Bowl A Beatles Celebration

Fri 7/16/10 North Lawrence, OH Rock N Resort Music Festival

up against it review

First off, I know the audio is terrible....This is a review of Up Against It (music by Todd Rundgren) after it premiered at the Public Theatre in NYC. The review...well....I don't think he liked it very much.

TBA DATES FOR THE TODD/HEALING TOUR

2010 Todd & Healing Tour:


9/05: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale April 28 at Tix.com at 11am ET with select-a-seat option!

9/08: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale May 1st at StarTickets.com at 1pm ET with select-a seat option!

9/10: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale May 8th at 11am ET (more info to follow soon)

9/11: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale May 8th at noon ET at Ticketmaster.com

9/14: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale May 1st at noon ET (more info to follow soon)

9/15: Venue and city/state TBA April 13th
Tickets will go on sale May 8th at 1pm ET from the venue box office

All 6 concerts are being presented by RundgrenRadio.com. Ticket information will be available on this site and during our weekly radio shows so stay tuned!

TODD RUNDGREN TWITTER ACCT NOW BACK IN MY HANDS...

http://twitter.com/toddrundgren
i finally have control back of the todd rundgren twitter acct. It was used to promote the AWATS shows but password issues have been worked out between the PR people and me.. please join it if you havent already

RundgrenRadio Tonight Michael Holman " dancer for theTubes"

Rundgren Radio wraps up it's "Mondays In March" series tonight beginning at 8:30pm ET with special guest Michael Holman.

Michael was a former dancer with the Rock and Art band The Tubes. He is a long time acquaintance of the Rundgren's and attended Toddstock.

From OldSchoolHipHop.com ...

An often forgotten behind the scenes player in the early days of hip hop, Michael Holman may be remembered best for being "The Host With The Most".

That line is in reference to perhaps his most well known contribution to hip hop - the television pilot "Graffiti Rock." While it was the only episode every aired, it has found its place in the history of the music to the point where twenty years after its initial run, it was released on DVD. How many so called "failed" TV pilots can claim that?

But this was not his only contribution. He also ran a club called the Negril in the Bronx. He had the Rock Steady Crew perform regularly on Thursday nights. After growing tired of just the RSC, he heard about these b-boy battles taking place. The first battle he hosted pitted the Rock Steady Crew against the Floormasters. He liked the athleticism of the Floormasters and signed on to be their manager, changing their name to The New York City Breakers (hence the reason they were featured on "Graffiti Rock").

He also worked hard to bring graffiti artists together with the main stream art world including working with Fab 5 Freddy.

Michael Holman also wrote a book called "Breaking and the New York City Breakers."

Not bad for a guy who worked on Wall Street as a banker.
www.rundgrenradio.com

Todd to play at Hollywood bowl July 9/10/11 beatles special

http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance-detail.cfm?id=4233

Friday, July 9, 2010, 8:30 PM
Hollywood Bowl
2301 North Highland Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90068
323.850.2000


Other Performances:
Saturday, July 10, 2010, 8:30 PM (Weekend Spectaculars)
Sunday, July 11, 2010, 7:30 PM (Sunday Sunset Performances)

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Featured Artists:
Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Thomas Wilkins, conductor
Patti Austin, special guest
Rob Laufer, special guest
Bettye LaVette, special guest
Todd Rundgren, special guest
Brian Stokes Mitchell, special guest

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Additional Info:
Forty-five years after the most popular rock band of all time appeared at the Bowl, celebrate the Beatles’ musical innovations and greatest symphonic moments as we revisit classics from Abbey Road, Let It Be and more. Don’t miss what will be an unforgettable night in Hollywood Bowl history.

RundgrenRadio INFO website dedicated to the new TODD & HEALING tour

http://www.sonsof1984.com/

Interview 1974 TODD album Todd interviews himself , published in the" Record Magzine"

“Todd Rundgren Interviews Himself” (1974)
December 25, 2009 at 9:32 am (Music, Reviews & Articles, Todd Rundgren)

Todd Rundgren wrote this for Record magazine, March 1974, around the time that his double album Todd was released…

With the success of “Hello It’s Me” as well as his productions with Grand Funk, the New York Dolls and others, Todd Rundgren has become one of the most important figures on today’s pop scene. Recently Todd took time out to discuss his forthcoming album, Todd, and his plans for the future, with our New York correspondent Alan Betrock.

Todd was recorded mostly during July; actually July & August, 1973, and it was my usual hodgepodge approach to performance in the album. I did a lot of the tracks solely myself, and I guess on about half of them, there was a drummer, bassist, keyboardist etc… various combinations of personnel. There wasn’t any set backup band. I had some songs left over from my last album, but not any leftover tracks. If I don’t use a track on a particular album, it usually doesn’t have any relevance by the time the next LP comes around. I usually don’t have a specific concept that is fully realized when I start the album. It gets more realized as the record happens. I thought Todd was going to be a single album, but it just turned out to be too long, so I had to put it on two records. This was all decided before the plastic shortage. I don’t think. I’m going to have to compromise because of the energy shortage, but if I had known that there was going to be this shortage when I made the record, I would have made definite attempts not to exceed a single album’s worth of material.

I only once did an album by myself (Something/Anything), or at least a major part of it was myself. It was the only album where I had the attitude that I had to do it all. It was only because I was experimenting, not because I was establishing myself as a solo virtuoso artist. On this new album, it was just a case of hearing certain things, and if I couldn’t perform it, I’d get someone else to do it. You can only have so much technique, and I always hear things that exceed my technique.

The success of “Hello It’s Me” doesn’t bother me, but having to perform the song does bother me. Having to do anything bothers me when it’s not something I feel naturally inspired to do. I’m not really into singles; I don’t record records specifically to be singles. I may do it for somebody else, but I don’t do it for myself. If I do things that sound like singles, it’s just that that’s the way I think it should sound.

It probably seems to most people that I’m into ballads more, but I think that’s only because of the success of “Hello It’s Me.” And people also want to limit things. I don’t do what I consider to be a whole lot of ballads. I did one album that had a bunch of ballads on it, and that was the only one like that. There are some songs that people may think of as ballads that are not ballads to me — they’re pieces of music that have different ideas. Todd has the least number of ballads, I think, of all the albums I’ve done. It also has more guitar playing. It varies… I do what I feel inspired to do. If I don’t feel like playing that much rock ‘n roll, I don’t need another outlet — another band to play rock and roll. Being a producer in certain terms is just a job.

I’m starting to produce Grand Funk’s new album now. I went out to Flint and they played me some new material. We just make records together. For some reason they find me necessary to the production of their records, so we make ‘em together. With the Dolls, it wasn’t just my producing. They had spent so long trying to get a recording situation together, and had so many people involved, it was like the whole of NYC was producing the Dolls. Everyone had to get in and have their hands on the knobs, and I don’t particularly dig that. The band was the most laid back, of all the people involved. I don’t look back at that album at all. Just like Bobby Zimmerman said: “Don’t Look Back.”

“Heavy Metal Kids” is, in certain terms, a takeoff of the NY scene. It’s always a satire. I mean how serious can you get? I wouldn’t die for any of it. I still like to present it the way I want to present it — the alternative would not be to die — it would be not to do it at all — rather than change it. It’s mostly all satire, I guess – it’s only as serious as you can get about it. But people are always looking for something — a clear cut thing — when I make the music, I’m trying to be open to influences at the time it’s being made — not just straight musical influences, but all kinds — social, emotional, cosmic and things like that — and this is all supposed to be reflected in the music. If people walk around all day and make judgment after judgment, it gets to be a drag after awhile. Sometimes you just like to wander around and not make any judgments — just let it exist.

The kind of music that I do is supposed to be the kind of music that other people aren’t doing — because I don’t feel any need to do it otherwise. As soon as somebody or something becomes popular, like let’s say “space-rock” was becoming the big thing, there’s all of a sudden loads of bands coming up to me saying “well, man, last week we were into glitter rock, and now we’re into space rock.” Whatever is hip or the happening formula, they just change into that. Some people can recognize it after it happens; my whole thing is trying to discover it before it happens. Just because I like to hear different things — if no one else is doing something new, I have to come up with them myself.

I’m definitely lagged out now, being that Todd was recorded, and reflects where I was last July. I don’t know what the impact of the music will be now. It’s still probably a year or two ahead of where most people are at — at least.

The reason why I do any particular song in any particular way is just because there’s a whole idea. And what you try to do as effectively as possible is render that idea musically so that someone listening can understand that idea — some music is done so vaguely that the interpretation of it is left completely up to the person listening — but sometimes you’re trying to say something specifically in the most effective way possible. In doing that, you try to use recognizable styles — essences of recognizable performances. For instance, Jimi Hendrix. “Number One Lowest Common Denominator” is just about sex, and it seemed to me one of the most obvious musical inferences you could make along those lines, was to recreate in certain terms that Jimi Hendrix sound. Because to me that influence represented, from a guitar player’s point of view, that central attitude most effectively. I don’t listen to a song and then sit down and copy it. The guitar playing was obviously influenced — the whole thing really — the phasing, the trippy effects; in certain terms the song is a satire too. It’s really a pretty funny song as far as I’m concerned.

The last song on the album (“Sons of 1984″) was recorded live in Central Park and Griffith Park. We went in and taught the audience the lyrics and they sang it. I guess I was a little surprised that it really worked out. I thought the problems would be hideous. The microphones were hung out over the audience, and in Griffith Park, they were actually hanging out of trees. It was fed into a remote 16-track machine. It was a funny experiment. We were considering doing. a whole record that way, as part of our touring show. Teach the audience a song, then record it, and you have a whole album’s worth of these songs from different cities, with the audience singing on them. It would be really strange. But as it is now, on “Sons of 1984,” we have Central Park on one side, and Griffith Park on the other.

I’ve been offered a lot of production work, most of which I don’t want to do. Either because it’s with somebody that doesn’t need me, or with somebody I just don’t want to work with. But I am considering a couple of things.

Describing my new album is really a hard thing to do. It’s really impossible to render an accurate idea of where the album is at musically and lyrically just by trying to describe isolated moments of it. The only difference about this album I guess, from the others I’ve made, is in terms of lyrics. My lyrical attitude is a lot more unified, and different from what I used to write about. In the past, I usually wrote about boy-girl relationships, which at this point doesn’t interest me. I have very little to say about that — that might disappoint a few people, but they have all those old songs to listen to, if they want. The whole record (Todd) is about states of consciousness. The Wizard album marked a beginning of new forms of communication — basing my musical ideas on responses other than just purely physical or material. In the Wizard album I was just discovering a different language. In the new album, it is more of a discourse in this new language — telling what I’ve discovered with this new attitude — that is, out of directing my attention to things other than material – to other states on consciousness. It’s very hard to describe even that aspect of it. It’s more apparent if you listen to the record, than if I try to describe it — or use terms like “cosmic” or “astral.” It all has very little relevance in a conversational context.

Right now I’m working on an album with Utopia, which expresses other ideas. It’s a separate group that I’m a member of, where we do music written by all the members of the band — M. Frog; Moogy Klingman; John Siegler; Kevin Ellman; Ralph Shuckett; and me — six in all. The first original concept of Utopia seemed to be a little too far out for everybody, and we took it out on the road for about two weeks to mixed reaction, so we just decided it was a waste of energy. I had a lot of things to do at the time, and was having a change of attitude, so I decided to take it off the road for awhile. Now we’ve toured very successfully, with a change of personnel and show concept, and we’re touring again in March. I do a solo set first, which sometimes involves the use of pre-recorded tapes. Some people don’t get used to it too easily, but to me it’s like television — it’s really like a big TV show – then in the second half I come out with the whole band.

One of the things about the musical direction I’m moving in is to experience fewer and fewer limitations in terms of who you are and what you have to do. Things are becoming less and less stylized in any one direction. I also recorded a type of eclectic music in the past, but at the same time I was still writing within the “song style” — songs 3 – 4 minutes long, six on a side, etc. I was very involved in perfecting that style, and I just got fed up with that. Then I did the Wizard album where the song ideas ranged from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. A further refinement of that idea is represented in Todd, and the refinement is that I’m breaking down all these barriers — removing the six spirals – just saying there are no limitations as to what is sung about or what the music sounds like, or how long it is… or whether it is even music at all.

Todd Rundgren

4/1/10 TR'S SHOW VENUE HAS A NEW NAME

To Our Valued Salisbury Beach Customers, Salisbury's music hall
will have a new name and management effective April 1, 2010!

Tupelo Music Hall Salisbury will become Blue Ocean Music Hall.
While the name will change, the venue, genres of music, the
sound, the service, and the experience will remain the same.

The new management team will continue to bring your favorite
national and regional acts to this successful state-of-the-art
venue that has been heralded as "the North Shore’s best live
music venue."

All tickets and gift certificates purchased for upcoming shows
remain valid. Now through March 31, 2010, continue to purchase
tickets for upcoming shows in the Salisbury venue at
http://www.TupeloHallSalisbury.com. Beginning April 1, 2010,
tickets can be purchased at http://www.BlueOceanHall.com or by
calling the Box Office at 978 462-5888.

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at a show!

The Blue Ocean Music Hall Team

This email was sent by info@blueoceanhall.com.

Blue Ocean Music Hall | 4 Ocean Front North | Salisbury | MA | 01952

RundgrenRadio announces one more show and Todd's next appearance on RR

Todd to be on RR on 3/30 and booked a gig with him in Lincolnshire IL on 4/16 @ chubby bear north

JOIN THE FACEDBOOK PAGE
http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=103413179691239&ref=nf

new date announced for tr's johnson tour

Kansas City on 4/17/2010
ooops my bad. the show is at Beaumont Club

RundgrenRadio Monday show with David Levine "Grokgazer" co creator

RundgrenRadio.com airs tonight as we continue our "Monday's in March" series!

Special guest David Levine -- co-inventor with Todd Rundgren of the Grokgazer and other wild programs/software!

Show starts at 8:30pmET --- we'd love to have some tech geeks call in so help us out if you're one of them :-)!