''Ra'' is the second studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

and third release by

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

on Bearsville Records, released in 1977. Band leader

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) 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 Nazz and Utopia. He is known for his sophistica ...

planned on releasing the LP in 1976 on his own label, Ethereal Records, as the new four-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 No. 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 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

Electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

, backing vocals,

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

and

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

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 * Mus ...

, lead vocals, backing vocals *

Kasim Sulton Kasim as a given name, a variant of Qasim. It may refer to: People known only by the given name Kasim *Kasım Pasha, Ottoman general and governor *Kasım of Karaman, the last bey of the Karaman Beylik, a Turkish principality in Anatolia *Şehza ...

Bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

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

Drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, 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 Yes or YES may refer to: * An affirmative particle in the English language; see yes and no Education * YES Prep Public Schools, Houston, Texas, US * Young Eisner Scholars, in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, and Appalachia, US * Young Ep ...

engineer Eddy Offord * Musical arrangements by Utopia

Charts

Album - ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

References

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