Fuck, man!
First of all, if you even remotely believe in this album (or in Todd's music), this is a must see.
I've seen him pull all kinds of crap over the years (doing a turgid new album in full, covering Tom fucking Cochrane, "rapping" in a wet suit), and he is about as hit or miss a live music proposition as you will find.
Well, FUCK all that.
His performance last night of A Wizard A True Star was nothing short of stunning. It's a very personal record, a very "id" record, and seeing it performed THAT powerfully was about as "Todd" as seeing "Todd" will ever get.
The opening act (completely unannounced and unadvertised) was Utopia (Todd, Kasim, Roger, and Prarie Prince). Set up just like a support act, single file across the stage in front of Rundgren's gear, under harsh white lighting in white Hanes t shirts. I certainly never expected to see Utopia live, and - as wobbly as their whole trip generally is - they were outstanding. Their austere presentation seems partly to have been a matter of setting context for what followed.
As for the main act? Wow! Three keyboardists (Greg Hawkes was among them) certainly gave the desired sonic effect, and the band (also featuring bass, guitar, drums) really played the shit out of that music (I wouldn't dream of performing something like "Flamingo", and they nailed it). All dressed in matching white tuxedo suits with tails.
Todd not only sang his ass off, but he performed each number in a different costume. "International Feel" he sang as a spaceman. "You Don't Have To Camp Around" he sang in the infamous Midnight Special "Liberace" outfit which was rumored to have killed his career back in 1973, the soul medley (this was easily the most moving part of the night for me) he performed in a sharp orange suit, "Just Another Onion Head" he performed in a "fat guy" suit which deflated throughout "Sometimes I Just Don't Know What To Feel". The silliness of all this might seem off putting on paper, but...it was yet another element which really brought these songs to life.
Imagine one of your favorite LPs made flesh with all the pizazz and narrative staging of a top shelf Broadway production, but with the very human elements of a man singing his heart out while a band, quite simply, "puts out".
I may never go see the man again. This is untoppable.
I've seen SMiLE, Forever Changes, and...presumably some other masterpiece (Double Live Gonzo?) performed onstage. All magnificent, yet...somehow this cut quite a bit deeper.
Miss this at your peril, Todd Rundgren fans.
