Gig 021 Todd Rundgren’s Utopia




Todd Rundgren’s Utopia
25 January 1977
Oxford Polytechnic


I didn’t know too much about Todd Rundgren but a number of my friends were dead keen to see this gig. One of us had bought Ra, the most recent album by Utopia, and we sat around in bedrooms trying to get to grips with it. Hmmmm. ‘Ra, holy synthesiser’ went the opening song. Around this time I’m increasingly convinced that punk is the thing, and Todd isn’t making it easy to dispel prejudices about the old farts of prog. Mind you I wasn’t that impressed with the Sex Pistols debut single Anarchy in the UK: it sounded a bit like a comedy record, nowhere near as good as The Damned’s New Rose. Conventionally stodgy multi-tracked rock guitars, sluggish rhythm, too long. Only the vocal set it apart, and that reminded me of the sort of pantomime cockney which (real cockney) Steve Marriott had done much more convincingly 10 years earlier. Captain Sensible described Anarchy as ‘Bad Company fronted by Old Man Steptoe’, and I can’t improve on that. It gets frequent airplay today; I wouldn’t mind if I never heard it again. On the other hand I’d heard Buzzcocks on John Peel and that was the absolute business, short, sharp and immediate while sounding like nothing I’d ever heard. The comparatively traditional Ramones were a big favourite, and extracts from the album by Television sounded at once familiar and like nothing on earth.


Writing this it occurs to me that Reading Festival aside this was the first gig I’d seen by an American group. Todd’s bouncy exuberance was quite different to any of the other acts I’d seen up to this point, probably phony but engaging nonetheless and very different to the taciturn surliness of most Brit acts. Thing is, in 1977 I didn’t really want bouncy exuberance. (Tbh I’m not sure I do now.) Utopia showcased all of Ra, a ‘concept album’, something to do with pyramids and a battle of the elements as represented by the four instruments. The group were dressed as Egyptian pharaohs – cultural appropriation wasn’t a big concern in those days, nor was looking daft. Musically it was superficially challenging, and no doubt difficult to play, but really quite conventional, nothing to frighten the parents – Todd’s melodic sensibility hadn’t completely abandoned him. The conclusion of the album is a song called Singring and the Glass Guitar, performance of which involved Todd shattering a guitar-shaped piece of ice.


So not really my thing but it was a professionally executed show and went down a storm with an enthusiastic audience. We hung around outside the stage door, and when Todd eventually appeared a friend’s starstruck younger brother blustered ‘You’re God, Todd!’. ‘Don’t be silly’, replied Todd in a kind, good-natured way.

Comments

  1. UnknownMarch 31, 2021 at 4:25 AM

    Factually brilliant apart from one minor untruth, I said 'ere Todd you're God.' Not Ben. Todd
    laughed and made his way to the tour bus.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ian NixonApril 6, 2021 at 6:32 AM

      Fair play, I remembered it as Ben, sorry Ben. This blog isn’t really about accuracy, to amend would be to betray my dodgy memory.

      Delete

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