Supertramp for a Friday Jr. lunch – recorded on February 28, 1975 at Le Bataclan in Paris for Radio France International.
Going along with yesterday’s entry in the 70s sweepstakes – Supertramp were one of those bands, like ELO, who went exploring in search of new combinations and wound up staking a claim in the universal 70’s psyche. Where ELO went in a Classical direction, Supertramp dabbled in vestiges of Prog. Both bands were firmly planted in Pop and both bands became synonymous with the 70s and wall-to-wall airplay on most FM stations in America at the time.
The difference in both of these performances is the fact that ELO, by 1978 had become not only a household name, but were butting heads with Punk, who were the exact opposite of what Jeff Lynne and Company were basing their reputations on. In 1975 when this Supertramp broadcast was done, they were just at the cusp of breaking through by way of Crime Of The Century; their third album which was released in late 1974. The high point being Dreamer which was their first breakthrough hit single worldwide. The French audience seem to know it well.
It’s interesting to note that, even early on (they got started in 1970) they were considered primarily a Prog band, and perhaps that’s what held them back until 1974. They had already issued two albums which went nowhere and which also prompted the band to be dropped temporarily from A&M. By making a slight style shift, Supertramp were able to consider themselves primarily Pop with minor Prog influences on the side. That seemed to do the trick, particularly from a songwriting standpoint. But between 1970 and 1974 there were numerous personnel shifts which most likely affected the overall sound and musical direction of the band. No matter what it was, it seemed to work.
Supertramp continued on until the early 2000’s when various reasons (mostly health) prevented the band from keeping up the pace. They had, for all intents and purposes, broken up by 2012 after going through fits and starts from early 2000. The only original member of the band by 2012 was founder Rick Davies. Sadly, Davies died in 2025 after a long battle with Cancer.
But back to 1975 and this concert from Le Bataclan lovingly preserved by Radio France (although a bit creaky in spots with vocal mike distortion intermittent). Above all, it was a memorable concert by a band Rolling Stone once considered one of the 500 most memorable Prog Bands of all time.
In case you missed it the first time around, dive in.
