Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren

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Not to be confused with Runt (album).

Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren
Runt
ReleasedJune 24, 1971
RecordedBearsville (Woodstock, New York)
GenrePop rock, soft rock, blue-eyed soul
Length42:05
LabelAmpex
ProducerTodd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren chronology
Runt
(1970) 		Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren
(1971) 		Something/Anything?
(1972)
Singles from Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren
  1. "Be Nice to Me"
    Released: March 1971
  2. "A Long Time, A Long Way to Go"
    Released: August 1971
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic
[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]
Rolling Stone(Not Rated)[3]

Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren is the second album by American singer-songwriter/musician Todd Rundgren, released in 1971. Like its predecessor, Runt, this album was credited to Rundgren's group Runt, despite Rundgren handling most of the musicianship and production himself.

Content

Most of the album's 12 tracks are piano-led ballads, with the only exceptions being the rock tunes "Bleeding" and "Parole" and the anthem "Chain Letter". As with his first album, this album was initially credited to "Runt". Rundgren himself wrote, arranged, and produced every tune on The Ballad of Todd Rundgren, as well as handling all the guitars, keyboards, and vocals.

"I was pretty overbearing to deal with," Rundgren recalled in the liner notes to the 1999 CD release. "I was also becoming very particular about arrangements, so I took a crack at playing it all myself. But I still had some dependence on other musicians. I wasn't yet ready to play drums or to seriously address what bass playing should be like."[4]

Norman D. Smart, who later became a member of the Hello People and was Mountain
's first drummer, plays on the remainder. On two of the tracks, Rundgren is the only performer.

The album cover was designed by Milton Glaser. Inside photographs and design were by Ron Mael.

In mid-1971, Bearsville was purchased by Warner Bros. and plans were made to re-release both Runt and Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren as a "twin pack" entitled Todd Rundgren's Rack Job (Catalog Number 2BV 2156) in 1973. The album got as far as test presses and album art, but was shelved as Rundgren preferred to release an album of new material.

Track listing

All songs written by Todd Rundgren.

Side one
  1. "Long Flowing Robe" – 3:30
  2. "The Ballad (Denny & Jean)" – 3:30
  3. "Bleeding" – 4:05
  4. "Wailing Wall" – 3:05
  5. "The Range War" – 2:38
  6. "Chain Letter" – 5:02
Side two
  1. "A Long Time, A Long Way to Go" – 2:12
  2. "Boat on the Charles" – 4:28
  3. "Be Nice to Me" – 3:27
  4. "Hope I'm Around" – 4:55
  5. "Parole" – 4:22
  6. "Remember Me" – 0:51

Personnel

(taken from inner gatefold of original 1971 vinyl)

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1971 Billboard Pop Albums 214

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
1971 "Be Nice to Me" Canada RPM Singles Chart 92
1971 "Be Nice to Me"
Billboard Pop Singles[5]
 71
1971 "A Long Time, A Long Way to Go"
Billboard Pop Singles[5]
 92

References

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2011). "Runt: The Ballad of Todd Rundgren – Todd Rundgren | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
  2. ISBN 089919026X
    . Retrieved March 12, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ^ Smith, Patti (2011). "Todd Rundgren: Runt: The Ballad Of Todd Rundgren : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 16, 2009. Retrieved July 8, 2011.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ^ Liner Notes from Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren (link offline)
  5. ^ a b "allmusic ((( Todd Rundgren > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". Billboard. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
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