''Healing'' is

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...

's ninth studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, released in 1981. The album's themes are

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

and the

human condition The human condition is all of the characteristics and key events of human life, including birth, learning, emotion, aspiration, morality, conflict, and death. This is a very broad topic that has been and continues to be pondered and analyzed fr ...

, something Rundgren had touched on many times in earlier works but never with the consistency exhibited here as every track explores a different aspect. The back cover image of the album (artwork by

Prairie Prince Charles Lempriere "Prairie" Prince (born May 7, 1950) is an American drummer and graphic artist. He came to prominence in the 1970s as a member of the San Francisco–based rock group The Tubes, was a member of Jefferson Starship from 1992 to ...

) shows the

caduceus The caduceus (☤; ; la, cādūceus, from grc-gre, κηρύκειον "herald's wand, or staff") is the staff carried by Hermes in Greek mythology and consequently by Hermes Trismegistus in Greco-Egyptian mythology. The same staff was also ...

and a Qabalistic

Tree of Life The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A History ...

each overlaid by a

treble clef A clef (from French: 'key') is a Musical notation, musical symbol used to indicate which Musical note, notes are represented by the lines and spaces on a musical staff (music), stave. Placing a clef on a stave assigns a particular pitch to ...

(Which is reversed for the Tree of Life), reflecting Rundgren's linking of his spirituality and music. The original vinyl release includes a bonus 7" 33rpm single featuring the tracks "Time Heals" and "Tiny Demons" which are unlisted on the album sleeve but are included at the end of the later CD release as tracks 10 and 11. "Time Heals" and "Compassion" were both released as singles and a promotional video was made for the former, which was the eighth music video to air on MTV during its launch on August 1, 1981.

Live performance

In September 2010, Rundgren performed his ''

Todd Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

'' and ''Healing'' albums live for the first time in Akron, Ohio, followed by concerts in Muskegon MI, Indianapolis IN, St. Louis MO, Glenside PA, and Morristown NJ. Whereas the original ''Healing'' album had been entirely performed by Rundgren in the studio, the live performances featured the same band as for the ''Todd'' shows: Jesse Gress,

Greg Hawkes Gregory A. Hawkes (born October 22, 1952) is an American musician best known as the keyboardist for the rock band The Cars. Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, United States, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth ...

, Prairie Prince, Bobby Strickland, and

Kasim Sulton Kasim Sulton (born December 8, 1955) 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 ...

. Led by choirmaster Dirk Hillyer, local choirs from near each venue joined the band during parts of the ''Healing'' set. Large LED display and lasers were on display throughout the shows with Rundgren and the band dressed in extravagant costumes. The shows have been released on DVD.

Track listing

;Side one #"Healer" - 3:40 #"Pulse" - 3:07 #"Flesh" - 3:58 #"Golden Goose" - 3:16 #"Compassion" - 4:43 #"Shine" - 8:12 ;Side two #"Healing, Part I" - 7:28 #"Healing, Part II" - 7:52 #"Healing, Part III" - 4:40 ;Bonus 7-inch 33rpm Single #"Time Heals" - 3:33 #"Tiny Demons" - 3:08 In some releases of the LP, "Time Heals" and "Tiny Demons" have been added to the end of the second side.

Personnel

*Todd Rundgren - all vocals and instruments, producer, engineer ;Technical *Bean - additional engineering *

- artwork

Charts

Album Single

Formats

*Vinyl LP *Cassette *8 Track Tape *Compact Disc

References

Todd Rundgren albums 1981 albums Albums produced by Todd Rundgren Bearsville Records albums Rhino Records albums {{1980s-pop-rock-album-stub