TS: Alan Parsons Project vs. Supertramp

Come on, Alan "women-with-syphilitic-pustules-on-cover!" Parsons never killed anybody. If you wanted George Martin lushness with McCartney tuneage with Lennon depression delivered with Harrison's clear-eyed, spiky intelligence (OK that's nasty, RIP and everything, but hey, we never expected brutal intellectual rigour from the founder [and IMHO only tolerant exemplar of give or take some Byrds] of jangle-pop, do we? Besides, everyone in the 70s was brain-dead so it's OK), they were a nice non-enervating alt. to Floyd, with a cast of pleasant singers instead of Roger 'Yoko Ono' Waters. (No dis on the Approx Infin Spacewoman here tho!) Also I think "Eye in the Sky" is an extraordinarily affecting song but that's because it reads also like the self-portrait of a complete asshole ("Paert of me knows what you're thinking" - the ultimate 'Nothing you say has any relevance whatever, you're a figment of my life and you've outlived your usefulness so bye bye' - "Don't say things you're gonna regret" cuz "I can read your mind!" This is imperiousness on the level of Stones' "Out of Time"!) so I identify reluctantly and that's the kind of unexpected pop moment that makes me believe in unexpected pop moments. Oh and as for Supertramp - they're just a parody of what the Beach Boys would've sounded like if Lenny Waronker and Eugene Landy had gotten to BW in 1966

haha mortification of mark s as bold youth in mid-70s, when my sistrah age 13 bought me the sheet music to "the logical song" for my birfday as an affectionate joke OH HOW I LAUGHED

MOST UN-PUNK THREAD EVER!

Seriously, I don't think Supertramp aspired to the progressive artistry that Alan Parsons attempted to scale, nor did Parsons' gang have as fluid a penchant for immediately infectious pop that marked Supertramp's watershed album, BREAKFAST IN AMERICA. That said, EDGAR ALAN POE'S TALES OF MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION did have "the Raven", which is still pretty fab and ominous, in a decidedly silly sorta way. Also, bonus points to Parsons for roping in Arthur Brown (of The Crazy World of..., who used to command us to "BURN!") to sing on "The Tell- Tale Heart". Doesn't strike me that Supertramp ever really found their stride again after BREAKFAST IN AMERICA (the LIVE IN PARIS album doesn't count) and gradually slipped off the radar (thanks to helium- voiced Rodger Hodgson's exit), whereas Parsons kept churning out lighter-fared stuff like "Games People Play," "Eye in the Sky", "Talk About Me" etc. etc. etc. As much as I harbour a soft spot for BREAKFAST IN AMERICA, I'm going with da Projekt!

"The Logical Song" better in its current form than original, surely?

Roger Hodgson & Rick Davies's work together (Supertramp) has created a music that is eternal almost beyond beauty.... I'm 21 years old, my friends make fun of me ALL THE TIME, but i don't care, i'm proud to say i am a BIG FAN. Their songs are amongst the most honest ever written, both musically and lyrically. They are not a ROCK or POP, they are just Supertramp, just unique........ Personally I would say that most of the best artists defy genres and are unique, thats what makes them so good.