by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Rick Davies, Bob Siebenberg, Mark Hart, and John Helliwell re-formed Supertramp with a number of anonymous studio musicians in 1997 to record and release Some Things Never Change, their first album in ten years. And the title is correct -- nothing much has changed within Supertramp's world; they're simply churning out the same sophisticated jazzy, lite-funk-inflected pop as they did in the mid-'80s. The only thing that is different is that the group can no longer write ingratiatingly catchy melodies as they did when they called it quits in the '80s, but hardcore fans will still find the instrumental interplay a joy to hear.
By "progrock86"
Unlike many people have suggested, alot has changed with Supertramp.
"It's A Hard World" opens the album, and it is anything but your typical Supertramp fare. The dark, smokey jazz track is something like Steely Dan on a cloudy day with more soul. Clocking at nearly ten minutes, the tune showcases chilled-out electric piano, atmospheric effects and plenty of little guitar and horn interjections. A much hipper, darker sound is displayed in this song that Supertramp has never touched upon before.
The next track, the light-heard "You Win, I Lose" is cute, but it wears off pretty fast, with its jumpy little guitar rolls and cheery electric piano. This track appears to be an attempt at reproducing the classic sound, but it doesn't work too well. The chorus is pretty decent, but overall, this song, instead of resurrecting the positive sound of "classic" Tramp, it only proves to be a bit embarrasing.
"Get You Act Together" has sort of a bluesy feel, but is far too clean to reallby be classified as that. The chorus, though, is pure Supertramp, which effortlessly shows us the feel that the previous track failed at. This song might be considered "easy-listening" by some people for its easy-going groove, but Davies' soulful voice knocks down all such accusations.
"Live to Love You," however, is easy-listening to the fullest, but who could help but indulge in the tuneful pleasures of Rick Davies' sincere voice? Not very good, but tolerable for a ballad.
The title track is a punchy jazz-rock number that features a mind-blowing, groove-a-licious chorus with a hip, jazz-funk feel that is one of the best things the band has ever done. Some cool but not-too-original guitar soloing is thrown in for good measure, but the real attraction is Rick's electric piano solo. The jamming is confident, sophisticated, and infectious, and the glassy timbre of the electric piano makes this nothing short of aural bliss, and the subsequent trippy sax/trumpet jamming is perhaps the Tramps spaciest moment in their history.
"Listen to Me Please" features some entertaining vocal interaction between Davies and Mark Hart, and while the vocals are a tad trite, the song has an icy, jazz-ish vibe to it that makes a real pleasure to listen to.
"Sooner of Later" has this bassline that is one of those riffs that _should_ have gone into the pantheon of greatest basslines ever, but hey, you can't win 'em all. Hart's breezy vocals carry this funky jazz groove for the first couple minutes, and then it reaches new hieghts of grooviness when the horn section embarks on a first-rate journey through jazz improvisation, not to mention the funky organ jamming, which is also quite delicious.
"Help Me Down that Road" is in the same vein as "Get Your Act Together," but scores significantly higher on the soul factor, due to its more sincere feel and spicy groove. Quite different from anything we've heard from this group before.
"And the Light" is a soft-sounding ballad, of a type which a generally shun, and yet I find myself enjoying this tune at last. I guess I am just a sucker for Davies' voice, since the composition and the lyrics are rather unoriginal and corny.
The next track is a secret track of sorts. If its on your CD, than lucky you. But otherwise, the next track should be "C'est What?" which is another jazz-rock tour-de-force, which gets quite ferociously groovy from time to time, in between mellower sections. This song is all about dynamics. Quiet, loud, quiet, loud, etc. Definetly the most rocking song on here, which borrows from jazz, rock as well as soul and classic R'n'B.
"Where There's A Will" starts of sounding lame enough, and the intentionally clicheic lyrics, but once it gets picked up, it actually has a pretty cool soulful sound, and you can tell that Davies is really playing and singing his heart on this one, despite the dumb lyrics. But dig the almost Gospel-ish sound on this track. It's pretty unlike anything that the band has ever done, like most stuff on this album.
After a close examination of this album, it appears that more has changed than the title suggests. In fact, this album is a prime example of the drastic evolution a band can undergo in a lengthy 30 year career. Sure, the style has changed quite a bit, but the unique spirit of Supertramp remains intact. It's just a matter of finding it in this interesting and unusual album.
"It's A Hard World" opens the album, and it is anything but your typical Supertramp fare. The dark, smokey jazz track is something like Steely Dan on a cloudy day with more soul. Clocking at nearly ten minutes, the tune showcases chilled-out electric piano, atmospheric effects and plenty of little guitar and horn interjections. A much hipper, darker sound is displayed in this song that Supertramp has never touched upon before.
The next track, the light-heard "You Win, I Lose" is cute, but it wears off pretty fast, with its jumpy little guitar rolls and cheery electric piano. This track appears to be an attempt at reproducing the classic sound, but it doesn't work too well. The chorus is pretty decent, but overall, this song, instead of resurrecting the positive sound of "classic" Tramp, it only proves to be a bit embarrasing.
"Get You Act Together" has sort of a bluesy feel, but is far too clean to reallby be classified as that. The chorus, though, is pure Supertramp, which effortlessly shows us the feel that the previous track failed at. This song might be considered "easy-listening" by some people for its easy-going groove, but Davies' soulful voice knocks down all such accusations.
"Live to Love You," however, is easy-listening to the fullest, but who could help but indulge in the tuneful pleasures of Rick Davies' sincere voice? Not very good, but tolerable for a ballad.
The title track is a punchy jazz-rock number that features a mind-blowing, groove-a-licious chorus with a hip, jazz-funk feel that is one of the best things the band has ever done. Some cool but not-too-original guitar soloing is thrown in for good measure, but the real attraction is Rick's electric piano solo. The jamming is confident, sophisticated, and infectious, and the glassy timbre of the electric piano makes this nothing short of aural bliss, and the subsequent trippy sax/trumpet jamming is perhaps the Tramps spaciest moment in their history.
"Listen to Me Please" features some entertaining vocal interaction between Davies and Mark Hart, and while the vocals are a tad trite, the song has an icy, jazz-ish vibe to it that makes a real pleasure to listen to.
"Sooner of Later" has this bassline that is one of those riffs that _should_ have gone into the pantheon of greatest basslines ever, but hey, you can't win 'em all. Hart's breezy vocals carry this funky jazz groove for the first couple minutes, and then it reaches new hieghts of grooviness when the horn section embarks on a first-rate journey through jazz improvisation, not to mention the funky organ jamming, which is also quite delicious.
"Help Me Down that Road" is in the same vein as "Get Your Act Together," but scores significantly higher on the soul factor, due to its more sincere feel and spicy groove. Quite different from anything we've heard from this group before.
"And the Light" is a soft-sounding ballad, of a type which a generally shun, and yet I find myself enjoying this tune at last. I guess I am just a sucker for Davies' voice, since the composition and the lyrics are rather unoriginal and corny.
The next track is a secret track of sorts. If its on your CD, than lucky you. But otherwise, the next track should be "C'est What?" which is another jazz-rock tour-de-force, which gets quite ferociously groovy from time to time, in between mellower sections. This song is all about dynamics. Quiet, loud, quiet, loud, etc. Definetly the most rocking song on here, which borrows from jazz, rock as well as soul and classic R'n'B.
"Where There's A Will" starts of sounding lame enough, and the intentionally clicheic lyrics, but once it gets picked up, it actually has a pretty cool soulful sound, and you can tell that Davies is really playing and singing his heart on this one, despite the dumb lyrics. But dig the almost Gospel-ish sound on this track. It's pretty unlike anything that the band has ever done, like most stuff on this album.
After a close examination of this album, it appears that more has changed than the title suggests. In fact, this album is a prime example of the drastic evolution a band can undergo in a lengthy 30 year career. Sure, the style has changed quite a bit, but the unique spirit of Supertramp remains intact. It's just a matter of finding it in this interesting and unusual album.
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