Todd Rundgrens Utopia - The Seven Rays

[mdnathan]

M. Frog was long gone at the time of this recording. Promise :-)

[aliensporebomb]

Ah I wish they'd given some close ups to the keyboard lineup. Is it Moogy / M. Frog / Schuckett or is it Moogy / Powell / Schuckett?

[CaptainSiberia]

This song will never sound right to me without those synth riffs.

[crieff1sand2s]

brilliant, i can't seem 2 get this song out of my head, which is no bad thing!!!

[hypnosis121]

PAH! Take away Todd's talent, charisma, genius, and what have you got....erm... Me! (Sob)... Lol

[gudatine]

TODD! DA MAN!! NOBODY DOES IT BETTER!!!!!!♥

[brianrough]

There's always great music, and theres always bad music. But over time the bad music fades away and replaced by new bad music while the good music stays and the great music shines. This music has generations of shine ahead beacuse this is great music.

[suzieqzombie2]

Todd is God

[axxeminister]

Well, drunkinsgsheep, now is the time to support your local musician! Seems that we are revolting from the norm, and many indie bands are starting to surface. this is why I, a drummer of over 30 years experience is thinking about coming back out again! go see a band that plays originals, ,go see a band that is REAL! No autotuner, no gimmicks. Just real!.

[ideaph]

There was plenty of great rock in the eighties, just as there is now. Once again you're not awake enough...

[sportsmediaamerica]

cool vid... really seems played live...and Todd was still close to being a baby...

[MrAub8]

People didn't "GET" that concert with Todd and the recorder. I saw it in Tuscaloosa and it was great. what they didn't get was that Todd had played all the instruments himself...everything, a friggin' one man band sorta. Todd has always been a little bit ahead..

[jazzynet1]

I saw Todd Rundgren in like I think 1973 in Cleveland. We were so fortunate to be carrying a bunch of Alcapolco Gold and the security guards let us in for a few joints to see the show. I will always remember that he was alone with just a tape deck. That was it! he sang the entire show. Boy was it great.

Todd was heavy into Video Toasters and Amiga computers as well.

Man were those the daze.

[eclecticNhectic]

So psyched to be going to the highline tomorrow for the second night of this reunion! (sure wish I didn't have to work at 7AM in Schd'y Monday AM though!

[wolfgirlie52]

yeah, I was & so grateful to have found Todd, in the late 60's, my devotion has continued....thru the test of time!!!!

[GordonEveryday]

gettting my tickos!!!!!!!! wooooo!!!!

[4evertodd]

Tickets for Jan. 30 on sale now. I'll be there as a long time Todd fan!!!!

[spergs]

This version of the band is really cool. The jamming they could do was awesome.

Don't get me wrong I like Utopia as a 4 piece also but they couldn't stretch the musical boundaries like these guys. Kevin Ellman's drumming is powerful and precise which was perfect for what they were doing. Would love to see these guys reunite if just for one or two shows.

[kcconcertvideo]

@spergs If you move quickly, they are getting together for a reunion in NYC at the Highline Ballroom on January 29th and 30th. The first show has already sold out, and the second is not yet on sale. But it is Todd, Moogy Klingman, Kevin Ellman, John Sigler and Ralph Shuckett. It is part a reunion of this version of Utopia (minus M. Frog, but his contribution was never exactly clear) and partly a celebration of Moogy's musical life.

[MERCURHILLMANIAC]

@kcconcertvideo DAMN!! Im always late...

[newsy8]

Absolutely mindblowing,mesmerizing,totall­y sexy,GENIUS! !!!

{{TODD}}

[spanishlake]

Great song. But did anyone else notice that at 5:05, he repeats the lyrics "seven indigo the artist seeking beauty" twice? And then the band wants to do it again, but Todd forces them into the transition? Being the perfectionist that he is, I'll bet Todd had them work on this until the wee hours the next day!

[briankingmuse]

@spanishlake I noticed it and Todd just keeps playing his part like normal until the rest decide to catch up!

[adamd777]

I always loved this one sing and this is the best version

[grabngonuts]

more volume please

[MERCURHILLMANIAC]

SHINE ON ME SOME RAYS RUNDGREN!!!

[bungalowmo]

Saw the first gen UTOPIA band Oct. 30, 1974. I was already hooked, but this show was more than I'd ever have expected or imagined. The ultimate professional. Since then I've seen him about 90 - 100 times. Seriously.

[grabngonuts]

This si my favorite Utopia...the big band

[TheArbiter74]

I saw Todd Rundgren & Utopia at the Poplar Creek Music Ampitheatre in Hoffman Estates, IL. in 1985 or 86, as a 5th or 6th grader, incapable of fully appreciating the musical complexity and finesse of such a gifted artist and his band. At the time, Kiss, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, & Van Halen were about all I could really digest at that stage in my life.

[kittieishere]

So Very Awesome. . . . Todd is such a Perfect Musician! Amazing!

[MrSKINFLICK]

Genius in EVERY WAY, even among THE SEVEN RAYS ! Todd, I love You !

[jazzynet1]

my sister bought me for xmas a wizard a true star and man it was like the biggest gift i ever received even to this day. at that time it was like the ultimate gift to go with your first stereo!

[jazzynet1]

this is one of the best song ever done anyone. todds lyrics were always so beautiful and made you think about the good things.

[cunobelinusX31]

A wizard, a true star!

[sean3415]

God how I loved V 1.0 of Utopia! three keyboards, no waiting.

[jjganged]

What's better than that.? Thank God for Rock and Roll. Oh, by the way, Who is this Todd Grundgeren dude...This stuff is the shiznit. Deface The Music. Long live the little Red Lights in my rear view mirror, 'cause I went to the Mirror this morning

[sean3415]

God, how I loved this band! They were so much more than just a prog rock band, they had their own very distinct vibe. Kevin Ellman and John Siegler were an awesome rhythm section!

[Toddobvious]

This is almost like a holy relic, this performance. Who of their right mind would attempt this now? And look at how easily Todd carries it... as if it were no burden at all...

[guinadese]

yeah badmuddy, that would be right, Todd ... bandwagon jumper. I think not!!! Awesome rundgrenfan thanks for posting, keep 'em coming.

[badmuddy]

you know, this is the original & short-lived utopia band, not the one that did his & their lps for the following 8-10 yrs. imo, his solo material pre (& post-4 piece utopia) was where he did all his most original & groundbreaking work. to me, utopia was his way of jumping on the prog-rock/fusion wagon that started with mahavishnu, which had already been done much better. outside of faithful, i can't listen to his utopia period; it's boring (for me), i LOVED utopia/v1.0, who did initiation, btw.

[CSXer]

A wizard...A true star....

[jjganged]

@CSXer You are so right. The Best Ever AWATS...International Feel back at you

[dapillath]

Omg naked Todd chest. Too bad he didn't actually father Liv Tyler

[RazzBedson]

Todd had a really cool alternative philosophy going on back then!

[666eggsiseggs]

So beautiful, yet another inspired work, Todd probably my personal fave musician for 30 years now, coming to London in Feb, FAR OUTTT!

[Metaphisically]

golden times...!!

[neorunt]

Meta, google The Seven Rays.

It's a whole philosophy!

Todd's mind and interests are vast.

Beyond that his talents are so varied that it's hard to believe.

Is there an instrument he can't play?

[chunter5100]

@neorunt I don't think Todd can play Bagpipes...unless he's decided to pick them up recently...really don't know...lol

[neorunt]

chunter5100, Todd can play horns, betcha it wouldn't take him long to master Bagpipes!

Ever the poet seeking harmony.

[chunter5100]

Todd has been a force in my life since I was a teenager...

And his work with Utopia the most influential on me..

I loved 'The Hermit of Mink Hollow", and Runt and all his other earlier work, but this band just kicked major butt....

[JonP1961]

I was young teen when came out. Had a profound effect on me as far as music goes.

What an incredible composer, arranger, artist, guitarist, musician, lyricist, poet, singer, even a computer geek ;), this man was and continues to be... the complete package!

[badmuddy]

this version of utopia had the frog man!

[picchaz]

To me the first 2 Utopia Albums were just as cool as What John McLaughlin was doing in the 70's ... very cool stuff Todd.

[imamyt1]

All Hail The Toddster!!!!!!

Prog rock is the best!!!! Check out Rat Race Choir people,they did a cover of this too! I shook hands with Todd at a CPI show,I will never forget.7Rays will appear!!!

[TheChoofy1]

This is great! The extended Utopia band was short-lived, I saw the show at DAR Constitution hall. I thought Kevin Ellman was a GREAT drummer, and Moogy was a great compliment to the unit. Where did this come from?

[bikefixer]

Didn't realized TR flubbed the line "Indigo - the others seeking beauty"). He says that  line twice.

[motorpsych0]

Very "PROG", which I dig!

BTW, neorunt sent me...

[neorunt]

SpaceTodd

Fly!!!

[meesalikeu]

wow. a hard, cool studio-leaning live version.

however, i prefer the warm & much more fun agora version.

apples & oranges tho.

thx for both!

[JasonJarvis88]

This is fucking awesome,thank you for posting this

[MERCURHILLMANIAC]

@JasonJarvis88 THATS WHAT IM TALKIN ABOUT!

[johndevitt]

Brilliant!! Thanks for posting this.

john

[akoyputi]

I got really into Todd and other progressive rock bands when I was in high school back in the 70's. I saw Utopia in concert for the Ra album and the stage performance was awesome...they had the giant pyramid with Todd perched up at the top and a "glass guitar" Todd smashed. I love "thinking man's rock". If you like Todd you need to check out Yes, Kansas, Emerson Lake & Palmer, King Crimson...

[drunksingsheep]

I wish I'd had been old enough, and awake enough to really appreciate when Rock Music was actually kick-ass good! But I guess no one anticipated it's demise starting in the early 80's. Todd recorded "The Death of Rock n' Roll" in 1975 (Initiation). Todd tried to warn us! Now we're stuck with the generic bullshit we hear on the radio today, and classic rock stations. Not to mention the death of coliseum sized atomic performances. I wish I'd been born in about 1950.

[legallucy]

yeah for sure. i mean, there is great indie music out there today, but if i turn on the radio/tv/friends i want to die.

i wish i had seen everything when it was new and exciting. now everyting is recycled and vapid.

[Phren]

@drunksingsheep Yea '56 here.... Saw Utopia in Toronto in '73. Awesome show - Rory Gallagher opened for them. :-)

This was an awesome band live. I was 16 at the time, and lived in upstate NY, We stayed in a youth hostel in downtown Toronto. It was a fantastic experience. Sad that pop music has gone the direction it has.

[OdinoMarco]

@drunksingsheep

you got reason, i was there

your advantage? you are younger!

[Ssluv]

@drunksingsheep Agreed

[charlesremschel7]

@drunksingsheep no 1950 you would of been soon in the Korean war --wonder if sheep sing drunk

[williambasel]

wow, the todd versus zappa analyses was over the top, but fun to read

this song brings me back to college daze...i remember putting my speakers out the windows and blasting this song

[superbeatle]

Was there ever a studio version of this?

[Teri702]

Gee, its a sorry thing that there are no comments from three weeks ago! Still love this performance and Todd, play this again live.......

[Teri702]

Still Stellar!!!! Hope to see this again live before I leave this planet!

[1onebastard]

OUT-F**k*n"-STANDING!!!!!

rundgrenfan, you RULE!

THX!;)

[Teri702]

This is still, stellar!!!

[andyinwales]

TR, Roger Powell (synth), Moogy Klingman (kbd), John Siegler (bass), Ralph Schuckett(kbd), and the awesome Kevin Ellman on drums, this is Utopia mk 2 (if you count the earlier Sales Brothers as Mk1)must be one of the earliest versions, pre Willie Wilcox.BTW on tour they used no less than Luther Vandross as backing vocalist!

[FlashFace]

I'm sorry, is this Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson or Todd Rundgren and Mark Siegler? All you need is the Seven Rays.

[wygakyl]

I love this version, with the 3 keyboard players..my first few shows were like that.

[kahaki]

long live Todd, a brilliant talented man.

[cantsingbutgotsoul]

Nice!!!!

[swimoften]

I really like this one a lot.

[BordersOfInsanity]

gdgfcghgjgtft

[therealdonm]

Next month, on June 18th, Todd will be sixty. He so helped me survive the seventies and every decade since. My absolute favorite video ever posted on Youtube !

[steviethek]

Was this from their Midnight Special appearance? I think it was March '75? It was the first time I heard or saw this song, and it didn't show up again until the "Another Live" album the next year. I always felt this was the best arrangement of the song of the many I've heard him/them play.

[Teri702]

Shame on you! Rundgren's music has always been for people who relate. Who cares about his clothes....

[db0956]

You are right. Most people have forgotten that when this video was made, the clothes were considered very cool. Personally, I don't care about appearance when someone can perform such a stunning as this.

[Teri702]

Totally correct....

[tbzeee]

see, i was employing this little device called humor, you should try it sometime(and you should see what i wore in the 70s, yeesh). "shame on you" what are you, my mom? todd is godd!

[tbzeee]

wow! little did i know when i woke up today that there would be 2 completely different clips of the seven rays on youtube...life sure is good. are they wearing matching outfits?

[damiandal]

yep, it was the clothes. Todd is a musical wizard but his dress sence left and still leaves a lot to be desired. Sorry Todd, I love you very much man but jeez.. 2 I went to the mirror this morning...what did i see? "

[iralarry]

I will never be able to put my finger on it as to why Todd and Utopia never achieved the "Popular acclaim" that others did in the 70's. They were innovative, unique, tight-like Zappa-original in every sense. I think it was the clothes. Really, it was the clothes. I'm serious!

[wygakyl]

It was that you had to get (somewhat) serious to get behind a "Seven Rays", a metaphysical message that wasn't as comedic as Zappa's who could border on the profane. Zappa's talents were more outward, media driven at times, when Todd's song/messages were more inward,philosophical ideas, at least on the records. When you saw him live, he could be very funny, but in a less sophmoric presentation than Zappa's. Smart/funny was more popular than smart/heart on your sleeve.I bought all of his records.

[iralarry]

Thank you. You have hit on something though I am not sure if Zappa was truly media driven rather than, being as profane as you state, drove the media wild. He was of course more controversial than Rundgren but as far as innovative and progressive, there is some comparison but you are on message about the depth of their creativity philosophically there are differences. Besides Zappa's intent was to be musically perfect; Rundgren was more perfectionist in song writing, heartfelt expressionism.

[Twirlyhead]

One of my favourite Utopia tracks - great stuff - thanks for posting.

PS. What muppets have been giving this less than 5 stars - I despair.

[randeb5567]

This mid-70's line-up is the best of the two incarnations of Utopia!!

[CHARLESCBJR]

Wow! This was a great composition. This needs to be heard by more people, more often.

[Teri702]

Thank you! God has spoken....

[georgewiles]

I've loved this song since I heard it on Another Live. Finally looked up the lyrics on the internet. Is there a studio version of this song? What album?

[7777777mike]

Wow, this is an absolute masterpiece. Btw, this must have been the only rockband with three keyboard players / synthesists ever... A huge pile of gear! I wonder if they ever got "experimental" with the modular system etc. in the live shows coz all I hear in the vids on youtube is regular synth stuff that could easily be played by one keyboarder even back then...

[rarebirdproductions]

Well, the German band Zara-Thustra had 3 keyboard-players and 2 drummers.

The Austrian band Eela Craig had 3 or 4 guys playing keyboards, partly doubling on other instruments.

[7777777mike]

ah OK, thanks for the information, have to check out those guys immediately...

[7777777mike]

thanks rarebirdprod.

[7rays]

this is without a doubt my favorite video on youtube. period. thanks for the brilliant post!

[neorunt]

Watch very closely at 0:53. Look at Todd's eyes. He made my life worth living.

[shasba]

I saw them play at the Santa Monica Civic in 1974. Close to 3 hours , no opening band, Tod on piano for 30 minutes and the band for the rest of the time. They killed! It will forever be etched in my mind as one of the best concerts I ever attended!

[PAULLONDEN]

--þ dTb d-_-b

[Skunksfan]

This is excellent!, This song sounds as good today than it did in 1975, Bought back many fantastic memories, Thanks a million! Been a fan of Todd since 1976, I would give a million to have watch this version of Utopia play, I guess this is as good as it is going to get for me.

[cheerbear237]

I just love that chord progression from 00:09 to 00:20. I especially love that chord at 00:11. What chord is that?

[db0956]

C maj. with a D note on the 5th string-3rd fret, standard tuning. It is also played again just a few seconds later.

[db0956]

C maj. w/ a D note on the 5th string.

[db0956]

my reply to cheerbear237 went to the top of the list. Oops.

[cheerbear237]

Thanks so much! I can't wait to learn this song!

[cheerbear237]

Ok, I have just been officially visually and sonically seduced by Todd Rundgren!

[wygakyl]

Something happened to me after I was turned on to Todd/Utopia in 1974, when I was 17. Like someone else commented, it opened up a part of me that my alcoholic Dad had tried to wipe out of me. I turned on to the positive side, and learned alot about how to get back to the fact that there was hope after all. Seeing Todd on 12/15/75 at the Beacon in NYC, with this same band in its last years may have been the most influential concert I'd ever been to at that point.

[blovelady]

I saw Utopia play this live back in the 70's, loved it then, love it now. I can remember all these rays of colored lights just flashing. One of my Utopia favorites!

[siskokidd]

Man oh man can them boys play! Tight. One of my Utopia favs. And on drums the original Utopia drummer Kevin Ellman. Cool.

[Runt2]

BK before Kasim, I never knew that time in Utopia existed! Yeah great show!

[db0956]

I still just love this performance!

[DavidCKendall]

This is the first Todd that opened up my heart Chakra.

Up till then, I had only known of Chakra Khan. This is a "dance around the house" song.

[alandhopewell]

Great video, but you STILL can't tell what the colors signify.

[geraldcieslak]

Todd Rundgren's Utopia blended rock with synthesizers and made it cool. This song is only on the Another Live-1990 and the best of Todd Rundgren vs. Utopia-2000. Listening to this song makes you reach a higher plateau with your soul and mind. Thanks!

[neorunt]

Yeah rundgrenfan. Came thru again. One of my all time faves, the out of synch was a drag.

Drivin around in my first beater with this on 8 track. Life was magical,Todd's music totally expanded my thoughts.

Keep em coming, the memories are getting stronger. Hurts a bit.

[db0956]

I'm glad the audio and video are synched this time!

[raveneros]

They just don't make em like this anymore....*sighs at his generations lack of talent and originality* At least

I have a few windows to this lovely music...

[jrclaiborn]

I dig this one a bunch RF. It is like the one on the bootleg I bought in 75 of a live from London concert on 12" I'm gonna put it up on my podcast page.

jr

jrclaiborn(dot)podomatic(dot)c­om

[glysistrata]

hey, there's my guit, no pick guard....strange.??

[ZDarkZStarZOneZ]

How did you make it 'in sync'?

[Plato193]

What a blast from the past... The only time I ever got to see Tood in person was this version of Utopia, same costumes and all. The EQ is seriously out of balance on this cut, but the magic is still there. I like the live version recently posted much better.