Supertramp - Crime of the Century
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Free Music Notes for Crime of the Century
Free Music Review: A True Classic
Hit: 4 Stars
John Lennon or Paul McCartney? David LeeRoth or Sammy Hagar? Metallica or Megadeth? Britney or Christina? Rick or Roger?
Who's your favorite in rocks big rivalries?
Most are one or the other and in the case of Supertramp composers, I've always leant (with the majority I guess) to Roger.
Roger's songs have that instant likeability to them and while sometimes too grand and diverse, always contain interesting subject matters. Not that I'm trying to be unfair to Rick; I'm sure he has he share of fans and can probably take a lot of credit for input into Roger's songs while they were together. I'm not into Blues music which Rick leaned towards and Rick's voice (some would say the same about Roger's) can be a bit annoying. Some of Rick's songs rank in among my Supertramp favorites, it's just Roger dominates that list. Having said that, I don't own any post-Roger albums so am not qualified to venture any opinion on those years output.. Call me too commercial, too mainstream or whatever, but who (be honest) didn't get into Supertramp after hearing one of Roger's songs?
Onto this album:
Crime was Supertramp's 3rd album and the first with its `classic' lineup. After an interesting debut album in 1970 and a less diverse follow up (sorry but Indelibly Stamped is too Rick, not enough Roger and other than the classic Rosie Had Everything Planned, doesn't offer much) in 1971, Supertramp hit their peak with this album. A sharp rise and a few years at their best until the inevitable decline - which started with the second half of Breakfast In America.
Short (only 8 tracks) in today's terms, Crime is all about substance. While some tracks plod in parts, on the whole Crime is a treat.
School finally gets going with a gentle Roger vocal and builds to an all in piano jam session with Rick lending his vocals near the end. While not up with their absolute best, it's an interesting song and good opener, though Roger's weakest track on the album.
Bloody Well Right is one of Rick's best songs. A gentle piano intros then psychedelic guitar leads into an all in blues rocker.
Hide In Your Shell is one of Supertramp's best. It's gentle, sad, touching and uplifting all in one. A Roger classic.
Asylum is the albums weak point. Overlong considering what content it offers. Had it been half its length it would be better. The screaming `insanos' don't age well. Has its moments but out of place amongst the rest of the songs here.
Dreamer is of course the best known song here. While an awesome track, I've always felt it didn't really go anywhere. It builds nicely but never really takes off. When you think it's about it pulls back. Perhaps that's its charm. Great use of stereo with Roger's vocals answering Rick's.
Rudy is another Rick `classic' but for me it's a bit hit and miss. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't. Certainly the hard edged ending always does it for me but I've never really gotten into the chorus. The softer parts though are great.
If Everyone Was Listening is a gem that doesn't generally get the recognition it deserves. Classic Roger, it's perhaps though, in too standard a format - quiet, uninspired verse with catchy, anthem-like chorus.
Crime Of The Century (along with From Now On) is Rick's best song. What won me over with this song is the subtle change with the piano at the end. I thought it clever and fell in love with the song - from reverse I guess.
The album maybe would have benefited from the addition of the Roger written Land Ho (which was released as a single the same year), but I guess you couldn't have Land Ho and Dreamer on the same album - given they are so similar.
If you have any of their best of's, you may not need this (as most tracks are found elsewhere) but to complete (or start) your Supertramp collection, don't go past this one.
Free Music Review: A Landmark Of Progressive Music
Hit: 5 Stars
Through the history of rock, a handful of albums are considered turning points. Most are large points in time. But a handful of albums are a bit more specialized in how they influenced the future of music. "Crime Of The Century" is just such an album. Until this album, progressive rock had been either loud and rambling, as bands like Deep Purple and Black Sabbath were exploring, or long soaring journeys like Yes and King Crimson developed. At this stage, no band had taken simple pop songs and applied prog rock stylings to them. "School", "Asylum" and "Crime Of The Century" are amazing, cornerstone songs that take simple pop melodies and turn them into something so much more than we had ever heard before. Even the songs that are less fleshed out, like "Bloody Well Right", "Dreamer" and "Hide In Your Shell" are far more challenging lyrically than the other pop ditties of the 1970's. For those who know Supertramp for their multi-platinum "Breakfast In America", parts of this less commercial album will be a surprise. Make no mistake though - this album is an essential package that should be in every true music fan's collection.Free Music Review: Supertramp - 'Crime Of The Century' (A&M)
Hit: 5 Stars
Originally released in 1974,as this was Supertramp's fourth actual/proper release.Until recently,I've always thought this was their first album.'Crime...' apparently features more melodic,better written and tighter sounding tunes than their earlier efforts.Tracks here that more than makes the grade are "School","Bloody Well Right"(a Supertramp signatue song),the tear-jerker "Dreamer","Rudy" and the title cut "Crime Of The Century".Great album rock.An absolute must-have.Free Music Review: Remastered?...... Still not as good as Vinyl...
Hit: 3 Stars
I've recently "rediscovered" my love for Supertramp, and until now only had "Crime of the Century" on Vinyl.... its one of my long time reference recordings... a good pressing that sounds great. I'm very VERY disappointed in the sound of this CD remaster. Yes it's very clean, but all the life has been compressed (more like squashed) out of it. Supertramp was all about drama and dynamics, and this CD has none of it. The drums, the snare and toms, should pop like cannons on the final track, and this CD comes nowhere close to my 20 year old LP. I'm going to track down the Mobile Fidelity version of this CD... it's got to be better than this. Whoever mastered this should be tortured by having to listen to it.
My old Supertramp CDs may sound a bit rough around the edges, but at least they had some punch and life to them. My old "Brother where you Bound" is tremendously dynamic.... i'm very afraid to hear how the new remaster compares. It's like one step forward, but 2 steps back in my opinion. I'm very sad about the current trends in remastering.
I give the music 5 stars, but the remaster only 2 stars.
Free Music Review: Supertramp rocks
Hit: 5 Stars
From beginning to end this album is just fantastic. Much as a I like Breakfast in America, this is far superior.