Todd Rundgren

While the year 2021 has been a rough year for most of us, Todd Rundgren has had a pretty epic one. He will be inducted as a member of this year's class at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (even though he has stated he will not attend the ceremony) and was finally able to kick off his latest jaunt labeled, "The Indivualist, a True Star." The tour premiered in Boston at the Big Night Live concert hall on October 1, 2021.

Rundgren and his ace band (Jesse Gress/guitar, Prairie Prince/drums, Kasim Sulton/bass, Bobby Strickland/multi-instrumentalist, and Gil Assayas/keyboards) delivered a set which spanned much of Rundgren's solo efforts and kicked things off with two songs from his 1974 "Todd" album: "How About a Little Fanfare" and "I Think You Know."

Some technical issues then set in, leading Rundgren to speak to the crowd about writing his first song during the '60s. While political issues and the Vietnam War were popular topics of the times for musicians, Rundgren said his was about "a girl" and slid into a melodious version of "Hello, It's Me." This began a chain of hits, including the tongue-in-cheek, "We Gotta Get You a Woman", and the soulful heartbreaker, "Can We Still Be Friends?" The latter was also recorded by the late Robert Palmer in 1979, and is one of the best ever covers of a Rundgren tune.

A reeling version of "I Saw The Light" (which was reportedly influenced by outstanding songstress/singer Carol King) soared, thanks in part to some spectacular guitar leads from Gress.

Although Rundgren's repertoire touched on most areas of his career, he avoided songs from his days with on-again/off-again band, Utopia.

A deeper cut, "Black Maria", showcased his harder rock and blues side, but he quickly returned to his balladeering strains with "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" and spinkled in the power-pop perfection of "Couldn't I Just Tell You?" One of the night's highlights was Rundgren's flawless performance of the atmospheric "A Dream Goes On Forever", and he closed out the first set with poignant cuts "Real Man" and "Love of the Common Man."

After the intermission, the band returned, all in matching white tuxedos with tails, and Rundgren began the performance of side one (titled, "The International Feel [in 8"]) of his classic album, "A Wizard, a True Star."

Exploring his dramatic side, Rundgren donned several costume changes during the set, ala Peter Gabriel during his tenure in Genesis. Standouts of the 11-song run were great versions of "Zen Archer" and "When the S--t Hits the Fan; Sunset Blvd."

Rundgren returned for a sole encore of "Le Feel Internacionale", completing the first side of the album and closing out a great and eclectic night from one of the world's most unique and talented innovators.