Something/Anything?

Trying to write a review for this album has given me a headache. The album started well, opening with “I Saw the Light”, which is a Rundgren song I have always loved. When I also enjoyed “It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference”, I did wonder whether I might be onto a winner. Almost as soon as I had that thought, two things happened: I realised this was a double album, and I know enough about Todd Rundgren to know the wheels would come off at some point if you give him long enough, and “Wolfman Jack” started. From there on in, it was a steady descent into madness, culminating with the last few tracks. I’ve never heard a blues track about a teenager who pisses wherever he feels like it, and nor do I wish to again, and the less said about the closing track the better.

This was looooooooooong. I ironed all my kid's school uniform, then prepped a Sunday dinner and made a chocolate pear pudding, and it was still going. I knew I Saw The Light from somewhere but otherwise was going into this blind. It was surprisingly varied, so there was bound to be at least one good track for most people. In my case I really liked Wolfman Jack, The Night The Carousel Burned Down (which felt a bit Harry Nilsson to me) and Little Red Lights. I Went To The Mirror was interesting, though I'm not sure I could entirely say I enjoyed it. Surprisingly I did enjoy Todd explaining studio screw ups during Intro (the last time I got a lesson on a 1001 Album, it was Ravi Shankar trying to educate me about Sitars and I did not appreciate that one little bit). The hit rate was pretty low for me, and the ridiculous length means it gets marked down. Would have been a 2.5 with half marks, but I'm rounding down. 2/5

I listened to this yesterday but literally don’t even remember anything about it while writing the review now. Was definitely greatly overshadowed by my discovery of the new Cure album yesterday.

Fricken long pretty cool story behind album

I have heard some Rundgren before, but I thought he was more on the blues rock side than the soft rock found in most of this album. I am impressed but a lot of it, but I can't say I really think it needs to be a double-disc or holds up the entire time. That being said, it is a pretty grand experiment, and I think it deserves a 3.5 to 4 stars. There are some really great songs, and the vision is an original one across the four sides.

Glad I persevered

Super weird, super varied. Love it, but I’m not certain how much play this would get beyond this one time.

Nobody needs this much Todd rundgren.

Something/Anything? must've been his criteria for inclusion on the album. Occasional gems that are not the hits can be found, but it's nearly 90 minutes of Todd Rundgren when a brief 30-minute EP would've been my preference — at least it was an easy listen?

Todd Rundgren did not need multiple albums on this list. But, this is the one that should have been selected. Cracker jack '70's soft rock is not good, but this is a great example of it. I'll listen to it, and then it's back to the dusty vaults of history.

Some really good songs, a lot of average, way too many songs overall.

This kicks off with some epic dad yacht rock, and I'm here for it! The ballads on the first side are decent too. Things take a bit of a weird turn on the "cerebral" side and then gets a little more rockin' towards the end, but not necessarily for the better. Then we close out with a rock opera! Nice production and lots of various well-done styles but goes on for too long.

I'd always heard about this album but have never listened to it, so this was interesting. Some cool tunes, and I liked the "sounds of the studio" stuff on Intro.

This album is a ride, some parts hit just right, others not as much. It starts off as smooth, easy-listening ’70s pop-rock before wandering into a mix of styles that feel both experimental and indulgent. Overall, it’s an enjoyable listen.

A bit too long

Todd Rundgren is a competent musician.

Good early Todd. Two big hits (you will know) the rest of the album is creative and melodic, but songs you may never heard, or will notl again. Still, a Strong 3.

Great 1972 vibe

Upper Darby!

I Saw the Light...the big hit off a double album. I wonder what makes bands think double albums are a good idea. I Saw the Light is the big hit and it's the first song...this is going to be a long listen. This is vastly superior to the other album he had on the list though. I might actually like Todd Rundgren? Nevermind, Todd Rundgren sucks. And his stupid Intro seven tracks in is really dumb. Wow, this just keeps getting worse. Little Red Lights is one of the least cool songs about a car ever and there is some serious competition for that dishonor. The little interlude of a studio session is better than most of the album. My god, it gets worse as it goes on. If this was two sides, it would be at least one side higher...the second two sides would still be one lower so maybe the system works? Piss Aaron makes me realize that this is like a combination of Chicago and Harry Nilsson, but it is definitely worse than the sum of its parts. Hello It's Me doesn't have that many listens on Spotify but it's definitely the song I'm most familiar with other than I Saw the Light.

Cheese overdose

Was considering giving this a 3 when the track "Breathless" came on and just tanked the entire fucking thing. And then I realized that it wasn't even halfway over. I'm sure these were new and exciting sounds when this album came out in 1972 but it just sounds old and dated. There's some really good guitar stuff on here like Black Maria but it's few and far between. Would have liked this a lot more if there were more songs like "Couldn't I Just Tell You"and "Little Red Lights" which absolutely slaps. Yeah, give me a whole album of Little Red Lights, Some Folks Is Even Whiter Than Me, Black Maria, Couldn't I Just Tell You and Rolling Stones inspired Slut (which seems at odds with the rest of the shit he's got on this album). Overall, too goddamn long, too all over the place and just a slog. This is an hour and a half I can't get back.

Excesivas canciones, muy buena producción. Podía ser un disco sencillo perfecto, pero es curioso el cambio de registro.

One of those albums that captures a time perfectly, and in this case also the zeitgeist of “the 60’s” becoming “the 70’s”.

9/10

He really covers a lot of territory here and manages to stay pretty mainstream with it all. There are ballads, yacht rock, classic rock, and others here. A future historian will be hard pressed to find the exact decade this comes from.

Occasionally ventures into territory that's a bit too easy listening for my taste, but when it's good it's a rocking fun time. Favorite track: Couldn't I Just Tell You

This is not Harry Nilsson's best record.

# Album Name: Something-Anything # Artist: Todd Rundgren # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Honestly, i was fleeting between a 1 or a 2 for this. Starts out with a banger then just goes on and on and on and fucking on. No one in there right mind should produce a double album unless you really are that good. We've seen it many times on this list. why do people think its a good idea? Couple of good songs but considering theres 25 tracks its like fuck me dead. Wayyyyyyy too long. # Top Tunes: i saw the light / black maria / wouldnt make any difference / hello its me / # Would I listen to it again? No

Помнится, я ходил под дождем в Порту, слушал этот альбом, и думал "ебать, это звучит как любимый альбом rym людей", как будто я никогда его не слышал. Но прикол конечно же в том, что я его слышал, и даже поставил 3.5. Очень овер зе плейс музыка, но с удовольствием. Если я не дам этому альбому хотя бы 4, я буду корить себя до конца дней. Лучшая песня - Black Maria.

With some editing this would be a 5 star. Incredibly high highs, but so overstuffed with other crap. I wish this was less indulgent, as it could be an all-timer.

Eh

I admit I expected an album full of extended guitar solos, so I was surprised when this album started out with a bunch of standard issue pop rock songs. The guitar solos showed up eventually, but overall I was surprised that the reality of a Todd Rundgren album didn’t match up at all to what his reputation was in my brain. All that to say I liked this more than I thought I would. However, I still didn’t love it. I’m trying to remind myself it’s from 1972, and that I might have liked it more then. Today it’s a 3.5. I need to decide which way the rounding is going to go. Just got to the last song which decided the rounding will go down. Also not helped by the insane conversation bits left on between the last few songs.

Sjældent har jeg set så stort et vibe shift mellem 2 albums der kom ud på 2 år. Opdagede Todd Rundgren LSD i starten af 1973? Meget mere imponerende end det Paul McCartney album, hvor man sagtens kunne høre, at det bare var ham i studiet. Jeg blev ved med at glemme det her. Sindssygt god producer

Kæmpe plade, men altså, den er jo liiidt for lang. Den anden Todd Rundgren var bedre, måske fordi den var kortere.

4 albums in 1 ? I liked the third one best.. It was more psychadelic - especially the ending.

On this double LP, three sides feature songs with Rundgren on every instrument - ambitious certainly, but ultimately yielding little more than a string of sub-Beatles pop rock tracks, with no real magic aside from "I Saw The Light". Side four sees him working with a rotating set of musicians and contains the excellent "Hello, It's Me", along with several *really* regrettable choices. When working with other bands (like XTC and The Tubes), Rundgren has shown himself to be an excellent producer, but perhaps having someone else in the producer's chair for this record might've made for a much tighter single LP.

This was a good album. It's full of that early 70s goodness I love so much. It runs on a little long for my liking as I feel much of the second half is unnecessary. "I Saw The Light", "It Takes Two To Tango", "Saving Grace", and "Hello, It's Me" were among my favorites. There were others but around the second disc the album starts to drag on a little before picking up again at the end.

Todd Rundgren’s "Something/Anything?", my second encounter with his solo work for the 1001 Albums list, is an ambitious, genre-hopping double LP. The original album was structured into four distinct sides: 1) - The initial side, "A Bouquet of Ear-catching Melodies," is a primarily R&B and Soul-inspired, a style I don't usually gravitate towards, though the infectious, Stax inspired stomp of "Wolfman Jack" is truly superb. 2 - "The Cerebral Side" trades R&B for a softer, quirkier rock sound, full of varied noises and a psychedelic undertone ("Song of the Viking"). The most compelling track here is the finale, "I Went to the Mirror," featuring some fantastic slide guitar. 3 - My anticipation was highest for "The Kid Gets Heavy." It delivers a heavier sound, stylistically nodding to Neil Young and Crazy Horse; the opening track, "Black Maria," is a powerful rocker. Despite the momentum-breaking "One More Day," it features the excellent pop/rock song "Couldn't I Just Tell You" with its great guitar work. 4- The final side, "Baby Needs a New Pair of Snakeskin Boots (A Pop Operetta)," shifts to live in the studio recordings with a full band, with the non-Rundgren composition "Dust in the Wind" serving as the standout. While I respect the technical genius behind this record; a virtuoso production, with Rundgren solo on the first three sides, that was lauded widely by critics of the time, the songs themselves, though well-executed and melodic, didn't personally resonate or leave a lasting impression. Rating: Three stars. Side one: A Bouquet of Ear-catching Melodies 1 "I Saw the Light" (3/5) 2 "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" (3/5) 3 "Wolfman Jack" (5/5) 4 "Cold Morning Light" (3/5) 5 "It Takes Two to Tango (This Is for the Girls)" (3/5) 6 "Sweeter Memories" (3/5) Side two: The Cerebral Side 1 "Intro" (3/5) 2 "Breathless" (3/5) 3 "The Night the Carousel Burned Down" (3/5) 4 "Saving Grace" (3/5) 5 "Marlene" (3/5) 6 "Song of the Viking" (3/5) 7 "I Went to the Mirror" (4/5) Side three: The Kid Gets Heavy 1 "Black Maria" (5/5) 2 "One More Day (No Word)" (3/5) 3 "Couldn't I Just Tell You" (4/5) 4 "Torch Song" (4/5) 5 "Little Red Lights" (4/5) Side four: Baby Needs a New Pair of Snakeskin Boots (A Pop Operetta) 1 "Overture–My Roots" (3/5) "Money (That's What I Want)" (Janie Bradford, Berry Gordy Jr.) "Messin' with the Kid" (Mel London)" 2 "Dust in the Wind" (Mark Klingman) (4/5) 3 "Piss Aaron" (4/5) 4 "Hello It's Me" (3/5) 5 "Some Folks Is Even Whiter Than Me" (3/5) 6 "You Left Me Sore" (3/5) 7 "Slut" (4/5) Total - 86 Average - 3.44 128/1001 68/128 albums reviewed were new to me.

Peak 70s vibes

Not only is this album exceptionally long, it's also impressively boring and unmemorable. What is it doing on here? 2/5

Not for me

начало очень добротное, и первые две части понятно почему разделены. но чем дальше чем мутнее становится, и не понятно нахуя все таки было делать двойной альбом....я вообще смутно к таким темам

loved this so much (intro is a great concept??!!!)

boring

Some of this is great but it really needed to be edited down to the best 10 or so songs.

Love it.

25 songs that all sound the exact same

I need a 3.5 stars for this one. I liked some of the rock songs and even the better known radio hits, but many of the songs were a miss for me.

An overly long mish-mash of largely mediocre tunes.

I found this really hard to rate?! Swings between a some interesting and varied sounds to boring 70s miscellany. A reasonably pleasant day but ultimately forgettable.

Something/Anything? was truly an experience, with each track being just as unique as the last. The instrumentation across all of the songs mixed in with the dialogue between the session band makes you feel like you're in the studio with them. Rundgren begins the album with undoubtedly his Magnus Opus: I Saw the Light. However, I saw the Light is not the only song that shines, there are gems all throughout the record. The only drawback for me is that I felt as though some songs pushed the envelope too far, and weren't pleasant to listen to

A sprawling pop masterpiece, this album is all over the map in the best sense, and the indulgences reflect a gifted pop songwriter operating at the top of his powers with high confidence and few record company shackles. Could this have been a more concise and focused single album? Maybe, but it wouldn’t have been anywhere near as fun.

Really good album. Going to give it 3 stars because it was a little too long. It’s right there between 3 and 4. Would give 3 and a half if it was an option.

Not bad, some interesting stuff on there. Too long though. 3.5

90 minute album which felt 300 minutes long. So boring.

La experiencia de escuchar este disco de corrido en spotify sin división de los distintos lados del disco fue penca. A pesar de eso, encontré que el primer lado era lindo, pero nada muy recordable, el segundo con su onda electrónica experimental me hizo sonreir, el tercero pasó de largo mientras preparaba galletas de avena, y el cuarto estaba piola hasta la última canción (slut) que fue un gran NOPE para mi. Es un 3/5 pero con una desviación estándar gigante.

It was... fine? But why was it so long😭the little sounds of the studio game thing was fun but gosh he has the creepiest voice

I liked the first 2-3 songs on this album and I actually snagged “You Left Me Sore.” “The Studio Game” was fun, Todd talking directly to the listeners. The way my brain works is that I fixate and obsess over patterns. I’m so quick to assume the worst. I fear because I don’t like this I can’t objectively listen to music and will never like something again. This is a soft 3. It’s better to listen to than many of my previous suggestions. It’s never outright bad, just a little blasé.

I love this. He's insane. I want to be friends with him. This sounds like something my friends and I would make up for fun in high school. I loved the interjections and the humor in it all. I loved all the different genres and styles. He can do anything! I'm a new fan.

Excellent snapshot of early 70s rock music in one album

It’s fine, it’s just SO LONG. I wouldn’t go through it again

Huge Todd Rundgren fan, given his talent both as an artist and as a record producer for other bands, it is stunning it has taken him this long to get into the HOF. Loved this album, and while I have heard individual cuts, I had never listened to this album in its' entirety. It was a pleasure.

This was a mixed bag. A couple of tracks were ok

It's just... regular 70's pop that turns into background noise. The album was a slog at almost an hour and a half. I definitely didn't need to hear this, but it wasn't bad

I understand that Todd Rundgren is well respected in the business as both a musician and producer, but by the end of the 90+ minute run time of this album, the answer to the title question could easily have been 'Something/Anything?/Nothing.'

Pretty inoffensive and not very memorable. I kind of forgot I was listening to it half-way through.

Mixed feelings with this. After two first songs I was going to give up. After about eight I still was really willing to give up on this. After that this over sized album stayed as background music and for some moments I realized that this sound almost nice.

Too long, kind of all over the place, but still managed to be a bit dull. Decently interesting production, nice instrumentation and super professional playing, but the actual music did not make an impact. Another name ticked off the list of "who to check out".

Pretty good! Some keepers. A little rocky horror picture show pop vibes too.

A hint of spiciness, a little hint of soy sauce, a little hint of a tomato - you know - a little hint of the spice. This album is all over the place. I don't know what preconceived notion I had of Todd Rundgren going into this, but it wasn't this. Actually - I do know - it was Bang the Drum All Day - and this was not that. From Yacht Rock to Elton John to Queen to possible video game soundtrack inspiration - I don't quite know where to put this in my head. It feels a bit 'Pinball Wizard' without the storyline. I could swear that the Mario 3 theme pops up on Breathless at about 1:32 into the track. And that same track kicks off with a play on the OG Rainbow Road theme...20 years before you find yourself falling off the edges. I think individual songs are in the 4 category for me - I Saw the Light, Wolfman Jack, Breathless, Couldn't I Just Tell You, and Slut, but there's a lot of stuff that's a little bit too middle of the road to give the entire double album that rating. So I settle with a 3 - knowing that this was a lot to take in, but also developing a whole new appreciation for the artist.

Oof this was not a great one. Went on for way too long and just the most bland dad/yacht-rock out there. Very little enticing me to come back to it at any point in the future. 3.75/10 (1.875/5)

I enjoyed this. I feel like the more I listen to him the more I like it.

torturous listening experience 4/10

This album is actually really good. It's not something impressive, some songs were not much of my like, but, as there is so much variety there, there are songs that are great. I would say that more than twenty songs should be justified but, to be honest, I don't even care with this album. It's almost an hour and a half and, still, it felt like less time. And that's not that easy with albums of that length. So, I liked it, of course!

typical 70s pop rock.... which means "shitty". That's what I mean when I say that. Shitty.

contents of this album: something great/anything could prove the majority of this site wrong. i know you, posers who see all pop rock as fake. but know who make pop rock too? the beatles. and you know who's more pretentious than you? the people there on rate your music. they are all pretentious as hell but they still award this a collective 3.78. And it’s really good. What are you thinking. 4/5

Quite a surprise. I really enjoyed the mix of mellow and upbeat. Great voice. A genuinely great find, though an hour and a half is a bit of a marathon.

Not particularly impressed. Apparently he's a big deal.

Meh

Mixed. It is too long for my liking. There is a lot in here I like. Problem is that you have a few songs that bluesy and very enjoyable, then a couple of not so good songs that are pop orientated. Just about a 3 star for me.

The first song seemed vaguely familiar, but otherwise completely unknown artist. I dig this

Fantastic. tapping my foot all along

I want to pretend to hate this and to be cool, but these are awesome pop songs.

I was first introduced to Todd Rundgren's music from Guns N Roses covering 'Dust In The Wind' during their Use Your Illusion Tour from the early 90s. This is a pretty sprawling double album, 28 songs is a lot of material. But it was super diverse and adventurous and a pretty enjoyable listen. And It was mostly Todd who did about 3/4ths of the album by himself and playing all the instruments, which is pretty damn cool. It happened to go perfectly with what I was doing when listening to it. There was a good amount of smooth, pretty songs on it, some decent rockers on it. some cool ballads lots to like.

A handful of enjoyable tracks but seemed few and far between with such a long runtime. Could have been a three if it was shorter.

gud stuff

This is joyous stuff. Hello its me and I saw the light are not just one of the best songs of the 70s they are amongst the best pop songs written. The rest rattle along and although never reach those heights are all individually fine. Rundgren is not treated with due reverance but he is such a heartfelt but also humorous vocalist. An album to treasure.

A few good songs, a few great songs. Very nostalgic, still sounds fresh and relevant.

For some reason that’s escaping me, I’ve listened to this album already this year. Have I listened to this guy before? I’m officially too deep in to remember, but I believe I have. To Todd’s credit, this album held my attention mostly front to back, which is very hard to do over a shrewd 90 minutes. A great opening 2 songs had me pigeon-holeing this album to a sound, but it expands in a few different directions. “Intro” is one of the coolest recordings I’ve heard, I can’t quite call it a song. But it’s very cool. “Marlene” has some unfortunately unacceptable lyricism that made me skip instantly. The last minute of “One More Day” was very catchy, it stuck in my head all day! “Piss Aaron” touches on the universal experience of knowing people in high school that were just so crazy you can’t quite believe they were real, or that they actually did the insane things they got up to. “Hello It’s Me” had quite a nice groove, proving that Todd had the chops to write a good pop song but didn’t want to all the time. The sax on this one went especially hard. Lots of good moments, a few that weren’t so palatable, but a full listen front to back. 3/5

A lot of very cool ideas, but a bit bloated compared to Wizard/Star

I love Breathless and its intro. The rest is also good. Rundgren takes the music seriously, but is definitely not afraid to have fun with it.

Not my jam but cool music.

This album was a commitment

This album is highly indulgent and extremely long. It's a rock album with some soft rock songs. The playing and vocals are competent, but the album could have been split into two albums. Anyway, the length is the biggest issue by far.

Very eclectic. I'm still not sure what to have made of it all. One moment he's a crooner, the next he's shredding his guitar like the best of them. A very long album.

3/4

I give credit for Rundgren's production skills. He helped get a lot of artists like XTC and Meat Loaf. Double albums are hard. I can probably count on one hand the double albums that are solid throughout. And even thenm it's stretching it. There is just normally a point somewhere around side 3 where you're just like... "is there anything THERE there?" And listening to this album, I can't help but think that. From wikipedia: "Much of the [...] material was written or conceived under the influence of marijuana. However, by this time, he had also begun experimenting with Ritalin." And it shows. It's all over the place. There were some good tracks, stuff that I dug. Then there are the hits, which I enjoyed as well: "Hello, It's Me" sounded a bit like early Neil Young (not a bad thing) but without the feedback. But when you get things like "Overture-My Roots," and "Piss Aaron," they seem a bit like he needed space to fill. Also it being from 1972, the songs sound like they are straight out of the 70s. I honestly expected more from him, but this _IS_ technically his first solo album (under his name). So, it just seemed like it just... needed to be tighter. Top tracks: "I Saw The Light," "Hello It's Me," "Breathless," "Black Maria," "Slut" (don't judge me on that last one, I thought it was funny.).

It's just a bit too all over the place. Side one is very poppy and slick; made me think of yacht rock before maybe that was a thing. I Saw the Light is a memorable single for a reason. I'm not sure any other song on that side is memorable even though it was solid. Side two gets a bit too ambitious; a little strange instead of clever. Side three plugs in the electric guitar on Black Maria, Couldn't I Just Tell You, and Little Red Lights and it might have been my favorite side. Side four seemed like him fooling around in the studio - hit or miss. Maybe if he had just done a single album of side one and three I'd rate it higher.

Too long, too uneven. Side 3 ("The Kid Gets Heavy") was my favorite side. Side 1 is mostly 70s soft rock with occasional harder edges. Side 2 had too many "dumb" moments trying to be clever (to quote Spinal Tap "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever"). Side 4 was moderately fun, but I was just bored of the album by this point. I'd say a 2.5, but I'll round up because it wasn't BAD, it just wasn't all that interesting to me. Favorite tracks: I Saw the Light, Wolfman Jack, Black Maria, Couldn't I Just Tell You.

Oh wat fijn dit! Gewoon, prima pop. Niets bijzonders, maar dit had ik wel even nodig na de herrie van The Birthday Party. Het is een beetje folkrockig? Maar soms juist weer totaal niet, dan is het zwaar elektronisch. Random om je intro op nummer 7 te zetten. Nog meer random om het een soort van spoken word te doen waarin je uitlegt wat de verschillende geluiden op de plaat zijn en hoe ze gemaakt zijn. Ergens ook wel grappig. Pfoe, wel echt een lange zit ook weer met een duur van bijna anderhalf uur... Wat is er gebeurd met de korte albums van 40 minuten? Dat is echt perfect in mijn ogen. Hier ook weer; denk dat er een goed album van 40 minuten in zit, helaas is het 2 keer zo lang en is het niet zoooo interessant. FAVO: I saw the light, Breathless, Saving Grace, Hello its me

Kind of all over the place stylistically, but I think it works as an advantage. Starts off super strong, later it gets a bit inconsistent, but still interesting. A lot of cool ideas and sounds is packed into these songs. Even if the performances aren't always amazing or super captivating the songs are mostly enjoyable.

These songs feel like theyre calming down my entire nervous system (except the night the carousel burned down). Closing my eyes and swaying my head from side to side. The only thing missing is candles, dim lighting and a glass of wine. Actually it got a little weirder. Slightly seems like all over the place.

Some cool ideas for songs. I didn’t care for the soft rock ballads.

Sounds like some generic pop rock from the early 70's. Wasn't impressed with anything. Vocals. Instrumentation. Its an hour and a half long - way too long for a very vanilla album. They must have also been impressed with new sound effects and synths at the time period, as a bunch is just thrown in to this album for no good reason it seems. Maybe that's why it's so long, they were experiment with absolutely everything. Editing goes a long way. I am sure if I was coming of age when this was released, I may have some nostalgia, or even if I had heard this when I was coming of age, I would have maybe had some fond memories of this. And hour and a half long.. goodness. It isn't terribly produced or anything of that nature. Sound quality is fine. Just long and very average in my opinion.

well done. Did not enjoy the first side so much, enjoyed the rest of it more. Very unique sounds and generally a very good album. Rating would be higher if "Marlene" and "Slut" hadn't left a bad taste in my mouth. Regarding "Marlene", because many people still do not get this: Minor girls and women into their early twenties are manipulated and targeted by men with more experience and resources than they have. If you're a 24 year old man, a 17 year old girl will find you more impressive than a 24 year old woman will. Age gaps are more significant the younger the people involved are. I'm going to keep calling this out. "Slut" is just. Kind of lazy and irritating.

An overwhelming amount of material - a lot of it is great, especially side 1. However, some of the loose experimentation doesn't really hold up or seem worth revisiting, and even some of the loose band recordings on side 4 push the limits on relistenability. However, Side 1 is so killer, and there is so much creative energy, that I'll definitely revisit.

Blev bara en genomlysning. Förtjänar inte en till. Det är säkert otroligt att han spelar och producerar allt själv (det mesta). Men fan vad tråkig musik..nån slags 70-tals-pop. Nån låt, av alla tusen, borde sticka ut lite mer. Men det är ingen låt som griper tag i mig och får mig att känna, fuck yeah, eller knappt ens, yeah. Det är rätt svagt när man har hybris och ger ut ett album med en miljard låtar på. Det förtjänar en tvåa, men så illa är det inte musikaliskt. Det är mest bara, meh. Inte min kopp te!

Tycker det här var en kul genomlyssning då det är väldigt varierat, välproducerat och genreöverskridande. En hel del låtar är fyror, men finns också ett gäng treor och tvåor. Svår att betygsätta då den spretar så mycket, men sträcker mig ändå till en svag fyra då det ändå är en imponerande skiva att få ihop nästan helt på egen hand.

Yacht Rock vibes but an enjoyable listen. Todd Rundgren is a pretty cool talented dude. Wolfman Jack is fun track that I hadn’t heard before, definitely earned the album an extra star.

Day608 - it’s so good i feel like jumping in the vista cruiser with all my friends and driving all night

I saw the light is a banger, the rest I don't mind

interesting … will give it a second listen

very long and pretty uneventful, but good pop music

After the first track: where have you been all my life Todd? After the rest of the album: yeah, ok, back into obscurity again please. As with other albums by ”geniouses” that play all their instruments themselves it lacks that certain groove tight bands can create together.

If you’ve ever wondered how the popular TV format Gogglebox – “Celebrity Watch Party” in the USA; I’d like to say something sarcastic about that, but I absolutely can’t imagine normal Americans watching normal Americans watch TV either – would work for music, then toss a coin into Todd’s uncanny jukebox and experience the joy of wasting money. Talent here isn’t the problem, either in front of the microphones or behind the desk. As a musician and as a producer, Todd is good, maybe even one of the best. The songwriting, similarly, is consistently strong, often interesting. And yet something rankles; I’m increasingly irritated by the feeling that I’m listening to an eclectic mixtape of mangled pastiches. I’ve stepped into cave of wonders where the treasures are the echoes that bounce from the walls. Yes “Song of the Vikings” sounds very much like the Beach Boys, “I saw the light” like Carole King … but why should I give a shit? If we put the dodgy tribute acts to one side (and let’s say nothing about the final seven or so tracks … regrettable), there’s stuff on this double album to actually enjoy – “It wouldn’t have made any difference” is a sublime pop song with a truly fantastic middle 8, “Wolfman Jack” is silly but also a quite brilliant vocal. On the whole, though, this album feels like it sets out to prove a point but ends up confirming the opposite. Pop music might be formulaic, but something about “Something/Anything?” just doesn’t add up.

Good driving music.

Solid, smoothly produced 70s soft rock. Some good tunes, some occasionally more avant moments. Creative but radio friendly rocky pop.

*Listening to Slut for the 9th time in a row, tears careening down my cheeks* they don't make em like this anymore

The buddy Todd is always a good hang

Too long, probably could have been a 4, but it wore on after the 1h mark.

Awww 70s soft rock... not even fun enough to be called yacht rock.

Should be divided into two different albums.

I liked the first half, the second half got weird. First half 4 stars, overall 3.

Really enjoyed this

Very good!

It starts with a good few songs and ends with a good few songs, but it doesn't really need to be a double album, I think if this one only had sides one and four it'd be a shoo-in for the 4/5 score It's still tough to decide against it, though, there's lots of songs I like even in addition to the big two hits, they're just all already concentrated at the beginning and end. Cold Morning Light is pretty

Long and boring. No memorable songs.

Rather boring.

I hate albums that are this long, but I have to give Rundgren his flowers, there were plenty of feel-good, rocking songs on this album. They don't all distinguish from each other very well, but still fun to listen to.

Favorite Track: I Saw the Light

If you're a musician with any level of talent but no coherent vision, and you're gonna make a kitchen sink record, this is probably as good a mark to aim for as you can find. Just about everything Rundgren throws at the wall here works, even when it probably shouldn't. What a fascinating record, truly.

This album made a lot more sense once I realized it was really like 4 EPs with different themes strung together. The first quarter is some catchy, if somewhat saccharine 'soft rock' type pop songs.

Todd Rundgren is an absolutely amazing producer. Everything is thoughtfully and well placed. Always thought the Isley Brothers cover of "Hello, It's Me" was creepy. Creepy like the Hammond brothers in Peckinpah's Ride the High Country.

It was good. Enjoyed it.

3.9

Le sentiment d’écouter la trame sonore d’un bon vieux Rom-Com ! Instrumentalement, et par moment vocalement, très intéressant et varié! Une belle découverte

Quand je pense à Todd Rundgren c'est sa dispute avec John Lennon qui me vient toujours en tête. J'essaye à l'occasion d'écouter sa musique pour un jour apprécier (peut-être). Hier en écoutant China a posé son verdict: ''c'est quétaine en ti-ti ça''.

Pas tout à fait mauvais, mais assez quelconque? D'après moi je suis passé à côté du concept de l'album double qui me semble n'avoir d'ambitieux que d'être double... Est-ce que c'est l'histoire d'un incel qui cherche l'amour et qui finit par se satisfaire d'une pute? Le deuxième disque a quelques bons "jam" comme Piss Aaron et Some Folks is whiter than me.

Meh. Du soft rock sans grande saveur. Par ailleurs, un album double c’est rarement une bonne idée. Un album devrait durer entre 28 et 58 minutes. End of discussion.

I can't really find much to redeem this double album. It might have been better if it was edited down to a single LP, rather than a double. The "sameness" of the tunes really got to me, and left me thinking if I was listening to rejects of 70s TV themes.

Talented obviously but not really my thing

Essentially Todd’s Laura Nyro/Carole King album with a little power pop, experimental hard rock and Stones send-ups peppered in. Not sure if everything hits but it being a double album, it was all worth the attempt. Also not confident that the clever names for each album side correlate that well with the material but whatever, he’s a genius. He’s my Frank Zappa.

Reasonably good double album with a few good songs. It does become a little bit irritating when we here all the sudio talking and count ins

# Playlist Track - I saw the light # Notes - I could give this a 4, easily, if this was cut in half. - Bunch of cool tracks intertwined to wildly different, bad experiments. - Some of them, like "Little Red Lights" are so bad I had to skip the track. - Appreciate you trying, Todd. But no.

Yes, it’s always impressive when one person can play all instruments and mix and record everything singlehandedly. But oh my God this is boring

Chill

It was ok...Too long and the weird track about finding audio mistakes was not great.

This is just not a genre I like. The music was terrible to me, and this album was way too long.

Boring and generic, not my speed. 1/5 stars

It had a few good songs, and I'm very sure it was very well regarded in its time, to me it dragged a little, songs were good and it was fun to listen to. It's not for me but I wouldn't mind to listen to it again.

M'eh, easy listening, didn't excite me at all

Own it.

I think I Saw The Light was the only song I had heard before. There are a lot of songs here. Fortunately, a lot of these are very good. He covers many different styles over the long runtime. Something for everyone to love here. Favorites were I Saw The Light, Wolfman Jack, It Takes Two To Tango, Black Maria, Couldn’t I Just Tell You, Dust In The Wind, and Hello It’s Me.

Good. I want to listen a second time.

This album has great power pop tunes. What seems weird is the “album within an album” thing. Not a bad thing, only extravagant. Well, I would appreciate if Todd would have cut some of these songs for the deluxe edition instead. 3.5/5

I thought this guy was pretty fun

album is too long and honestly a little bit corny, but it's a great vibe and there's not many bad songs. Great discovery

Thankfully, YouTube only had half of this long double album so I was spared the pain of listening to the whole thing. A couple of the songs were OK, most were garbage. The 2 radio "hits" are mediocre at best. I always thought one of them was by Carole King. Sorry to disparage you Ms. King!

This was okay. Then it was way too long. And weird.

a truly delightful weirdo

Ame este álbum. La versatilidad de este álbum es unica.

Pretty good

Interesting songs, but I found that it was very hit-or-miss from one song to the next for me. Some songs resonated with me (e.g. tracks 1, 4, 6), while others were basically painful to listen to (tracks 9, 11). Not an album I would spin in its entirety on a road trip. 😂 Cool album art tho!

Not bad.

All over the place but all good.

nice sound, very long

A fine album, just not for me.

very milquetoast 70s rock

Yacht rock, and this album is one long boat ride.

I saw the light is another one of those ubiquitous soundtracks songs I never placed before. Amazing.

Like almost every double album I can think of (Pink Floyd's "The Wall" might be an exception), this one suffers from unevenness. There are enough great songs to have been at least a 4 (and a serious candidate for a 5) if they had been on an album with half as many tracks. But there are also plenty of songs to place this in the 2-3 range if they had been the sole material on the album. The result is something more like a 3.5+ effort, so I'll go ahead and round up for the sake of those great songs, but if I consider the experience of sitting through the entire album every time I listen to it, this should probably be a 3.

Not for me

Album was ok, nothing spectacular

Wow, the last song really ruined what was a nearly perfect album. Todd Rundgren tends to have weird misogyny in a lot of his songs, so I shouldn't be surprised, but this was a lot. Even considering the decade/genre. That aside, this record is really, really good. I really expected to hate it because I'm very hot and cold with Todd Rundgren, and this album is 90s minutes long. I figured I'd be bored, but it's really good. Varied and interesting topics, and I loved how it was sort of like 4 completely separate records, yet they flowed well as one. Most double albums become unbearable after awhile, but this didn't until the end. I never felt the length because I was so interested in the songs. I'm still giving this a 5, but skip "Slut" when you listen, and it'll be even better.

something about this album made me just love it. The tunes, the guitair, the fact he played so much of these instruments. At first i thought I don't really care for some of the songs or lyrics. And while it is too long, I realized I just have so much fun with this its easy to just lay back for the "not as good ones". Had to give it the five.

This is a great example of the spirit of the 60s being fused with the tech of the 70s that made pop in the early 70s so appealing to me. The influence of the Beatles is clear in the lyricism on most of the album, as well as the smooth songwriting that incorporates normal rock group instruments (for the time), as well as the Synthesizer for some very cerebral flutters throughout. Being a double album, I do feel that side 3 drags a bit, but I felt that way about The Wall the first few times as well. I think that side 4 being a live recording helps diversify the album with a real rockin’ edge that’s missing from the silky tracks on the rest of the album. While I instantly recognized the first track, everything else was new to me. I’m surprised more of this album isn’t still on classic rock radio rotation. This is a great album I was very surprised by.

There some really good tracks on this album but it's just way too long and what seems like a lot a filler.

I Saw the Light and Hello It’s Me are deserving of their status as classics. Several other good songs but the record feels like it turns toward novelty and tracks that could have been edited out.

Went from fine to annoying by the end of this very long record.

JFC, this is a long ass record. There's some stuff on here I didn't mind, but the sheer amount of it made it fairly insufferable by the end.

Not my jam. There's a Rundgren song I really like - it's not on here. This is all sort of, "Yeah, whatever."

I really hated this album

Really, this hasn't aged well and I don't think many of these 70s/80s albums were something special to that older crowd, yacht-rock lovers. But really, this is just banal studio work. Great, Todd. But learn to play well with others. Another voice in the room might've pulled you back from the general boring shite this is. The 1st 2 tracks are truly awesome and then it just drops off the cliff into a pile of boring shite. And then to make matters worse, we have CD filler for a 2nd album/disc. OMG...crap!

It was an interesting album. defo some weak song mixed in with the enjoyable. It was a needed change in the album rotation so maybe caught me off guard but I enjoyed a number of the songs. I persevered through a random selection post the awful sounds of the studio “intro” and was pleasantly surprised by a number of songs. There was a good range from soul ballads to rock ballads. To introducing a more heavy style for little red light and Black Maria. Interesting evolution through the album. Actually really liked a couple songs Black Maria (mega guitar solo) It wouldn’t have made any difference New artist hadn’t heard before and wasn’t disappointed 3.5/5

Prior to this I have never heard of Todd, and I could have happily gone on that way, based on this album. The songs on the first side are nice enough, with tunes such as It Wouldn’t Have Made A Difference (a stand out track), sounding like a Bee Gees cut prior to their disco pivot. The album is designed as four sides, but once the spoken word Intro started, and he described a game to play, I found myself completely removed from the record. After that I listened to a few of the more well known tracks, which were underwhelming. Couldn’t finish, not for me…

Is it just me or everything just feels like a blur after reviewing 683 albums... 4/5

Really enjoyed this. Good guitar work and catchy rocky blues songs. Will explore more !

Started off well, but got a bit samey in the middle, drifts off after that. Too long so it gets a 3. Shame really.

Just kinda boring

Not much worked for me, which is unfortunate given the 90 minute runtime.

Very interesting how Todd Rundgren released his first double album just months after Houmous & Chutney released their 14th double album ‘Somewhere/Anywhere?’ 3.5 1/25 I Saw The Light

piss aaron right before hello its me is crazy

Todd Rundgren has the distinguished talent of making an absurdely long album where every song sucks, but sucks in a completely unique way.

Having never listened to Todd before, i received 'a wizard, a true star' 2 days ago in the early 600's and now this. I wish id had them in the other order to watch a man break out of his pop sensibilities into his experimental phase but this was not to be. On its own, this is a good 70's pop album with stand out hits, lots indications of where he would go and some real quality throughput. I want to give it 3.5 but its just not something i'll come back to ever so its rounded down

This is a masterpiece... when i think of "the sound of Philadelphia" i think of R&B... and i hear so much of that in the sound of Todd Rundgren aka the Runt... when i reviewed Laura Nyro a few records back, i raved about her sense of pop hooks, etc... well, Todd has all that and more... this album has bonafide tape measure homeruns, like "Hello, It's Me" and "I Saw The Light"... "Couldn't I Just Tell You" and "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" were minor hits... and "Black Marie" a rockin' concert staple... i could name more... but, there are 25 songs on this album... lol... and it is never boring... you hear big Rock songs, with great lead guitar... you hear song with chords and hooks like the best of R&B but without being rote or trite... this album goes from The Temptations to Stevie Wonder to Deep Purple to Frank Zappa to Psychedelia to Beatle-esque joy... Five Stars... all day...

point8.

Didn't really care for it. Was noodly and fun in spots but it just didn't really come together for me.

Bit of a struggle to get through this double album. A few very good tracks but most of the material felt lightweight and inconsequential to me.

Entirely too long, but the music is pretty good.

Considering Todd Rundgren was rather a polymath, and given the skills he displayed later as a producer, I was expecting something more exciting than this dull selection of songs (well-produced, but not very exciting to these ears).

A decent album. I wasn’t familiar with his music.

I had high hopes but unfortunately I just couldn't get into this.

Pleasant but not memorable

Not really my style. But it was a good listen.

𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨/𝘈𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨? is less a typical double album and more like four mini-albums stitched together — each side its own little universe. The first three are solo ventures, where Rundgren plays everything himself, jumping from crisp power pop to blue-eyed soul to hazy psychedelia with ease. The fourth side flips the script: a chaotic band session full of studio chatter, outtakes, and self-aware weirdness. It doesn’t all land, and the sprawl can be overwhelming, but the sheer range and melodic quality make it an oddly personal and ambitious pop statement. Four sides, four moods — somehow it holds together.

Didn't really enjoy this one. Had a lot of styles and a few decent tracks were hidden in there.

2.83

Sprawling, self-indulgent, full of character. Can any album this size be all bangers? Couldn't I just tell you is a power pop exemplar. I don't like "I saw the light" though, and unfortunately most of the album is more in that vein

Pretty good.

Фееричный альбом, почти полностью состоящий из интересных композиций. 8 из 10.

Oh look -- more 70s soft rock by a guy who wrote and played everything. As a bonus, it's long as hell. 'Wolfman Jack' was alright, though not as infectious as The Guess Who's 'Clap For The Wolfman.' Unfortunately, you've got to listen to two 'Cold Morning Lights' for every 'Wolfman'. Other decent tracks: 'Couldn't I Just Tell You', . I might even like 'Little Red Lights' if it weren't for the archaeological expedition to find it. But that's eleven minutes enjoyable out of an hour and a half, so you do the math on the value here. This album goes through the motions of genres like R&B and rock & roll but never seems to accomplish either in any genuine way. Mr. Lundgren, please step away from the slow jams and come out with your hands up. We'll give you two stars if you promise to stop.

I scored the last Rundgren album a 2 because it had some tracks that were a little too crazy. This album "stayed in its lane" so there was nothing bothersome, but it also wasn't especially good. Just some 70's rock.

There's a good (but likely not great) album buried in this sprawling mess. If you, say, took the top 3 songs from each of the album's 4 parts and then mixed them together. You'd probably having a solid album of sunny 70s AM radio pop. But, as is, this album collapses under Todd's inability to self edit.

I know mainstream media is dead and there isn't really a monoculture anymore, but it's crazy to think there used to be this gamut of programming on network TV that had an entire sector of people devoted to it - actors, writers, craft services -- and obviously music: theme songs, scoring, etc. & it wasn't just the seminal shows everyone's parents watched like MASH & Happy Days. There was mediocre dreck too like One Day at a Time, the White Shadow, and Reno. You wouldn't even know if I made one of those up. But all of Todd Rungren's music basically sounds like music for those mediocre 70s shows. Aping some form of a real genre but never really nailing it. Cheesy and obvious. Not really enjoyable. But it's there because the Valerie Bertinelli spin-off needed a theme song.

Good album, but it overstays it's welcome. It's too long, at list for a daily challenge or a listen in one sitting. Rundgren is truly a talented multi-instrumentalist and composer and this is a great example. Some songs feel like filler, but that's really expected in a 1.5 hour album. Overall, it's just under 4/5 for me. I'll never listen to this album in its entirety, but will return to many songs.

I firmly believe a double album is generally not in the interest of making a good product and this was no exception. Cut out half the songs and it's a solid album. There's a few great songs but otherwise repetitive.

A variety of styles in one album. Feels a bit too long and indulgent though, these types of songs Paul McCartney does better at.

I think I would have given this a 3.5 or a 4 if it wasn't a double album. Too many skips for me, but when the songs are good, I really enjoy them. “Marlene” is problematic AF.

Messy and fun.

Didn't realize how much stuff I liked was by Todd Rundgren

if he could pick the 10 best songs this would be a 3 or even a 4 stars album

The danger with starting with an absolute 5 ⭐️ song is that it’s all downhill from there And so it proves as I Saw The Light is leagues ahead of anything else here But there’s still lots to enjoy in the virtuosity of his playing (every instrument!) and the scale of his ambition, even if the songwriting is never as strong again

🐣🤷‍♂️

Meh. I know, as a fan of classic rock, I am supposed to like Todd, right? I just found this album to be a bit boring. A few good tracks, but it sounds unfinished and just meh. Like variations of the same riff and song.. I dunno, I don't get the appeal. 2.62/5 stars = 3 on this scale.

некоторые очень мелодичные, некоторые треш с тридцатитрекового альбома. надо будет часть подёргать в плейлист классики на соседство к Маклину

Repetitive, but unique

Hello, its me, I saw the light, it wouldnt have made any difference, wolfman jack classic rock

Good lovey pop rock album

All over the place, ranging from wildly abstract to contemporary of the times. Good listen tho

Seems like two different albums. The first half is a new genre - romantic rock? And the second half is a standard one. Favorite track: little red lights other picks: i saw the light, it wouldn't have made any difference, hello it's me, some folks

This is an interesting album. I feel like I would have liked this more by listening to the vinyl, where each side has a different theme and the breaks between each side would be unavoidable.

Nothing about it was bad, but I found it boring and long. The pop rock sound isn't really for me. 4/10

Nah.

126th album I listen to… first time I comment. Todd… you gotta know when to stop. Soooooooo loooooooong.

good time but also felt like i was listening to it for 12 hours

Some of the songs were awesome like Piss Aaron but others sucked like the one about the carousel. About 50/50.

Very middle of the road rock pop. It's alright but too long. 2.5/5

*Way* too long, but some great stuff here in amongst all the 70s excess. It's a lot more pleasant than 'A Wizard, a True Star', that's for sure.

This is so outstandingly average. If it was half the length it would be a 3, but how could anyone listen to an hour and a half of this?

Ajoittain ihan hyviä biisejä mut liian sekava

Really good stuff. A little on the long side.

Surprised these were his songs, I would have thought more along The Carpenters not my favorite

Softer rock than expected

The guy who shot Lennon was a huge Rundgren fan

This may be too chill for even Yacht Rock.

This felt like a cool album to listen to. Not something we'd really heard before, but up our alley.

This was a slog. A very long record full of self-indulgent studio wankery. Get this out of there.

Probably deserves more than 2, nothing really wrong with it. But I'll never listen again, didn't interest me.

For the first couple of seconds of the first track, I thought this was going to be a funky jazz album, but it wasn’t. It varies a bit in genre, but never too far away from pop. Not pop for the masses though, a bit more artsy. A lot a slow piano driven tracks with a happy vocal. This doesn’t entertain me much, and I find it pretty boring, even though the musicians and vocal is good. The game in the middle really enjoyed me - what the fuck is the point of trying to locate errors in music production? If their bad, you’ll hear them anyways and if not, just enjoy the music!

Good American pop-rock. Isn't this the epitomy of what they call AOR? Good in-car entertainment when you don't have to listen too hard (probably more suited to an interstate than the busy M1 though). A bit vanilla but not bad. Recognised "I saw the light". Great track. Solid 3

Oh man. So long. A few obvious radio hits with some slightly more interesting stuff but also some really boring stuff im between. Overall, a sleeper. Best song on the album is wolfman jack but a wide margin

2 - Solo lo salva la primer canción,... sino sería 1

Some real drivel, close to Steely Dan in its unpalatable array, but there are some interesting tracks that make this not an entire miss.

This one is - imho - far better than The Beatles. Sorry.

Idk

Something/Anything? was a huge surprise. I stayed interested throughout the whole album which is saying a lot.

Not my cup of Tea

beaut of a cover It's so long ???

Fine enough album, a bit too long for my taste. I really like how he talks to the listener on track 7 though!

I’ve had this for over 20 years and still never listened to it in one sitting. I dunno, there’s something a little smug or indifferent about Rundgren and his relation to his own music that is maybe intended come off as self-deprecating or bashful but instead diminishes his own stuff, implicating the listener for even enjoying it. It’s hard not to hear this as a kind of proto-soft rock/70s gold/yacht rock forefather - all fine things - but 90+ minutes?

Back in the 70s when I was listening to Todd Rundgren I preferred A Wizard - A True Star. I don't listen to him now, I find his voice annoying. Other people still like him though.

This is a surprisingly diverse album. Maybe I shouldn’t be stunned since there is 25 tracks on it, but I liked that there was a mix of styles in this. Some ballads, some rockers, a bit of Motown influence mixed in. I had heard a few of these songs before, but picked up some new ones for my own personal library which I really liked, such as Black Maria, Couldn’t I Just Tell You, Wolfman Jack, and It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference. Giving this a 5, even if every track on here isn’t amazing for me, because of the variety, his obvious talent, and the fact that you can tell that he had a lot of fun making this album (the Intro song was such a cool add). Definitely worth the listen. Fun listen for the first one on my quest (1,000 to go!).

Like nok bedre da andre albumet hans

Fire background music

60s/70s pop/rock just aint it for me

So many songs, so many different types of genre. Really impressive that Todd did 3/4 of the album all alone. Unfortunately, none of the songs are any good

I mean it’s good but I can’t imagine ever putting this on any kind of list.

Favorite track: I Saw the Light

Nothing really grabbed me.

It was fine

A really good mix of many genres and styles. I found myself grooving to a solid number of these as it faded from pop tunes to some aggressive rock back to some slower, Funk riffs. The album dragged on a bit to long and while there is definitely some filler, the presence of many techniques and strong musicianship served as a solid glue.

Truly innovative in every sense, this did not feel like a double album, which is the highest praise you can get from me

Like many double sets this is way too long. As a single record, this would have been much better. Plenty of fillers, some good tracks.

I appreciate the irony that right after I criticise Bjork for jumping from style to style, along comes one of my favourite albums which could be accused of the same thing. On Something/Anything Todd Rundgren tackles pop ballads, blue-eyed soul, Motown pastiches, blues, doo-wop, proto-metal, power-pop, prog-rock. He plays every instrument on three of the four sides, does his own backing vocals, produces and engineers it all. I'm not sure Todd gets, or ever got, the credit for the genius he is - as a songwriter, an arranger, a guitar player, producer (on the last two, listen to his Bruce Springsteen on steroids production on Bat Out Of Hell, especially when the motorbike sounds go straight into the guitar solo - all in a single take). There are some fantastic songs here - "I Saw The Light", "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" (listen to those lyrics about unwarranted jealousy and suspicion tearing apart a relationship), "Hello It's Me", "Dust In The Wind", "Couldn't I Just Tell You" - all classics, and we still have time for a peerless medley of blues and soul numbers which Todd obviously reveres, viking cod-operetta, humour, hard rock. But the album still feels like a whole. Each side of the original double album feels complete. An incredible album. It never fails to reveal new layers. Every listen is a joy.

p267. 1972. 3 stars. 70s double album with lots of filler and "look at how clever I am" noodling, so points immediately deducted. On the plus side, when it's good it's fabulous - great songs, sharp lyrics, and he played every instrument. A bit of judicious editing and this would be an easy 5.

Really fun album

Todd Rundgren is a name I probably could've pulled out of a hat before this, but I don't think I had heard a single song of his, and didn't even *really* know what his thing is. As I queued up Something/Anything (after some very brief cursory research) I was tentatively excited about the kind of art pop aspect, and at least a little scared of the 90 minutes and 25 songs long aspect. I am pleased to announce that, even for the length, this one was well worth my time. Before I dive into what this actually sounds like, I did a little more reading while listening and it helped contextualize this a little bit. Firstly, in modern publications, it seems to be required that I mention the influence of Ritilin on this album, which Rundgren claims is how we ended up with a 90 minute, 25 song long album in the first place. Additionally, Todd recorded everything on the first 3 sides himself without session musicians, so in some circles this is sort of hailed as a DIY adjacent achievement. Finally getting to the music, there's a very particular structure to Something/Anything that Todd lays out in the liner notes. The 4 sides of this album (as it would be experienced on vinyl) are all loosely themed and all veer into some different ideas. This is laid out mostly in the sides' titles, which, after listening, I think I can approximately lay out. Side A is mostly more conventional '70s pop songs. Side B is more of an art pop sound, embracing some strange, psychedelic sounds and odd structures. Side C is a little looser, but it seems to have a sort of jam slant, and side D is a self-contained mini rock opera with a rawer, live studio sound and a full band. In this framework, a lot of ground ends up covered. Throughout this thing, you get pop, blues rock, psychedelic, R&B, an occasional smattering of avant-garde, and some stuff I'm sure I missed. The fact that this all sounds more or less natural on here (if not necessarily cohesive) goes to show the interesting place that the pop world was in at the time. And if you take this lens further, you can kind of see this as the world of early '70s popular music in a microcosm. Given this all, I am amazed at how good a most of these songs are. Through the (again) 90 minute runtime, this album doesn't ever really lose me. In fact, of these 25 songs, I can probably count the misses on one hand and have a spare finger or two. While I probably can't give it a 5 (yet at least) the ambition of this project, coupled with its variety and incredible consistency has won me over, and I am very glad to have discovered this.

Quite a ride.

bit long

This went from OK to bad to very bad over the course of way too long. 1.5

for the most part this is fine to listen to but then it goes on for so long and Piss Aaron is there and it fills me with contempt

Mostly inoffensive but overall forgettable and a large amount of it.

Impressive, one man band effort.

Virkelig sjovt at lytte til. Det smarte ved ham er åbenbart at kan produce alle mulige former for genre og spille alle mulige instrumenter og blande en masse forskellige lyde. og det er også det albummet er. Igen - rigtig sjovt at lytte til.

Long, boring album that all sounds the same.

This album had some absolute bangers but mostly missers

eig ganz nice aber halt viel zu lang. 3.5

Really enjoyed this album as I've never even heard of the guy. However, it was off to a great start and slowly became a bit too messy for my taste. It definitely should not have that many tracks. Did Todd forgot that less is more?

good album,

Great album, though I think I need more time to really like it. The two songs I knew from it already, Hello It’s Me and I Saw the Light, stood as the best songs on the album by a large extent. Overall great production and soulful backing vocals throughout. I was hoping for more even from a double album, but with a couple listens, I think I could rank it higher.

Couldn't even finish it. Not my thing.

ovo me oduševilo!

Not really my cup of tea, but wouldn't be bad as background music. Wolfman Jack was pretty good, but the rest wasn't for me. 2*

Could've left some stuff out.

This gave steely Dan but less zazz, then went Free / Bad Company. A lot variety here that ended up feeling a bit beige, pretty inoffensive. Piss Aaron and Black Maria were standouts. Slut has not aged well at all so album loses a point for that

Not totally my thing, but I like the chutzpah

I was familiar with several songs though the artist's name meant nothing to me.

first track was really good but was also the longest 3 minutes of my life this is not a good sign. im not ready for an hour and half of this i actually was ready. really liked all of the cheesy soulful soft rock songs on here. this is a very impressive and charming body of work. wasn't bored by this at all. would love to get this on vinyl one day

Todd's got a funny streak in him. I appreciate that. Some real good tunes on this one, but as an entire album, it falls short. The Yacht Rock Classic "Hello it's me" will go to the 1001 best of playlist. ~ 3 stars