Hello It's Me

"Hello It's Me"
Cover of the 1974 France single
Single by Todd Rundgren
from the album Something/Anything?
B-side	"Cold Morning Light"
Released	December 1972
Format	7"
Recorded	1971
Genre	Rock[1] pop[2][3] soul[4]
Length	3:31 (single) 4:42 (album)
Label	Bearsville
Writer(s)	Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)	Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren singles chronology
"Couldn't I Just Tell You" (1972) "Hello It's Me" (1972) "A Dream Goes On Forever" (1974)

"Hello It's Me"
Cover of the 1969 UK single
Single by Nazz
from the album Nazz
A-side	"Open My Eyes" (1968)
B-side	"Crowded" (1969)
Released	1968
Format	7"
Recorded	April 1968 (1968-04)
Genre	Pop rock
Length	3:57
Label	SGC Records
Writer(s)	Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)	Michael Friedman
Nazz singles chronology
"Open My Eyes" (1968) "Hello It's Me" (1969) "Not Wrong Long" (1969)

"Hello It's Me" is a Billboard no. 5 hit song composed, recorded, and performed by Todd Rundgren, released in late 1972.

Background

Hello It's Me was the first original song by Todd Rundgren.^[5] It was first recorded in 1968 by Rundgren's band Nazz and was included on their self-titled debut album. Although released as the B-side of the group's debut single "Open My Eyes" it was picked up in preference to the A-side by Boston radio station WMEX, where it rose to #1, and was subsequently picked up by other stations. It first charted in 1968 at #66 on the U.S. charts.

Rundgren's songs in this early phase of his career were heavily influenced by the work of Laura Nyro, but in a 2005 interview he revealed that the basic structure of the song was adapted from the introduction of a Jimmy Smith recording:

...the main influence for Hello It's Me was an eight bar intro that Jimmy Smith played on a recording of When Johnny Comes Marching Home.  He had this whole sort of block chord thing that he did to set up the intro of the song.  I tried to capture those changes, and those changes became what are the changes underneath Hello It's Me."  I then had to come up with melody and words, but the changes are actually almost lifted literally from something that was, from Jimmy Smith's standpoint, a throwaway.

— Todd Rundgren, puremusic.com ^[5]

Rundgren recorded an uptempo version of Hello It's Me on his 1972 solo album Something/Anything?. Although a remake of the original, this new version became widely popular and has since become a staple of the classic rock genre. An edit of this version was released as a single in 1973 and became Rundgren's only major pop hit, reaching #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Personnel on Todd Rundgren solo (studio) version

• Todd Rundgren – Lead vocals, Piano
• Mark "Moogy" Klingman – Organ
• John Siomos – Drums
• Stu Woods – Bass
• Robbie Kogale – Guitar
• Randy Brecker – Trumpet
• Michael Brecker – Tenor sax
• Barry Rogers – Trombone
• Hope Ruff – Backing vocals
• Richard Corey – Backing vocals
• Vicki Robinson – Backing vocals
• Dennis Cooley – Backing vocals
• Cecilia Norfleet – Backing vocals^[6]

In the media

• In the ending to the pilot of the Fox sitcom That '70s Show, Eric and the gang joyfully sing this in the car while on their way to a Todd Rundgren concert. The clip was used as the ending to the show's series finale as well. Subsequently, in the pilot, Jackie Burkhart says that she has the 45rpm of the song and the song played over the ending scene in which Eric Forman and Donna Pinciotti were lying on the Vista Cruiser.
• Paul Giamatti's character in the 2000 film Duets performs this song in a karaoke bar.
• Rundgren performed this song on the show The Midnight Special in 1973.
• The single was used in a 2009 Tums advert.
• The song is used in the movie The Virgin Suicides.
• Rundgren's version is used in the 2011 movie Paul.

Other versions

• A cover version of "Hello It's Me" was recorded by The Isley Brothers for their 1974 album Live It Up.^[7]
• A version influenced by the Isley Brothers' cover was recorded by Groove Theory for their 1995 self-titled album.^[8]
• Mary J. Blige recorded a version produced by Mark Ronson that appears on the Japanese and iTunes editions of her 2007 album Growing Pains.
• Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs included their take of the song on their album Under the Covers, Vol. 2.
• Lani Hall, Herb Alpert's wife, recorded this on her album, Hello It's Me, in 1975.
• Gerald Levert recorded a cover with Lil' Mo, which was used in the soundtrack for the movie The Mod Squad.
• John Legend recorded the song for a Gap-sponsored disc called "Favorite Songs."^[9]
• The Grip Weeds recorded the song on the album Strange Change Machine in 2010.
• San Diego based Indie Duo T.V Girl samples the intro of this song on their track 'If You Want It'
• Todd Rundgren recorded a new "Latin" version in 1997 on his album With a Twist...
• Erykah Badu recorded a version influenced by the Isley Brothers' cover on her 2015 mixtape But You Caint Use My Phone, as a duet with André 3000.

References

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics