Todd Rundgren On WTF
He calls Andy Partridge a prick.
You must listen to this podcast, you will find out more about record production than any seminar will teach you. Rundgren is surprisingly erudite and articulate and unlike everybody else in this insider business, especially those in the studio, he’s willing to tell the truth.
About Garth Hudson being a narcoleptic, about Richard Manuel’s misadventures, about helping to write the lyrics for the Tubes’ “Remote Control.” It almost makes you want to run out and hire him, if today’s music weren’t so vapidly constructed of hooks via beats with lyrics so banal no one can be offended.
He came from Upper Darby, PA. His writing changed after meeting with Laura Nyro, he wanted to speak from his soul, as opposed to writing teen jingles on the guitar, he sat behind the piano and the rest of Nazz were unhappy.
He underwrote “Bat Out Of Hell,” and when it was finally sold to Steve Popovich’s Cleveland International, he ended up with a greater royalty than that of Jim Steinman and Meatloaf combined. Credit a savvy manager, Albert Grossman. The best know how to extract their pound of flesh.
And it was Poppy who made the album successful. Releasing single after single until one hit. You’ve got to have someone who believes, that’s better than employing a name.
And after receiving a $700,000 check for BOOH, Rundgren felt liberated, that he could do whatever he wanted, and he did. He knew how to write pop songs, it was a formula he chose not to repeat, he blew a ton of dough on a video studio and went in search of the cutting edge, following his muse all the way.
Which works best with no interruption, “Bang The Drum All Day” came to him in his sleep, as did “Lost Horizon” and other numbers.
As for that cowbell on “We’re An American Band”…yes, it was probably his idea.
But back to XTC… It was Andy Partridge’s band, and Andy ended up putting too much on the records, no one could say no to him. Psychoacoustically, the records were tough on the listener, they didn’t breathe. So Todd cut an album that captured the essence, around a theme, and Partridge didn’t like it and insisted that “Dear God” be removed. It was, but being a throwaway track it was used as a b-side on the first single, which radio then flipped, and it became a hit, and it had to be put back into the album.
And we’re not arguing money here, there are few “Skylarking” royalties coming in. But Todd did a solid for the band, resuscitated their career, and all he got from Andy Partridge was tsuris. So, he’s setting the record straight.
Like on sales via service.
How can a guy this aged, this experienced, this inured to the old system, know more about the new than those wet behind the ears? He says sales are dead. He makes fun of the vinyl fanatics, relishing their objects, saying it was always about the music, the rest was penumbra, and with streaming the essence flies. And sure, he wants streaming royalties worked out, but mostly on the label end, the acts are being paid bupkes under an old construct, one wherein the label takes the lion’s share of the money, almost all the money. Furthermore, Rundgren believes live music is the biggest part of the value chain.
Todd is God. That’s what his fans believe. And he’s had so many images, so many voices, that even believers have lost track.
You think he’s lost the plot and then he drops all this wisdom and you’re stunned. Despite being over an hour, this podcast is too short.
But even if you hate him or have no idea who he is, you should check this out. This is a snapshot from the trenches, from someone who was there and is pulling no punches. It’s both informative and entertaining.
A+
P.S. Marc Maron is absolutely terrible. He’s so uninformed on Todd and his career that he needs to be corrected on a regular basis, you’re stunned Todd doesn’t lose his temper. I thought the internet was supposed to allow those with expertise to delve into that which they know about. But Maron’s too busy rushing for fame…it’s about the show, not the interviewee, about building Maron’s brand as opposed to being informative. Rundgren is so sharp he needs little leading, he can tell his own story, but it’s an insult to have someone so great interviewed by someone so clueless.
P.P.S. Maron asked me to be on his podcast, but once I wrote that he blows interviews with musicians, because he knows so little and wasn’t there, he got angry. I can understand that, no one likes to be called out. But I ain’t gonna kiss butt and play nice just so I can have a publicity opportunity. That’s what’s so revelatory about Todd here, that he pulls no punches, unlike the wimps in the industry today.
