UTOPIA

Sunday, 5 July 1981 8:00 PM

Pier 16
South Street Seaport
167 John Street
New York, New York 10038
USA


FLAC master, 22 September 2020, by elegymart:
Analog audience recording (stereo) {recorded by Gene Poole}: unknown mics/recorder > 1980-81 US/European FUJI FX-II (Type II CrO2) 90-minute analog audio cassette master {from the Gene Poole collection} > Sony TC-WE435 (azimuth adjustment) > Roland R05 (24/96) > Cool Edit Pro 2.0 (audio cleanup, convert to 16/44) > SHNtool (fixed SBE) > CD Wave (track splits) > TLH (WAV > FLAC8).
Created this text file.


Total running time [55:41]
--------------------------------------------------------------
01 introduction [0:53]
02 One World [3:22]
03 The Road to Utopia [4:31]
04 Swing to the Right [5:17]
05 Last Dollar on Earth [5:30]
06 Set Me Free [4:03]
07 Only Human [6:31]
08 Rock Love [6:25]
09 The Up [3:56]
10 Love of the Common Man [4:05]
11 Cliché [4:17]
12 Always Late [2:35]
13 The Very Last Time [4:09]


Band line-up:
Todd Rundgren - guitars, vocals
Roger Powell - keyboards, synthesizer, vocals
Kasim Sulton - bass, vocals
John "Willie" Wilcox - drums, percussion, vocals


Notes:

THE GENE POOLE COLLECTION VOL. 189

Here's the latest installment of the Gene Poole Collection, a random wellspring of recordings which have recently surfaced. To paraphrase Lou: This is gonna go on for a while, so we should get used to each other, settle back, pull up your cushions, whatever else you have with you that makes life bearable in what has already been the start of trying decade...

Some of Gene's handiwork has probably been heard by your very ears before, for the most part via the Stonecutter Archives, but this is the first major unearthing of tapes direct from the legend himself. As promising as that may seem, it's best to let the surprises hit as they are shared. The trade-off to the prolific taping on Gene's part is that the expectations for a perfect track record would be unrealistic and unfair. There will be instances of incomplete recordings, caused by late arrivals to gigs, recorder and mic malfunctions, and other assorted foibles as would befall any mortal taper. There will be times where a master from another source exists which could be superior. For the most part, Gene recorded with a variety of mics and recorders, and many shows suffered from wire dropouts, so that only one channel was extant in the capture. Due warning about the past imperfect given and out of the way, credit should be given where due as well -- for many shows thought lost forever, it's exciting to discover that many of these even in incomplete form have now cropped up.

The transfers, the audio fixes, and the research all have required some lead time -- many tapes had scant info (sometimes just the name of the artist/band, with no date listed for the performance). Needless to say, gear documentation is virtually nil -- we wait around for that precise detail to be forthcoming, nothing from the collection would probably see the light of day.

This time we're headed out to the East River pier, past South Street and the FDR Drive underpass, for a set from Utopia at a Save Our Ships Benefit concert.

The South Street Seaport Museum programmed some summer benefit concerts, and the price was $10 per ticket, with the admission proceeds going to preserve the Seaport's historic ships. Prior to a major renovation, the South Street Seaport sometimes held shows at Pier 17, instead of Pier 16 which is closer to where the the four-masted barque Peking is docked.

The sound on this is nice and crisp stereo, plenty of high end but a bit flat on the bass. Outdoor shows always bring with them inherent audience chatter and this one is no different, even as close as Gene may have been to the PA stacks. "The Up" has a minor bit of mic jostling, nothing excessive. Then after the tape flip, it sounds like Gene missed maybe only the first note or so of "Love of the Common Man."

TR announces a short break after "The Very Last Time." It's not easy to make out but it sounds like Gene might be saying just as he turns off the recorder that he has to go back to his job, so perhaps this was all he taped and he didn't stick around for the second set, but let's hope that's not the case. (He didn't number this tape as "#1" or anything, so we might be out of luck.) The request has been made for him to rummage further to see whether a tape of the second set to this exists, and also to the second night of the Central Park '80 show.

In the meantime, savor what's here.

Enjoy,
elegymart