Todd Rundgren's Utopia (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Todd Rundgren's Utopia
Type = Album
Artist = Utopia


Released = September 1974
Recorded =
Genre = Pop rock
Progressive rock
Art rock
Length = 59:17
Label = Bearsville, Warner Bros. Records
Producer = Todd Rundgren
Reviews =
* Allmusic Rating|2|5 [http://wc07.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3xfrxqu5ld0e link]
*"Rolling Stone" (Not rated) [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/toddrundgren/albums/album/122583/review/5940981/todd_rundgrens_utopia link]
Last album =

This album = "Todd Rundgren's Utopia"
(1974)
Next album = "Another Live"
(1975)

"Todd Rundgren's Utopia" is the debut album by the band Utopia. Rundgren (who was primarily a pop musician at the time) was noticing the success of artists like Genesis, Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer, and decided to take advantage of the current progressive rock trend. Putting together top musicians, including three keyboardists, the album covers almost all aspects of progressive rock including funk, jazz, classical and even avant garde music.

Critical reaction was mixed with some critics labeling the album as pretentious fluff but did sell relatively well. Today the album is considered by many progressive rock fans as a classic.

Like a few of Rundgren's solo albums, "Utopia" pushed the limits as to how much music a vinyl could hold. At nearly an hour, the sound needed to be compressed in order to fit it onto vinyl, rendering it of a poorer quality than usual. The CD version avoids this issue.

Track list

ide one

#"Utopia Theme" - 14:31
#"Freak Parade" - 10:14
#"Freedom Fighters" - 4:04

ide two

#"The Ikon" - 30:26

Personnel

* Todd Rundgren: Guitar
* Moogy Klingman: Keyboards
* Ralph Schuckett: Keyboards
* M. Frog Labat: Synthesizers
* John Siegler: Bass and Cello
* Kevin Ellman: Percussion