Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Supertramp
Label: A&M Records / Interscope
Release: 1985
Running time: 42:44
Rating: 4/5
English art rock champions Supertramp got a ‘shock therapy’ in 1983 with the departure of singer, guitarist and author of all their key hits, Roger Hodgson, and it’s one most bands would never have bounced back from. Truth be told, Supertramp never returned to their former artistic heights after Hodgson’s exit, which followed the release of the album »Famous Last Words« (1982), but in 1985 they still found enough energy to put together the excellent »Brother Where You Bound«, their last top-notch record, after which the songwriting spiral headed sharply downward.
From Roger’s departure onward, the reins of the band were taken over by singer and keyboardist Rick Davies, who also became the main songwriter and the author of most of the arrangements. Plenty of Supertramp devotees were seriously wondering at the time whether it even made any sense for the band to go on without Hodgson, but Davies was (overly) convinced he’d lead them successfully into a new era in which they might even manage to hold on to the popularity they’d enjoyed in the second half of the seventies and the early eighties. What hit Supertramp hardest after the exit of a key member of their classic lineup was that they suddenly lost that additional, distinctive and irreplaceable voice that was so beloved on their biggest hits.
Davies, who was in constant disputes with the charismatic singer and guitarist because of their completely different characters (nobody believed Rick’s official explanation that Roger left the band to devote more time to his family and that there was no bad blood between them), did his best on »Brother Where You Bound« to make up for the absence of Hodgson’s silky vocal contrast with his rough and at times fierce singing, but the distinctive, recognizable vocal harmonies vanished from the Supertramp sound collage forever. Another heavy blow in the making of »Brother Where You Bound« was the empty seat of a songwriter with an exceptional ear for creating big hits and intelligent, socially sharp lyrics. Hodgson’s guitar contribution was mostly filled in by guest guitarist Marty Walsh.
Still, with the opening evergreen »Cannonball«, the new, Davies-led Supertramp managed to create their last big hit, which did nicely on both sides of the Atlantic. Davies began leaning even more than before on arrangements built around his Wurlitzer electric piano, which, together with John Helliwell’s fiery and witty saxophone passages, served as a kind of engine of the classic, trademark Supertramp sound. It’s right on »Cannonball«, a perfectly arranged and sung track that Hodgson might even have liked, that you can clearly hear Davies gleefully and liberally using synthesizer textures too, in tune with the sonic trends of the day. According to Davies, the cynical and biting lyrics supposedly weren’t aimed at Hodgson but at some unnamed concert promoter who had evidently gotten on the cult keyboardist’s bad side in a big way.
»Still In Love«, backed by a ‘saloon’ piano, is a slightly more minimalist creation, with Davies’ distinctive vocal turn and spirited sax accompaniment, plus a commercial chorus that even has female backing harmonies. »No Inbetween« opens with the sounds of a music box, which hints that Supertramp hadn’t lost their sense of humor after Hodgson’s departure, even though it’s a deeply melancholic track that shakes you with its ambient depth. The subtle piano arrangement is wonderfully blended with orchestral curtains, while Davies, with an excellent vocal performance, proves once again that he wasn’t just a grumpy brute but had plenty of feel for refinement, melancholy and emotional subtlety. Helliwell, meanwhile, enchants with a mighty sax solo that deepens the nostalgic, melancholic mood even more.
On the lucid, experimentally minded »Better Days«, Davies clears the way for his spirited improvisations on the Wurlitzer piano, while Bob Siebenberg’s massive drum crashes back him up in the background. Over time, Davies’ Supertramp shape a vengeful motif with angry guitar passages courtesy of Marty Walsh, while Scott Walsh handles the guest flute. Helliwell doesn’t hold back with vivid sax artistry that reinforces the dynamic, tense atmosphere of this socially critical treat, on which you can also hear, among other things, rhetorical outbursts from Ronald Reagan and George Bush Sr.
The most ambitious track on the album, and its best, is the title track, a protest epic running over 16 minutes, on which Supertramp unexpectedly revive their progressive rock roots. Helping them out are rhythm guitarist Scott Gorham (today in Black Star Riders, once in Thin Lizzy), who is drummer Siebenberg’s brother-in-law, and David Gilmour (Pink Floyd), who shines in various spots of this epic masterpiece with his trademark guitar solos. The lyrics of the longest song in Supertramp history are a sharp critique of various Cold War themes, since the Cold War was still very much ‘alive’ at the time, so it’s no surprise the song opens with words from Orwell’s unforgettable novel ‘1984’.
The opening piano motif, on which Davies’ cynicism blossoms in all its epic scope, slightly recalls the opening setup of the unforgettable classic »Crime Of The Century«, which this epic masterpiece in many ways takes its cue from. The peak is a spirited motif with quickened rhythmic twists, epic arrangements and a triumphant-vengeful chorus, while a melancholic sax solo sets the stage for further pompous sections.
The socially biting lyrics, which poke fun at both the ‘West’ and the ‘East’, are among the best in their history and certainly the best of any song written in the post-Hodgson era. The interludes of improvisation that mark the longer instrumental section in the middle are some of the most experimental stuff in the entire Supertramp saga, and eloquent proof that the band had grown tired of the more commercially accessible direction of the previous few years and wanted, at least for a short while, to go back to their progressive rock roots. The album closes with the short piano ballad »Ever Open Door«, where center stage goes to Davies’ moving vocal performance.
»Brother Where You Bound«, the last Supertramp album still worth the attention of every music connoisseur, marked the start of a new era in which things for this legendary band slowly started going downhill. Over the next two years, Davies became obsessed with the dance trends of the time and was, among other things, ready to sell the band’s soul just to stay commercially relevant and keep in touch with the tastes of the ‘MTV’ generation. Of course, it ended up backfiring on him. »Brother Where You Bound« is an album that anyone in the prog rock crowd who is full of prejudice and convinced that pop is by definition something bad, especially pop from the eighties of the last century, absolutely has to hear, because on it Supertramp combine two seemingly incompatible musical worlds in perfect fashion.
Lineup
Rick Davies – keyboards, vocals
John Helliwell – saxophone
Bob Siebenberg – drums
Dougie Thomson – bass guitar
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Marty Walsh – guitar
Doug Wintz – trombone on “Cannonball”
Cha Cha – backing vocals on “Still in Love”
David Gilmour – guitar solo on “Brother Where You Bound”
Scott Gorham – guitar on “Brother Where You Bound”
Brian Banks – Synclavier programming
Anthony Marinelli – Synclavier programming
Scott Page – flute on “Better Days” & “Brother Where You Bound”
Gary Chang – Fairlight & PPG programming
Production
David Kershenbaum and Supertramp
Track list
1. Cannonball (7:40)
2. Still in Love (4:28)
3. No Inbetween (4:41)
4. Better Days (6:12)
5. Brother Where You Bound (16:34)
6. Ever Open Door (3:05)
