Song of the day: Supertramp – "Another Man’s Woman"

I was chatting to Trevor the Plumber t’other day (Hi, Trevor, again!), and one of us said, “Easy does it”. That instantly put me in the mood to listen to some Supertramp. So…

Supertramp – “Another Man’s Woman“ (1975)

Song of the day: Supertramp – "Gone Hollywood"

I’m currently on a Supertramp binge, and that means you’re going to get some Supertramp coming your way.

Here’s my favourite song from Breakfast In America, “Gone Hollywood”.

My favourite part of “Gone Hollywood” is the bit that starts at 3:11, when Roger Hodgson sings “If we only had time…”. I think that section, coming after a two-minute build-up (which starts at 1:04), is magic.

I also adore the riff that kicks off each verse (e.g., 0:22-0:24). And the chugging guitars from 3:49-3:58. And the lyrics. And Bob Seibenberg‘s drumming. And John Helliwell‘s sax playing. And…

…and I just love this song.

Supertramp – “Gone Hollywood” (1979)

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Musical coincidences # 349

This coincidence is brought to you by my friend – and supplier of horrible music from the 1980s – Michael (Hi, Michael!) who heard a recent-ish Christmas song from British band Farrah and mentioned that he thought “it borrows a little of The Logical Song by Supertramp“.

That, my good man, is an understatement. To me, this coincidence falls into the “you can’t miss it” category.

Supertramp – “The Logical Song“ (1979) (excerpt)

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Farrah – “Santa Don’t Go“ (2010) (excerpt)

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For me, that is so obvious that I’m inclined to think it may have been a deliberate homage from Farrah. (It probably was, otherwise why would you add those castanets to the electric piano, just like in “The Logical Song”? Hmmm?)

Here are the full versions:

Farrah – “Santa Don’t Go“ (2010)

Supertramp – “The Logical Song“ (1979) (excerpt)

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Musical coincidences # 157

I think this is one of the weirder coincidences I’ve noticed.

I was in a huge Supertramp phase a couple of weeks ago, listening to their discography (and loving it – except for the post-Breakfast In America albums, which I think are dreadful). I’m only mentioning this because a part of a Supertramp song popped into my head yesterday. As I was humming* that tune, and for no discernible reason I can think of, it immediately reminded me of a very well known tune in a very well known pop song.

I’m sure this is an entirely coincidental coincidence:

Supertramp – “Just Another Nervous Wreck” (1979) (excerpt)

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Kylie Minogue – “I Should Be So Lucky“ (1987) (excerpt)

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Weird.

The full versions:

Supertramp – “Just Another Nervous Wreck” (1979)

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Kylie Minogue – “I Should Be So Lucky“ (1987)

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(*I hum a lot at home, and it bothers my family no end. I try not to do it in front of them, but I occasionally forget. My Charming Companion™ tells me my humming “sounds like a wounded animal.” Given the looks on the faces of those who hear me humming, I wouldn’t doubt that for a moment.)

Musical coincidences # 140

I’m currently in a rather large Supertramp phase at the moment, revisiting (and re-enjoying) their catalogue. Crime Of The Century has a song on it called “Rudy”, and one of its mighty dramatic bits is this instrumental run up the musical scale:

Supertramp – “Rudy” (1974) (excerpt)

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I don’t know why I’d never noticed it before, but this time it instantly reminded me of the instrumental run down the musical scale in Bruce Springsteen‘s “Born To Run“:

Bruce Springsteen – “Born To Run“ (1975) (excerpt)

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The biggest similiarity of those runs for me is the rhythm – the rhythm (i.e., the note placement) in the first few notes of each run is identical. Bruce adds a few more as he gets to the end of his run, but overall I reckon they’re both reminiscent of each other.

Here are the full versions:

Supertramp – “Rudy” (1974)

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Bruce Springsteen – “Born To Run“ (1975)

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