| Up Against It! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 11, 1997 [1] | |||
| Genre | Rock opera, pop | |||
| Length | 61:37 [2] | |||
| Label | Pid | |||
| Producer | Todd Rundgren | |||
| Todd Rundgren chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| allmusic |    [3] |
Up Against It! is a 1997 album by Todd Rundgren consisting mostly of song demos he wrote and recorded between 1986 and 1989 for the musical theater adaptation of the never-produced screenplay Up Against It . The play was originally written in 1967 by Joe Orton for the Beatles. [4] [5]
This album is Rundgren's score to the stage adaptation of playwright Joe Orton's Up Against It, the unfilmed screenplay originally mooted as the third Beatles film (after A Hard Day's Night and Help!). They declined it, so he reworked it to lessen their presence, successfully sold it to the producer Oscar Lewenstein, and then was violently murdered by boyfriend Kenneth Halliwell in a notorious murder-suicide. With Orton no longer around to help push it along, development stalled, and the script was never filmed. It was published in book form a couple of times, however, and in the 1980s Joseph Papp decided to give the script a new lease on life as a piece of musical theater - hence this score.
The full suite of Rundgren's songs for the musical was released as an album only in Japan, though three re-recorded songs from it were included on his album 2nd Wind . [6] A variant version of the song "Parallel Lines" also appears on Rundgren's album Nearly Human .
In 2016 Todd performed the opera in Groningen, with Mathilde Santing, Wouter Penris and the NNO orchestra (conductor Hans Leenders). [7]
All songs by Todd Rundgren.
°Titles marked with an asterisk * above appear in re-recorded form on Rundgren's studio album 2nd Wind (1991).
°Parallel Lines" (** above) appears in re-recorded variant form on Rundgren's studio album' Nearly Human (1989)
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the bands The Nazz and Utopia. He is known for his sophisticated and often unorthodox music, his occasionally lavish stage shows, and his later experiments with interactive art. He also produced music videos and was an early adopter and promoter of various computer technologies, such as using the Internet as a means of music distribution in the late 1990s.
Straight Up is the fourth studio album by the Welsh rock band Badfinger, released in December 1971 in the United States and February 1972 in Britain. Issued on the Beatles' Apple record label, it includes the hit singles "Day After Day" and "Baby Blue", and the similarly popular "Name of the Game", all of which were written by singer and guitarist Pete Ham. The album marked a departure from the more rock-oriented sound of Badfinger's previous releases, partly as a result of intervention by Apple Records regarding the band's musical direction.
Bat Out of Hell is the 1977 debut album by American rock singer Meat Loaf and composer Jim Steinman. The album was developed from a musical, Neverland, a futuristic rock version of Peter Pan, which Steinman wrote for a workshop in 1974. It was recorded during 1975–1976 at various studios, including Bearsville Studios in Woodstock, New York, produced by Todd Rundgren, and released in October 1977 by Cleveland International/Epic Records. Bat Out of Hell spawned two Meat Loaf sequel albums: Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell (1993) and Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose (2006).
Something/Anything? is the third album by American musician Todd Rundgren, released in February 1972. It was Rundgren's first album released under his own name, following two records credited to the quasi-group project Runt, and was also his first double album. It was recorded in late 1971 in Los Angeles, New York City and Bearsville Studios, Woodstock. The album is divided into four sections focused on different stylistic themes; the first three parts were recorded in the studio with Rundgren playing all instruments and singing all vocals in addition to producing. The final quarter contained a number of tracks recorded live in the studio without any overdubs, save for a short snippet of archive recordings from the 1960s.
A Wizard, a True Star is the fourth studio album by American musician Todd Rundgren, released on March 2, 1973, by Bearsville Records. It marked a departure from his previous album, Something/Anything? (1972), with its lesser reliance on straightforward pop songs, a development he attributed to his experimentation with psychedelic drugs and his realization of "what music and sound were like in my internal environment, and how different that was from the music I had been making."
A Cappella is a 1985 album by Todd Rundgren. The album is one of Rundgren's most unusual in that every sound is the product of the artist's voice. Rundgren employed overdubbing techniques and an E-mu Emulator, electronically manipulating the sound of his voice to mimic conventional rock instruments, handclaps, and other sounds. This approach to music making was later explored by artists such as Mike Patton and Björk.
Utopia was an American rock band formed in 1973 by Todd Rundgren. During its first three years, the group was a progressive rock band with a somewhat fluid membership known as Todd Rundgren's Utopia. Most of the members in this early incarnation also played on Rundgren's solo albums of the period up to 1975. By 1976, the group was known simply as Utopia and featured a stable quartet of Rundgren, Kasim Sulton, Roger Powell and John "Willie" Wilcox. This version of the group gradually abandoned progressive rock for more straightforward rock and pop.
Skylarking is the ninth studio album by the English rock band XTC, released 27 October 1986 on Virgin Records. Produced by American musician Todd Rundgren, it is a loose concept album about a nonspecific cycle, such as a day, a year, the seasons, or a life. The title refers to a type of bird (skylark), as well as the Royal Navy term "skylarking", which means "fooling around". It became one of XTC's best-known albums and is generally regarded as their finest work.
Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band Volume 2: Live from Montreux is Ringo Starr's second official live album and was released in September 1993.
Nearly Human is a 1989 album by the rock musician Todd Rundgren, released by Warner Bros. Records. It was his first release in four years, although he had been active as a producer in the intervening years. Many of the album's songs deal with loss, self-doubt, jealousy and spiritual recovery. It was also the first collaboration between Rundgren and Michele Gray, a singer and ex-model who helped to organize the sessions. Gray sang backing vocals, both on the record and on subsequent tours, and the pair later married.
Gregory A. Hawkes is an American musician who is best known as the keyboardist and founding member of the American new wave band The Cars. Hawkes is credited with helping popularize new wave and synth-pop in American popular music as a member of The Cars. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest keyboardists of all time.
Kasim Sulton is an American bass guitarist, keyboardist and vocalist. Best known for his work with Utopia, Sulton sang lead on 1980's "Set Me Free," Utopia's only top 40 hit in the United States. As a solo artist, Sulton hit the Canadian top 40 in 1982 with "Don't Break My Heart".
Remote Control is the fourth studio album released by the Tubes. This was their first to be produced by Todd Rundgren. It is a concept album about a television-addicted idiot savant.
2nd Wind is the thirteenth album by American musician Todd Rundgren, released in 1991 on Warner Bros. Records. It reached number 118 on the Billboard 200 album chart. 2nd Wind includes the single "Change Myself" and was Rundgren's final album on a major label until 2004's Liars.
Up Against It is an unproduced script by Joe Orton, written in 1967 for the Beatles at the height of their fame.
"Dear God" is a song by the English rock band XTC that was first released as a non-album single with the A-side "Grass". Written by Andy Partridge, the song lyrics grapple with the existence of God and the problem of evil. Partridge was inspired by a series of books with the same title, which Partridge viewed as exploitative of children. The song was originally intended for the album Skylarking, but left off due to concerns from Partridge and Virgin Records. After college radio DJs across America picked up the song, US distributor Geffen Records recalled and re-pressed Skylarking with the track included.
With a Twist... is a 1997 album by Todd Rundgren. Asked to produce an album of new versions of his older singles, Rundgren decided to record the songs in Bossa nova style with elements of Exotica, complete with tropical bird call effects at the beginning of "Hello, It's Me" similar to Martin Denny's recording Quiet Village. Continuing the theme, Rundgren toured theaters with a replica of a tiki bar, the performers on a very small stage with selected audience members being seated at tables also on the theater stage, and being served drinks by the monitor engineer/bartender. The performers never acknowledged the larger theater audience, and the show ended when the last "bar patron" left the stage.
"I Can't Take It" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1983 as the second single from their seventh studio album Next Position Please. The song was written by Robin Zander and produced by Todd Rundgren.
Songs from the Material World is a multi-artist tribute album to English rock musician George Harrison. It was released by Koch Records on 25 February 2003, on what would have been Harrison's 60th birthday. The album contains twelve cover versions of songs written by Harrison, the majority of which originate from his years as a member of the Beatles.
Up Against It was an unproduced script by Joe Orton, written in 1967.