Initiation (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Initiation
Type = Album
Artist = Todd Rundgren


Released = June 14, 1975
Recorded =
Genre = Pop rock
Progressive rock
Rock
Length = 67:34
Label = Bearsville, Rhino
Producer = Todd Rundgren
Reviews =
* allmusic Rating|2|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ywaxqj6boj6a link]
*"Rolling Stone" (Not rated) [http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/_/id/172573/toddrundgren?pageid=rs.ArtistDiscography&pageregion=triple1 link]
Last album = "Todd"
(1974)
This album = "Initiation"
(1975)
Next album = "Faithful"
(1976)

"Initiation" is the sixth album by Todd Rundgren, released in the summer of 1975. With this album, Rundgren fully embraced the synth prog sound he began exploring more in depth with Utopia. Like the album before, "Todd", Rundgren seemed more interested in experimenting with the capabilities of the synthesizer than in crafting pop songs; this time, it would become the narrative behind the record.

Album opener "Real Man" and the modulated a capella "Born to Synthesize" have Rundgren acknowledging that he should face himself and follow his dreams of experimenting more with music than creating conventional pop records. "The Death of Rock and Roll", ironically the hardest rocking song on the record, takes a stab at the critics that rejected his previous attempts on "A Wizard, a True Star" and "Todd". At the same time, Rundgren was also experimenting with Eastern religious concepts, exploring these themes on "Eastern Intrigue", as well as forming the basis of the album closer "A Treatise on Cosmic Fire". The closing tracks of the first side, the "disco-prog" title track and the doo wop-inspired "Fair Warning", cryptically state that Rundgren is ready to push forward and that it is up to the listener to follow along or tune out.

The second side contains the side-long, multipart "A Treatise on Cosmic Fire," which is a springboard for synth experimentation. This ambitious piece, named after a book of the same name by Alice A. Bailey, is credited as a solo effort with Rundgren playing all instruments, unlike the first side which also credits other musicians. On vinyl and in the iTunes Store, "A Treatise on Cosmic Fire" was indexed into four tracks, each consisting of one of the four movements of the piece (with "Outro - Prana" appended to the fourth track); track times for the individual movements are given below. Both the CD and vinyl erroneously list the song as being 36 minutes exactly.

The album is one of the longest single LPs of all time, totaling almost 68 minutes of playing time. Due to the length of "A Treatise on Cosmic Fire", the master tape was sped up to fit the entire song onto one side of the vinyl; the original length was 36:44. Fact|date=March 2008 It was noted on the album's original inner sleeve that the sound needed to be condensed in order to fit the songs on the album and as a result, it could easily be damaged if played with a worn needle and the sound quality might be low. It was recommended that a person record the album to tape to improve the sound. The CD version avoids this issue.

Track listing

All songs by Todd Rundgren.

ide one

#"Real Man" – 4:27
#"Born to Synthesize" – 3:41
#"The Death of Rock and Roll" – 3:48
#"Eastern Intrigue" – 5:05
#"Initiation" – 7:03
#"Fair Warning" – 8:08

ide two

#"A Treatise on Cosmic Fire" – 35:22
#* "Intro - Prana" – 4:21
#* "II. The Fire of Mind - Or Solar Fire" – 3:50
#* "III. The Fire of Spirit - Or Electric Fire" – 7:33
#* "I. The Internal Fire - Or Fire by Friction" – 19:38
#*# "Mûlâdhâra: The Dance of Kundalini"
#*# "Svâdhishthâna: Bam, Bham, Mam, Yam, Ram, Lam, Thank You, Mahm"
#*# "Manipûra: Seat of Fire"
#*# "Anâhata: The Halls of Air"
#*# "Vishudda: Sounds Beyond Ears"
#*# "Ajnâ: Sights Beyond Eyes"
#*# "Brahmarandhra: Nirvana Shakri"
#* "Outro - Prana"

Charts

Album - Billboard

Singles - Billboard