RETROSPECTACLE - THE SUPERTRAMP ANTHOLOGY

They've had a good go at putting all the best Supertramp music on this 2 disc set.Lots of songs from Breakfast In America and Crime Of The Century as well as lost gems like Cannonball and Don't Leave Me Now.This is a perfect compilation for anyone who doesn't want to buy every Supertramp album but just wants the essential moments.High class AOR for sure.

When Supertramp finally made it big, they were abhorred by the critics, at least in their country of origin. Not only did they have long hair, beards and a saxophone player with 'uncool' glasses; they also had TWO keyboardists (much of the time) and a vocalist who, in a whining voice somewhat similar to Jon Anderson's (at least to the unitiated), kept asking questions (again and again and again) about the Meaning of Life... In an age of safety pins, skinny ties and black leather jackets, noe of this seemed cool. But believe me, as soon as they'd released BREAKFAST IN AMERICA, Supertramp cried and cried all the way to the bank. And deservedly so, in my opinion: love 'em or hate 'em, both that album's title track and 'The Logical Song' were catchy as hell.

Just after CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS had come out, i.e. when I was sixteen, I was crazy about Supertramp for half a year or so. The maudlin mood captured so well by their lead singer, Roger Hodgson, perfectly fitted my own. I was particularly enamoured of the song 'Hide in your Shell' (from CRIME OF THE CENTURY), which seemed to express my longing for unattainable love. I can't remember how often I enjoyed that climactic moment when Hodgson goes:

"I wanna know... / I wanna know you... / Well let me know you / I wanna feel you / I wanna touch you / Please let me near you / Can you hear what I'm saying? / Well I'm hoping, I'm dreamin', I'm prayin' / I know what you're thinkin' / See what you're seein' / Never ever let yourself go..."

I'm sure such words don't make much sense when you see them on a computer screen; you just HAVE to hear them with the music! Anyway, it was a severe disappointment to me that 'Hide in your Shell' is NOT included in this anthology. Other than that, this seems as representative a selection of Supertramp's oeuvre as you're ever likely to get.

I stopped listening to Supertramp albums around 1977 (although I couldn't, of course, escape their music on the radio) and switched to (among others) the Talking Heads, whose lead vocalist could be just as sentimental as Mr Hodgson. So when this anthology became available at a bargain price, I wanted to find out if I'd still enjoy the old tunes. And believe me, folks, I did! Never mind all those tearful lyrics, these guys certainly knew how to write and perform powerful pop songs.

As any Supertramp freak (if they still exist!) will tell you, most of the material from the albums CRIME OF THE CENTURY and CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS? sounds inspired. Let me give you a single example. 'Lady' is a strong composition. It opens with a bang; the verses grab you by the lapels; the chorus sounds cool; sax, electric guitar AND percussion are irresistible; and after the final chorus the song isn't even over: unperturbed, the band keep piling up vocal embellishments. Tunes such as 'Lady' have all the exuberance that also characterised Queen, 10CC and even Zappa at their best.

Crimes of omission

While "Retrospectacle" is undoubtedly the finest Supertramp compilation to date, it is by no means definitive. The 32 tracks here include the various hit singles, plus the better known album tracks such as "School" and "Bloody well right", both from "Crime of the century".

The tracks, which are presented in strict chronological order, focus on the band's most successful albums from "Crime of the century" through to "Breakfast in America" with no less than 19 tracks from the four albums covered by this period. Notable omissions include "Fool's overture", "A soapbox opera" and "Hide in your shell" (an unforgivable oversight in my opinion). On the plus side, we have both the A and B side of the non album single "Land ho", released during the recording of "Crime of the century". "You started laughing" is another comparative rarity, the recording here being taken from the live "Paris" album. The original studio version only ever appeared as a single B side.

Significantly, space is found for just one track from each of the post Hodgson era albums, which for me is quite sufficient!

There is no doubting the quality of the music from the band's golden age from 1974 to 1982. This collection however paints a rather predictable and superficial picture of the period, and as such plays into the hands of those who question Supertramp's prog credentials.

As ever, it is better to stick to the original studio albums. By the way, beware of the single disc edition of this compilation, which comes with exactly the same cover.

Well, at last! This is the best compilation that there is in the market, in my opinion, from the music of SUPERTRAMP. It includes songs from all the periods and line-ups of the band, in chronological order from 1970 to 2002. Even if it includes songs released in previous compilations, this is more complete and more representative than previous compilations. It even has two songs released in a single in 1974 recorded with their "Classic line-up", before their "Crime of the Century "album was released.

How many compilations or live albums, even being very good, leave some fans like me a bit frustrated? I can count several from several bands! In this case, the only thing that it is frustrating from this compilation is that the studio version of "You Started Laughing" which appeared as a B- side of their "Lady" single in 1975 was left unreleased again on CD, replacing it with the live version of this song which appeared in their "Paris" album. Why? This is almost the only thing in this compilation that I don`t like. But it is a very good compilation, in my opinion.

Retrospectable - Supertramp's music from early period to the final studio album they released in 2002. This is a really good double CD compilation gathering all the hits band had over the years from bluesy moments of the first album going through the mid to late '70's when Supertramp were huge having releasing timeless classics tunes like The Logical Song or the title track Breakfast in America among others. This is a good compilation for a begginer, this way anyone can judhe , listen their music, how thy evolved and decrise over the years. Definetly a 3 star worth for sure. I myself I was very pleasent surprised, even is more then 2 hours of music. From all the pieces the ones from Breakfast in America or the ones from Even in the quest moments are the best period for the band, IMO. I was not been impressed , even I know the album for years but Crime of the century is a pale release in comparation with their most diverse and solid album from 1979 Breakfast in America. Their combination of melodic elements, piano arrangements and here and there progressive moods make from Supertramp a well known band over the years, respected by many listners, even the most pretencious ones. All in all, if you want to check some of Supertramp music from the begginig of their career to the last release they offer so far from 2002 this is pretty intristing stuff to be check out. 3-3.5 for sure.

People are always afraid to give compilations 5 stars; usually because they're fans, they disagree with the track choices, they think that yet another compilation from *insert band name* isn't neccesary, they hate commercialism, or most commonly, all of the above!

I try to just rate the content, and how suitable it is to a newcomer or casual fan. This comprehensive package holds up well. We have a large selection, with at least one track from every Supertramp album, and several more from the better ones, plus they're all in chronological order. They couldn't have made things any easier for you!

If you're looking for a meaty double album full of great songs both familiar and unknown, but for whatever reason you don't want to buy a few studio albums, then this is kind of ideal. All the recognisable mega- hits from 'Breakfast in America' are present, the cream of 'Crime...', a surprising number from lesser peaks 'Crisis..' and 'Even in the Quietist Moments', some unreleased gems, and a load of mediocre pap from the later albums nobody ever buys (but hey, without them this thing would be incomplete). Possibly worrying omissions: Hide in your Shell, A Soapbox Opera, Fool's Overture, Brother Where You Bound........ but only a fan would care, and a fan wouldn't buy a compilation (I only have it from a family member, who praised it endlessly).

This is the mother of all chrono-comps, with correct ratios and other boring features that worry us reviewers. Just stop hesitating and buy it!