Roger Powell - Cosmic Furnace - "Ictus / Lumia / Fourneau Cosmique"

[@forneau]

Thank you very much for making this video of my first solo album. Very creative! Hard to believe it's been 38 years since I recorded this music... - Roger

[@drprogensteinphp]

Hi Roger, I thought I'd pop back to visit my video. Yikes, now it's been more than 50 years! Lol. I hope all is well with you. Are you familiar with the Wounded Bird CD version of your album? If so, is it an official release recognized by yourself, did you have any involvement with its production, and what are your thoughts on that particular CD issue? I do own it, but have often wondered about the Wounded Bird label. They tend to include little blurbs on their releases such as "sourced from original master tape". I was just wondering what master tape are they referring to (a production master?), and did they actually have legal access to said tape if that's the case? Thanks :)

[@forneau]

@drprogensteinphp It was a mixture of composition and improvisation. Most of the pieces have a structure (chords / melody) that I worked out on piano beforehand. Lots of spontaneity though in the recorded layers. "Lumia" however, was mostly created by "noodling" on the 2500 and building up overdubs. Remember, too, that this was all done before drum machines and MIDI sequencers were invented!

[@forneau]

we did what was necessary, and fun back then, thx

[@lastdaysguitar]

Keybordists today don't have the guts or musical creativity to play these analog beasts... this is still the "Far Country", only for the adventurous AND talented! Utopia changed my life. Long live Roger Powell!

[@drprogensteinphp]

Glad you enjoyed, and I agree completely...creativity has been lost these days. Sadly many today think that by playing vintage equipment, wearing a velour shirt, Beatle boots, and corduroys somehow makes them unique or original. Music has been in a constant state of regurgitation since the late 70's/early 80's...true creativity and originality is a thing of the past. Thanks for tuning in :)

[@RMoribayashi]

Thanks are not enough! I'd only ever heard a tiny excerpt of this album on an ARP demo record that Roger produced. I used to give them out to prospective ARP buyers. It wasn't a flexi-disk, but a real vinyl disk in a paper sleeve the size of a 45 single, but it had a small hole and played at 33 1/3. I handed one to Todd at a Utopia concert with "Roger's ARP Demo" written on it's white paper sleeve. Still have a couple around somewhere.

[@adewolf]

I love this and I grew up a couple of blocks from where this was recorded in Boston, MA.

[@CHUCK1213]

I DON"T BELIEVE IT !!! THANKS for putting this up !!!!! I had this album in college and used to listen to it ALL the time and somehow lost the album years ago and gave up finding it. This brings back memories. Electronic music in the 1970s blew away the boring repetitive electronica material they have been coming out with since then despite the advances in computers and electronic instruments. The creativity back then was light years above most music today. Sorry to complain ! LOL.

[@space931]

Thanks for sharing this tribute to the great Roger Powell! I've long been a fan, having stumbled upon Cosmic Furnace during its initial release (still have the vinyl). That was before he joined Todd Rundgren's Utopia! And as my brother Chris will attest, we got to meet Todd and Roger after a show at Taft theatre in Cincinnati (um, a few decades ago).

[@CHUCK1213]

My pleasure, and again, thanks so much for putting this up. We all miss the remarkable creativity from the 1960s to the 70s / early 80s. They were magical times !

[@DarrenSangita]

I just got turned onto this music by Joey Hinton (keyboard player from Ozric Tentacles / Eat Static / Inverse Gravity Vehicle) when I asked him what were his influences in his becoming a keyboard player. Awesome! Pioneers of Electronica... :) Thanks for sharing.

[@drprogensteinphp]

I'm not sure...but Roger himself has left a couple comments here on my video. His user ID is Forneau. If you scroll through the comments here you'll find him. Maybe ask this question directly as a reply to one of his comments. Thanks :)

[@drprogensteinphp]

Cool story...I'm a big Ozric's fan also. Just got through watching their 'Pongmasters Ball' concert DVD over the weekend :)

[@drprogensteinphp]

@RMoribayashi Great story. I actually had an early 70's ARP demo as well, which along with Roger Powell, also featured Dave Fredericks. I'm not sure what became of it. I have boxes full of that sort of stuff put away in storage :) Cheers!

[@drprogensteinphp]

Right on brother...Power To The Powell!

[@StringRamblerBale]

respect ... one has to find his way with so many buttons ;) thx m8

[@drprogensteinphp]

@StringRamblerBale Yep...easy to get lost in that electronic maze. It's easy to see how he eventually became a senior programmer at Apple Computers during the 90's/00's :)

[@drprogensteinphp]

@vincentjacque Yes...the ARP 2600 had a great bass sound. Too bad he didn't use the ARP 2500 for more than rhythm and percussion. It has such a monstrous sound. I've always felt that he really should have used it more in order to demonstrate its full capabilities :)

[@drprogensteinphp]

@forneau So glad you enjoyed my video....thanks for the compliment :) I've been a huge fan of your debut LP since its release...38 years ago?? Wow...how time flies!... Though I have to ask you...how much of the music on this album was improvised (if any), and how much of it was composed before hand? Absolutely brilliant!

[@homoignobilis]

Did Roger Powell ever have any involvement with Allan Perlman of ARP? Were there any legal problems with the release of Cosmic Furnace. When it first came out is was very difficult to obtain, but I did manage to acquire a copy at that time. Also, I wish Seaweed was still with Ozric. My favorite Ozric is Pyramidion. Have all (yes, all) their recordings.

[@reverendbryan]

Great album. First heard it when I was 16 in '73. Any chance of you posting side 2? Both are excellent. thx. I think one reason this doesn't sound as dated as much early synth work is that an acoustic piano is often as prominent as the electric keyboards

[@siskokidd]

I found a copy of this in Denver sometime back in the early 80's. It was on my wanted list for a long time, and I was thrilled to finally find it. Coincidentally, I acquired the Moogy Klingman album (the burned piano cover), and the James Cotton Taking Care of Business album (w/TR all over it) at the same time, so it was triple the glee! Anyway, back to Roger... I'm curious if anyone knows where and how this was recorded. At a studio, recorded in a short block of time, or a more relaxed home setting over several weeks? A simple 8 track tape system? 16 track perhaps? Roger, if you're still reading the comments, I'd love to read your account. Were there any difficulties or glitches in the recording process you can recall?

[@MikeKiker]

@forneau Was it all ARP 2500 and Odyssey used on this record, or did you use any other synths like Moog or EMS as well (besides the obvious piano on "Ictus")?

[@drprogensteinphp]

If you expand the information section beneath the video player (click "Show More"), you will see that I've included a full list of instruments used. I obtained this list from the LP credits. Also, if you watch the entire video, I've included a close-up scan of these credits. 4:19 is where they first appear. Thanks.

[@MikeKiker]

drprogensteinphp Totally missed that. Thanks.