It Was the Best of Times
Encyclopedia
It Was the Best of Times is a live album by Supertramp
. The title makes use of the opening line from A Tale Of Two Cities
by Charles Dickens
.
Recorded in London at the Royal Albert Hall
during the It's About Time tour in September 1997. This CD also features the song "Don't You Lie To Me" a blues song that the band had performed on their 1988 tour and the only song not written by a current or former band member. The band is augmented by additional players added for this album and tour as well as "Slow Motion" the follow up studio album recorded and released in 2002.
The album was pulled from performances of the band on tour to support "Somethings Never Change" with vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Mark Hart performing songs originally written and sung by Roger Hodgson. The Simple CD version was latter re-released under the name of "Live, 1997" in 2006.
Supertramp
Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music...
. The title makes use of the opening line from A Tale Of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With well over 200 million copies sold, it ranks among the most famous works in the history of fictional literature....
by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
.
Recorded in London at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
during the It's About Time tour in September 1997. This CD also features the song "Don't You Lie To Me" a blues song that the band had performed on their 1988 tour and the only song not written by a current or former band member. The band is augmented by additional players added for this album and tour as well as "Slow Motion" the follow up studio album recorded and released in 2002.
The album was pulled from performances of the band on tour to support "Somethings Never Change" with vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Mark Hart performing songs originally written and sung by Roger Hodgson. The Simple CD version was latter re-released under the name of "Live, 1997" in 2006.
Reception
Reviewing the double CD edition, Allmusic wrote that in comparison to the single CD version, "...this two-CD set packs on eight further selections from Supertramp's career to that point, still eschewing their first two LPs, without really adding anything to the portrait painted by the slimmer edition."Disc 1
- "It's A Hard World" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "You Win, I Lose" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Listen To Me Please" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Ain't Nobody But Me" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Sooner Or Later" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
/Mark HartMark HartMark Hart , is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his participation as a member of Supertramp and Crowded House....
) - "Free As A Bird" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Cannonball" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "From Now On" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Breakfast In America" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Give Me A Chance" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
/Mark HartMark HartMark Hart , is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his participation as a member of Supertramp and Crowded House....
) - "Rudy" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
Disc 2
- "Downstream" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Another Man's Woman" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Take The Long Way Home" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Bloody Well Right" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "The Logical Song" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Goodbye Stranger" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "School" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "And The Light" (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Don't You Lie To Me (I Get Evil)Don't You Lie to Me"Don't You Lie to Me" is a blues song recorded by Tampa Red in 1940. It became a standard of the blues, with recordings by various artists...
" (Hudson WhittakerTampa RedTampa Red , born Hudson Woodbridge but known from childhood as Hudson Whittaker, was an American Chicago blues musician....
) - "Crime Of The Century" (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
Track listing (1-CD version: 'Live 1997')
- "You Win, I Lose" – 4:44 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Listen To Me Please" – 5:03 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Sooner Or Later" – 7:35 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
/Mark HartMark HartMark Hart , is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his participation as a member of Supertramp and Crowded House....
) - "Free As A Bird" – 4:49 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Cannonball" – 7:52 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "From Now On" – 7:44 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "Breakfast in AmericaBreakfast in America (song)"Breakfast in America" is the title track from Supertramp's 1979 album Breakfast in America. The song was a minor hit on the singles charts in the US but is a staple of classic rock radio. The song's lyrics tell about a person who has never been to America...
" – 2:47 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson) - "And The Light" – 5:03 (Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
) - "Take The Long Way HomeTake the Long Way Home"Take the Long Way Home" is the fourth single and sixth track of Supertramp's 1979 album Breakfast in America. It reached number 10 on the U.S. charts. The song was used during the climax and closing credits to the final episode of the first series of Ashes to Ashes...
" – 5:10 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson) - "Bloody Well Right" – 6:58 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
- "The Logical SongThe Logical Song"The Logical Song" is a hit single on Supertramp's 1979 album Breakfast in America, sung by band member Roger Hodgson. It is the band's biggest chart hit in both the United States and their native United Kingdom, and is among their most widely recognized radio hits.-Composition and Lyrics:"The...
" – 4:04 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson) - "Goodbye StrangerGoodbye Stranger"Goodbye Stranger" is a song by Supertramp, which first appeared on their 1979 album Breakfast in America.The main "body" of the song is backed by a simple Wurlitzer electric piano melody; the arrangement intensifies as the song progresses. This is eventually joined by intermittent electric guitar...
" – 7:24 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson) - "School" – 6:32 (Rick Davies/Roger Hodgson)
The band
- Rick DaviesRick DaviesRick Davies is an English musician, best known as the founder and keyboardist of progressive rock band Supertramp...
– vocals, keyboards, harmonica - Bob SiebenbergBob SiebenbergBob Siebenberg, also known as Bob C. Benberg, is an American musician, best known as a member of British progressive rock band Supertramp, playing drums and percussion...
– drums, percussion - John HelliwellJohn HelliwellJohn Helliwell is an English musician and the saxophonist and occasional keyboardist and woodwind player for the rock band Supertramp...
– saxophone - Mark HartMark HartMark Hart , is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his participation as a member of Supertramp and Crowded House....
– vocals, keyboards, guitars - Cliff HugoCliff HugoCliff Hugo was born in the USA, April 23rd 1951, in Southern California, where he also spent his early days. He plays bass guitar for the art-rock band Supertramp, but also has another joint venture with Supertramp's guitarist Carl Verheyen and plays in his project - Carl Verheyen Band...
– bass guitar - Lee ThornburgLee ThornburgLee Thornburg is a trumpeter who has played with many artists, and also has been a member of Supertramp and Tower of Power. Thornburg also played with Wayne Cochran and the C.C. Riders in the 1970s.-Biography:...
– trumpet - Carl VerheyenCarl Verheyen-History:Verheyen has authored many instructional books, including Improvising Without Scales, as well as Studio City, a collection of articles written for the magazine Guitar for the Practicing Musician from 1996-1999...
– guitars - Jesse Siebenberg – percussion
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | German Albums Chart | 29 |