Todd Rudgren Archive

The Ed Palermo Big Band – The Adventures of Zodd Zundgren – Cuneiform

by Audiophile Audition | Feb 11, 2018 | Jazz CD Reviews

There’s a new ‘super’ hero in town…Frank? Todd? No, its Zodd! The Ed Palermo Big Band – The Adventures of Zodd Zundgren [TrackList and Performers follows] – Cuneiform, Rune 440 74:10 [10/6/17] *****: How would someone combine Todd Rundgren and Frank Zappa’s music? Or, another question, why? When it comes to arranger and band leader Ed Palermo, the question is: what took so long? Palermo has been redoing Zappa’s music with the Ed Palermo Big Band since Zappa passed away in 1993, and has always found new and interesting approaches to Zappa. This time, the Ed Palermo Big Band ingeniously melds Rundgren’s pop material with Zappa’s unique compositions. In the process, Palermo also morphs the two personalities into one individual, using the guise of Zodd Zundgren, a middle-aged, overweight hero who’d rather walk dogs than fight supervillains. Palermo states, “Todd Rundgren holds a very special place in my heart. For most of my high school days my favorite musicians were Zappa and Todd Rundgren.” As a teen, Palermo felt connected to Rundgren’s songs about self-pity, unrequited romance and break-ups. Zappa’s snarky lyrics also fed into the young Palermo’s angst-tinted adolescence. It was natural that Palermo would eventually merge the two […]