Woodstock town supervisor Bill McKenna will present the Key to the town to recording artist Todd Rundgren at the Bearsville Center on October 23.
The honor, part of the Bearsville Center’s celebration of Rundgren’s music, coincides with a two-day residency by the artist at Bearsville Theater as part of a national tour on October 22 and 23.
“Todd Rundgren is an important contributor to Woodstock’s long and iconic history as a global nexus for all genres of musical creativity,” McKenna said in a prepared statement.
During his 13 years in Woodstock, Rundgren recorded and produced many iconic albums in Bearsville, including Meatloaf’s “Bat Out of Hell,” Patti Smith’s “Wave,” The Band’s “Stage Fright” (recorded at the Woodstock Playhouse), XTC’s “Skylarking,” and Steve Hillage’s “L.”
Rundgren recorded many of his own albums there, including “Hermit of Mink Hollow,” “Healing,” and Utopia’s “RA,” “Oops Wrong Planet,” and “Adventures in Utopia.”
Bearsville embodied Albert Grossman’s vision for artistic expression and innovation, Bearsville Center owner Lizzie Vann said. “Part of that utopia — Bearsville Records (1970-1984) — was a cornerstone of musical innovation. Todd Rundgren’s groundbreaking debut set the stage for the label’s diverse repertoire.”
The ceremony where Rundgren will receive the key to the town will include a dedication of a historic landmark plaque to recognize his work at Utopia Video Studio, which Grossman built for Rundgren in the 1980s.
The eighth video to be played at MTV’s launch on August 1, 1981 was “Time Heals,” produced at Utopia. Also produced there was an autobiographical documentary called “The Ever-Popular Tortured Artist Effect.”
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