Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Supertramp
Label: A&M Records / Interscope
Released: 1975
Length: 47:24
Rating: 4/5
Cult art rock champions Supertramp found themselves in an unusual spot in 1975. The studio masterpiece »Crime Of the Century« (1974) had brought them a commercial success they hadn’t dared hope for even in their wildest dreams, and practically overnight they went from obscure oddballs who’d narrowly missed their chance to join the more important progressive rock pioneers to global stars who were suddenly expected to churn out hits en masse. Worth noting: Supertramp enjoyed their commercial breakthrough at a time when art rock, helped along by bands like Electric Light Orchestra, Roxy Music and Queen, was storming the top of the charts. The pressure from the label, which wanted a new studio album ASAP, was already huge during the »Crime Of the Century« tour, so the band’s two main songwriters and ringleaders, guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Roger Hodgson and keyboardist/vocalist Rick Davies, locked themselves in the studio before Supertramp had even had a chance to recover from life on the road. The tour itself ended early, by the way, because of Hodgson’s injured hand.
The main problem while making the new album was that the ideas just wouldn’t flow, so while working on Supertramp’s fourth studio effort, fittingly titled »Crisis? What Crisis?«, Hodgson and Davies had to dig up some material written during or even before »Crime Of the Century«, which for various reasons hadn’t made it onto that record. The title and the idea for the cover, where a fat cat sunk into a comfy armchair soaks up the sun amid total devastation, were typical Supertramp mischievous sarcasm, and at the same time a parody of the economic crisis gripping most of the Western world in the mid-seventies and of the aforementioned writer’s block, which luckily didn’t have any worse consequences. Still, the songwriting and personality differences between the band’s two ringleaders kept growing year after year.
»Crisis? What Crisis?«, even though Hodgson and Davies didn’t manage to recapture the brilliance of the inimitable »Crime Of the Century« this time, has some excellent compositions and, despite the lack of big hits, easily ranks among the better efforts of their career. This time around Supertramp doubled down on the sonic ingredients they were already strongest at: the successful blending of complex rhythmic signatures and melodic, symphonic arrangements with anthemic choruses, socially critical, satirical lyrics, the vocal contrast between Hodgson’s distinctive ‘warbling’ and Davies’ ‘grumbling’, symphonic grandeur on Davies’ electric piano, Hodgson’s melodic guitar variations and witty saxophone passages courtesy of John Anthony Helliwell.
»Easy Does It« opens with the sound of the whistling yuppie from the cover, accompanied by the chaos of traffic in the background. The acoustic guitar intro has a pleasant, slightly orientally tinged melody, and Hodgson’s distinctive, mischievous vocals sit right in the middle of it, just the thing for kicking off the album. »Sister Moonshine« has a string of fun acoustic guitar chords that, with the help of harmonica and Hodgson’s vocal outpourings backed by Davies’ harmonic support, create a melodramatic atmosphere. Juicy organ layers and sly guitar variations get company in the form of Helliwell’s whistle and make for a wonderful dance of instrumental and ambient variety.
»Ain’t Nobody But Me« is even one of the best moments in the entire Supertramp story, with the vocal harmonies, jointly handled by both band ringleaders, hitting their sarcastic climax mid-chorus. In the instrumental interludes Helliwell really lets loose with his glamorous sax passages, while Davies’ mischievous organ layers playfully keep up an enviable rhythmic liveliness. On »A Soapbox Opera«, where the protective black humor and cynicism are impossible to miss, it really shows for the first time on the album that at this stage of their career, despite the considerable pop sensibility that had started to dominate their sound, Supertramp still had plenty of room to maneuver for various progressive rock instrumental detours. Hodgson’s vocals deliver a proper drama right from the start, while the mighty symphonic arrangements on the Wurlitzer electric piano crank up the melancholic atmosphere even further, which contrasts sharply with the mocking lyrics.
On »Another Man’s Woman«, yet another biting social satire, Davies takes the lead vocal duties again, while Hodgson contributes some nicely sharpened guitar phrases that make a lovely contrast with the symphonic electric piano arrangements. The playful improvisations in the instrumental section are a feast for the ears, especially the mouthwatering Wurlitzer solo. »Lady« of course has nothing to do with the Styx classic of the same name, but is a thoroughly characteristic Supertramp classic, where the band wins you over with melodic sensibility, symphonic melodrama building and yet another brilliant Hodgson vocal performance poking fun at some love clichés.
»Poor Boy« features pastoral accordion arrangements and playful piano flourishes, while Davies’ vocals, with occasional assistance from his guitar-playing partner and a jazzy use of piano, energetically command the cheeky melody. »Just A Normal Day«, where Davies and Hodgson trade off harmoniously on the lead vocals, is a piano-driven ballad with solemn symphonic arrangements, and Helliwell’s brilliant sax solo deserves special attention. »The Meaning« is a somewhat darker affair, where Hodgson’s vocals, sounding even more mournful than usual, gradually raise the drama over acoustic guitar, with passionate sax passages and layered symphonic textures also chipping in generously. »Two Of Us«, stuffed with sacral-tinged symphonic arrangements and melancholic guitar chords, is a pastoral love ballad starring a high-‘warbling’ Hodgson, and it’s fair to say it makes for a deeply moving closer.
Sure, »Crisis? What Crisis?« is nowhere near the quality of its predecessor »Crime Of the Century«, but it’s far from the misfire that some members of the band (even former ones) still consider it to be today. Truth be told, it’s probably the most overlooked album of their career, which simply had the bad luck of coming out after an artistically superior record that had given them their big commercial breakthrough. The singles from »Crisis? What Crisis?« admittedly got a rather lukewarm response, but the album itself had a nice commercial run in the US too, and anyway it was typical of Supertramp throughout most of their career that their albums were usually more popular than their singles. The biggest success and at the same time the artistic peak of their career, though, would be reached by Hodgson, Davies, Helliwell, Thomson and Siebenberg, i.e. the classic Supertramp, four years later anyway.
Lineup
Roger Hodgson – vocals, guitar and keyboards
Richard Davies – vocals and keyboards
John Anthony Helliwell – wind instruments and backing vocals
Dougie Thomson – bass guitar
Bob Sienberg – drums and percussion
Production
Ken Scott and Supertramp
Tracklist
1. Easy Does It (2:17)
2. Sister Moonshine (5:15)
3. Ain’t Nobody But me (5:12)
4. A Soapbox Opera (4:50)
5. Another Man’s Woman (6:20)
6. Lady (5:24)
7. Poor Boy (5:08)
8. Just a Normal Day (3:59)
9. The Meaning (5:21)
10. Two of Us (3:29)
