When I first started the Todd Rundgren Connection on June 2, 1994, one of my earliest acquisitions was the large lyrics archive created by Scott Sheppard, a prominent TR fan and online acquaintance. Scott’s comprehensive archive contained lyrics culled from Todd’s own liner notes as well as from careful, repeated listening of Todd’s albums, when lyrics had not been included. I took Scott’s documents and converted them to HTML format to become a permanent part of the TRC.
Todd did not stop creating songs in 1994, but has expanded his catalog considerably, and the maintenance of the lyrics catalog became overwhelmingly labor-intensive. I developed a lyrics database and started serving the lyrics via a program that I developed. Over time, the program has paid off, making it much easier to curate and expand the collection, while providing an interface that invites the end user to explore all of Todd’s works in the various phases of his career.
As a composer and musician in my own right, I realized that with a few changes I could generalize the program to begin featuring my own works out of a separate database. Beginning with my earliest songs dating from the 1970s, I started entering them and documented my thoughts behind specific songs, as well as providing my own renditions.
From the approximately 50 songs I wrote from 1971-1976, I have expanded my own catalog nearly sevenfold. I use my application as an aid to my own songwriting and through additional capabilities created with AI, have created a showcase for all my works.
This application is also capable of serving other artists creative work, and in time I may offer up this opportunity to those other artists.
In the meantime, you may enjoy exploring the existing archives
If you’re interested in having your own archive, let’s talk. rdlinder@gmail.com