''Ra'' is the second studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

and third release by

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island societ ...

on Bearsville Records, released in 1977. Rundgren planned on releasing the LP in 1976 on his own label "Ethereal Records" as the new 4 piece line up was not signed to Bearsville. Replete with an elaborate $250,000 stage show featuring a pyramid and golden sphinx which took 18 months of prep, ''Ra'' was Rundgren's most ambitious live undertaking. The cornerstone of the album and show is "Singring and the Glass Guitar," which comprises solos by each band member battling the elements: water (drums), wind (bass), fire (keyboards), and earth (guitar). The album was modestly successful, peaking the Billboard Top 200 at #79.Ra in the Billboard Charts
Allmusic. Retrieved July 31, 2011.

Track listing

A number of test pressings (and a very limited amount of vinyl and 8 track tape pressings) were made using a rejected master that includes alternate mixes of the some of the tracks on the album. The songs "Communion with the Sun" and "Sunburst Finish" are almost entirely different takes- "Communion with the Sun" has a more aggressive drum track, alternate vocals and instrumental solos; "Sunburst Finish" has lead vocals that are similar but different backing vocals (with some present in the commonly released mix missing completely). "Singring and the Glass Guitar" is missing the intro to Willie Wilcox's drum solo. All the other tracks on this pressing are indistinguishable from the commonly released master. With the exception of the European pressing, the only way to tell if a particular copy of an LP (or tape) was pressed from the rejected master is by playing it. In Europe, A1 or B1 will be written into the dead wax of the vinyl of these initial pressings. It is unknown exactly how many pressings from the rejected master were manufactured.

Side one

Side two

Personnel

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 ...

Electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

and

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

on "Magic Dragon Theatre" * Roger Powell -

Keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals *

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 ...

Bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals * John "Willie" Wilcox - Drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals, harmony guitar on "Jealousy" Production * Producer: Todd Rundgren for Alchemedia Productions, Inc. * Engineer, Calligrapher, & Voice of the Story Teller: John Holbrook * Assistant Engineer: Tom Mark * "Communion with the Sun" & "Jealousy" recorded at the Turtle Creek Barn using custom equipment owned and operated by Yes engineer

Eddie Offord Eddy Offord (born 20 February 1943) is a retired English record producer and audio engineer who gained prominence in the 1970s for his work on albums by the progressive rock bands Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Yes. Life and career Offord studied phys ...

* Musical arrangements by Utopia

Charts

Album - '' Billboard''

References

{{Authority control Todd Rundgren albums 1977 albums Albums produced by Todd Rundgren Utopia (band) albums Bearsville Records albums Rhino Records albums Egyptian mythology in music