BREAKFAST IN AMERICA

"Breakfast In America" is the sixth studio album of Supertramp and was released in 1979. The album was recorded in the previous year at the Village Recorder in Los Angeles, California. After their previous fifth studio album "Even In The Quietest Moments?", Supertramp decided to concentrate totally their attention on the USA market. And I must confess that, in strictly commercial terms, they totally won the bet, because the album was an extraordinary sales success.

"Breakfast In America" was also the album where the first tensions between the members and main composers of the band, Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies started to come to the fore. Those tensions were focused on divergences with the choice of the songs for the album, because Rick Davies didn't like the song "Breakfast In America" and he didn't want it on the album. But the divergences were also about the title of the album because Rick Davies didn't want the album to be titled "Breakfast In America". He would rather prefered the names "Working Title" or "Hello Stranger".

"Breakfast In America" has ten tracks. The first track "Gone Hollywood" written by Rick Davies is a great song to open this album. It's a very good melodic song and the interplay between Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson's vocals is absolutely perfect, as always. The second track "The Logical Song" written by Roger Hodgson was one of the songs chosen to be released also as a single and it was really one of their biggest radio hits ever. This is, without any doubt, a typical and classic Supertramp's song with wonderful harmony, great vocals and good keyboards, and with a nice final touch of the saxophone of John Helliwell. This is really a great song. The third track "Goodbye Stranger" written by Rick Davies is another great song. This is one of the songs from this album that have a video music. It's a song with great melody and also with a very good rhythm section, and where, once more, the interplay between Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson's vocals is absolutely perfect. The fourth track is the title track "Breakfast In America". It was written by Roger Hodgson and is the song that Rick Davies didn't want on the album. This is another song that was chosen to be released also as a single. It was also a classic song and a big hit on the radio stations. This is the shortest and most commercial song on the album. It's very melodic and, personally, I've no problems with it. I like this song very much. The fifth track "Oh Darling" written by Rick Davies is, until this moment, the weakest song on the album. This isn't a very memorable song really and it's, in my humble opinion, a perfect failure because it isn't a great commercial song. There isn't much more to say about it, really. The sixth track "Take The Long Way Home" written by Roger Hodgson was the fourth song to be chosen to be released as a single and was also a big hit of this album, another top ten single. This is another great moment on this album with the saxophone and the piano in evidence. It helps to maintain the level of the album in a high quality position. The seventh track "Lord Is It Mine" also written by Roger Hodgson is a mellow ballad very calm and nice. But unfortunately, this is an example of a case that doesn't keep the level of the album in a so high quality position. It's a good song, but sincerely, I can't see anything special on it. The eighth track "Just Another Nervous Wreck" written by Rick Davies is another good song but with the same problem of "Oh Darling" and "Lord Is It Mine". It's the third weaker song on the album and once more, the high level of it decreased because it isn't a song made to be a big hit or even a great progressive song. The ninth track "Casual Conversations" also written by Rick Davies is the second smallest song on the album with a jazzy touch and with a very nice saxophone sound of John Helliwell. However, it doesn't save the song and we may say this is the fourth, but fortunately, the last weaker song on the album. The tenth track "Child Of Vision" written by Roger Hodgson is the lengthiest and the epic song on the album. It's probably the best song on the album, the most progressive and it's my favourite too. It's a wonderful, classic and typical Supertramp's song with all the typical ingredients of their music like the beautiful harmony and a catchy rhythm. This is the real usual trademark of the band on this album. I think this is a perfect way to close this album.

Conclusion: "Breakfast In America" is a very good album and represents, in my humble opinion, a change on their music to a more commercial approach. I disagree with those who believe that "Even In The Quietest Moments?" is the album of that approach. Definitely, "Even In The Quietest Moments?" is a much better album and it's also much more balanced than "Breakfast In America" is, but above all, it's much more progressive. By the other hand, and as I said before, "Crisis? What Crisis" isn't, sincerely, inferior to "Breakfast In America". I even dare to say that in a certain way, it's better than "Breakfast In America" is. "Crisis? What Crisis" is more balanced than "Breakfast In America" is, because it has less weak points, but above all, it's more progressive and less commercial. I agree with Easy Livin. By the time of "Breakfast In America", Supertramp were big, but prog lost out to the lure of commercial success again.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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