mj64

I agree with Giona. As a rule, I would only review (so far, I've done just one) albums that I consider to be very good. Personally, sticking to the topic of the USA, I love Pavlov's Dog (including At the Sound of the Bell) and know very little else. Soon I will dive into Echolyn, whom I've been appreciating a lot lately.

Thank you all for the undeserved compliments. I hope someone returns here to comment on the album, which is the real reason I jumped into the review. Dear Doctor J (nice nickname, even though back in the day I was a big fan of Magic and Kareem), if you're referring to Kevin Garnett, you're off base: I still hold onto the hope that Detroit will take out the horrid Celtics, even more unpleasant (Ray Allen aside) since they acquired the (very strong, to be clear) number 5 from Minnesota. If I'm mistaken, please correct me.

great review and an amazing album, perhaps the best. jeff lynne is a giant

Very good, Valerio, but if that’s the case, you're an old shit just like me. Or something like that. For this album, it’s worth what I said about Breakfast in America: they’ve made several better ones, but it’s the one I’m most attached to. Last Train to London and Shine a Little Love are disco trash, but damn, how beautiful they are. And Need Her Love? Chills down my spine. Personally, I adore The Diary of Horace Wimp. In fact, I’ll change my rating for it.

Great review. However, I disagree with the notion of poor studio record quality. In my opinion (and we’re talking about the 70s), the productions are excellent. As for the live performance, I find that, aside from the audience's cheers, it's a bit too similar to the studio execution. Just minor details, though; it’s one of my favorite live shows. Seen live (without Hodgson, it was the Brother Where You Bound tour), absolutely incredible musicians.

nice album: a step back from breakfast in america? I think so, although I should listen to it again after so many years. I wonder why when I think of this album, only it's raining again comes to mind, which frankly isn't a masterpiece. I definitely prefer brother were you bound as well.
@ jingpingmei: great initiative with the forum, but there are 9 members and 12 posts in over six months, maybe it's best to not insist.

great album, with the only flaw being dreamer, a nice song but, having known the version by the sorcio first, I’ve always hated it. this and even in the quietest moments are worth 5 in my opinion, breakfast in america maybe is a notch below but for how much I loved, consumed, longed for, and idolized it as a kid, it even reaches a 10!

this album is very beautiful, halfway between the crystalline prog (in the sense of extremely clean and - seemingly - simple sounds) of the previous works and the heavenly pop rock of breakfast in america. a nod to those who highlighted the beauty of Brother were you bound, a great album that shows how the great roger hodgson was actually much less essential in the band's production compared to rick davies. and the subsequent free as a bird is also not bad at all. a note to those who called them "ephemeral": come on, twenty years of career is not such a small amount. also a note regarding the definition of an anglo-american group: it may be true that they found global success with breakfast in america, and it may also be true that the drummer Bob Siebenberg is American, but supertramp are absolutely, irrefutably a British band (dougie thomson is Scottish).

Piano Fender and other trifles aside, I really enjoyed the review. Not so much the rating, because in my opinion (and I emphasize my opinion) this album is worth the maximum. The way I experienced it, I was 14 years old and I still remember the excitement when I ordered the LP from Dad who was going to the USA for work: when he came back, after taking off the magical cellophane wrapper, it started an uninterrupted flight with these ten pearls of pop rock accompanying my days as a dreamy teenager for time immemorial. I also understand that "Crime of the Century," "Crisis? What Crisis?" and perhaps a few other titles have something more from a musical point of view (with influences of beloved prog gradually erased by time), but this album is an epochal masterpiece, an absolute wonder. And the lyrics, not fluff: "Child of Vision," "Take the Long Way Home," the absolute poetry of "Lord Is It Mine." For me, this is THE ALBUM. I understand it doesn't have to be this way for everyone, but I can't deny it a 110 magna cum laude! How can we live in this way?

70s albums are superior, if only for the presence of Jon Anderson. But listening to Drama today is an absolute gem, let’s say 4.6. Machine Messiah. But even Does It Really Happen is far from bad: I remember it as the theme song of Discoring in 1980. Oh yes, I'm an old-timer.