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Crime of the Century

 
Album Review: Crime of the Century

  • Artist: Supertramp
  • Rating: StarStarStarStar
  • Release Date: 1974
  • Total Time: 43:25
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rock

Review

Supertramp came into their own on their third album, 1974's Crime of the Century, as their lineup gelled but, more importantly, so did their sound. The group still betrayed a heavy Pink Floyd influence, particularly in its expansive art rock arrangements graced by saxophones, but Supertramp isn't nearly as spooky as Floyd -- they're snarky collegiate elitists, an art rock variation on Steely Dan or perhaps a less difficult 10cc, filled with cutting jokes and allusions, best heard on "Bloody Well Right." This streak would later flourish on Breakfast in America, but it's present enough to give them their own character. Also present is a slight sentimental streak and a heavy fondness for pop, heard on "Dreamer," a soaring piece of art pop that became their first big hit. That and "Bloody Well Right" are the concise pop moments on the record; the rest of Crime of the Century is atmospheric like Dark Side of the Moon, but with a lighter feel and a Beatles bent. At times the album floats off into its own world, with an effect more tedious than hypnotic, but it's still a huge leap forward for the group and their most consistent album outside of that 1979 masterwork, Breakfast in America. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
School (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (5:34)
Bloody Well Right (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (4:31)
Hide in Your Shell (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (6:48)
Asylum (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (6:43)
Dreamer (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (3:31)
Rudy (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (7:19)
If Everyone Was Listening (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (4:04)
Crime of the Century (Lyrics) Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies Supertramp (5:36)

Credits

Roger Hodgson (Vocals), Jay Messina (Mastering), Bob Benberg (Drums), John Helliwell (Clarinet), Richard Davies (Harmonica), Roger Hodgson (Keyboards), Roger Hodgson (Guitar), Rick Davies (Vocals), Rick Davies (Keyboards), Rick Davies (Harmonica), Bill Levenson (Reissue Supervisor), Richard Hewson (String Arrangements), Bob C. Benberg (Drums), Supertramp (Producer), Richard Davies (Vocals), Roger Hodgson (Piano), John Jansen (Engineer), Dougie Thomson (Bass), Richard Davies (Keyboards), Ken Scott (Engineer), Paul Wakefield (Photography), Fabio Nicoli (Art Direction), Michael Diehl (Reissue Design), Paul Wakefield (Cover Design), Bob C. Benberg (Percussion), Ken Scott (Producer), Bob Benberg (Percussion), Bob Siebenberg (Drums), John Helliwell (Saxophone), Greg Calbi (Mastering), John Helliwell (Vocals), Dougie Thompson (Bass), Beth Stempel (Reissue Production Coordination)
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Wikipedia: Crime of the Century (album)
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Crime of the Century
Studio album by Supertramp
Released September 1974
Recorded Ramport Studios (South London), Scorpio Sound Studios (London), and Trident Studios (London) from February to June 1974
Genre Progressive rock
Length 44:10
Label A&M
Producer Ken Scott and Supertramp
Professional reviews
Supertramp chronology
Indelibly Stamped
(1971)
Crime of the Century
(1974)
Crisis? What Crisis?
(1975)

Crime of the Century is the third album by the progressive rock band Supertramp, released in 1974. The album was Supertramp's first to feature its classic lineup and co-producer Ken Scott (who previously worked with David Bowie and The Beatles).

The album was recorded at a number of studios including Ramport Studios (owned by The Who) and Trident Studios.

Many of the songs on the album are still staples of the band's shows ("School", "Bloody Well Right", "Rudy", and the title cut). Almost all of the album appears on the band's 1980 live album Paris although the tracks which featured orchestrations on the original Crime of the Century album ("Asylum", "Rudy", and "Crime of the Century") were replaced by string synthesizers or Oberheim synthesizers which were played mainly by John Helliwell with some help from Roger Hodgson.

The album was Supertramp's first U.S. Top 40 album and was eventually certified Gold in the U.S. in 1977 after the release of Even in the Quietest Moments.

The album was first re-released as a remaster on Gold CD and vinyl from MFSL. Then another remastered CD version of the album was released in 1997 and a different remaster on June 11, 2002, both on A&M Records. The A&M remasters feature all of the album art restored plus credits and full lyrics.

Contents

Track listing

All songs written by Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies.

Side one

  1. "School" – 5:35
  2. "Bloody Well Right" – 4:32
  3. "Hide In Your Shell" – 6:49
  4. "Asylum" – 6:45

Side two

  1. "Dreamer" – 3:31
  2. "Rudy" – 7:17
  3. "If Everyone Was Listening" – 4:04
  4. "Crime of the Century" – 5:32

Recording

While recording the album, Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson recorded approximately 42 demo songs, from which only 8 were chosen to appear on the album. Several other tracks appeared on future albums (Crisis? What Crisis?, ...Famous Last Words....)

Hodgson and Davies both stated that communication within the group was at a peak during the recording of this album.

Lyrics

On the original lyrics sheet insert of the LP, the lyrics and song details were printed with specific attention to the singer of each lyric. Roger Hodgson's vocals were coloured in white and Rick Davies' were yellow. When one sung lyrics in the other's song, his colour was used accordingly. An example of this would be the song "Asylum," where the conversation between the two is represented on the lyric sheet as alternating between white and yellow respectively for each vocalist.

Personnel

Supertramp

Other performers

  • Christine Helliwell - Backup vocals on "Hide in Your Shell"
  • Vicky Siebenberg - Backup vocals on "Hide in Your Shell"
  • Scott Gorham - Backup vocals on "Hide in Your Shell"
  • (Uncredited, unknown street musician) - Saw on "Hide in Your Shell"
  • Ken Scott - Water gong on "Crime of the Century"

Production

Original Release

  • Producers: Ken Scott and Supertramp
  • Engineers: Ken Scott, John Jansen
  • String arrangements: Richard Hewson
  • Cover design and photography: Paul Wakefield
  • Art direction: Fabio Nicoli

1997 and 2002 A&M Reissue

The 1997 and 2002 A&M Records reissues were mastered from the original master tapes by Greg Calbi and Jay Messina at Sterling Sound, New York, in 1997 and 2002. The reissues were supervised by Bill Levenson with art direction by Vartan and design by Mike Diehl, with production coordination by Beth Stempel.

Both the 1997 and 2002 remasters are heavily criticized by audiophiles who claim they were mastered too loud as part of the "loudness war" mastering trend. The 1997 remaster has all tracks peaking at 100 percent, altering the original dynamic range of the recording.

Charts

Album

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1975 Pop Albums 38

Singles

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1975 "Bloody Well Right" Pop Singles 35

External links



 
 

 

Copyrights:

Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Crime of the Century (album)" Read more