I’ve forgotten more than I remember….

…which is probably just as well. Apropos of absolutely nothing, some random misfiring of synapses prompted me to give another airing to “Hermit of Mink Hollow”, Todd Rundgren’s first 100% solo album on which he plays all the instruments and sings all the vocals (1972's "Something/Anything?" fails to qualify as his first 100% solo effort because one of the 4 sides is a live-studio effort featuring assorted musicians and backing singers.) The album was released in 1978 and is named after a valley near Woodstock, New York, where Todd set up a recording studio and recorded this album.

Like all of Todd’s solo albums post-1973’s“Todd” double album, there are a couple of seriously duff tracks but in spite of that it’s probably the most consistently good album he’s recorded after the creative peak of the early 1970’s.  

The album – at least in its vinyl form – was split into “The Easy Side” and the “The Difficult Side” – though I can’t decide if that’s a joke: tracks on either side could qualify for inclusion on the opposite one. One thing’s certain – were it possible to have a third side, to be titled “The Annoying Side”, then “Onomatopoeia” would be on it.

One of the standout tracks –probably my personal favourite – is the lyrically optimistic and wildly romantic “Fade Away”, from the difficult side, which is the best way to end this post.