The Autobiography Of Supertramp

''The Autobiography of Supertramp'' is the first greatest hits album by the English rock band Supertramp, released in 1986.

The compilation features the most popular songs from the albums ''Crime of the Century'', ''Even in the Quietest Moments'', ''Breakfast in America'', '' ...Famous Last Words...'', and ''Brother Where You Bound''. The CD version adds three tracks, including a song from ''Crisis? What Crisis?''. The album ''Paris'' is completely unrepresented, despite its including the hit live version of " Dreamer".

The cover art shows a suit-wearing, faceless man seated in a train carriage reading a book with his own face on the cover. The view from the train window shows the platform with stylised versions of the cover art from three of Supertramp's albums.

The album was also released in the US as ''Classics, Volume 9'', part of A&M's 25th Anniversary series (1987).

The album was re-released as ''The Very Best of Supertramp'' in 1990 with the bonus track "School" as the first track instead of "Goodbye Stranger" which follows afterwards.

Reception

AllMusic's retrospective review commented that ''The Very Best of Supertramp'' is a superior compilation with its choice of tracks.

Track listing

All songs written by Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, except where noted.

Original release

LP album

#"Goodbye Stranger" ( Single edit, from ''Breakfast in America'', 1979) – 4:25
#"The Logical Song" (Single edit, from ''Breakfast in America'') – 3:45
#"Bloody Well Right" (Single edit, from ''Crime of the Century'', 1974) – 4:16
#"Breakfast in America" (from ''Breakfast in America'') – 2:37
#" Take the Long Way Home" (Single edit, from ''Breakfast in America'') – 4:03
#"Crime of the Century" (Early fade-out, from ''Crime of the Century'')– 5:20
#" Dreamer" (from ''Crime of the Century'') – 3:19
#"From Now On" (from '' Even in the Quietest Moments...'', 1977) – 6:10
#" Give a Little Bit" (from ''Even in the Quietest Moments...'') – 4:03
#"It's Raining Again" (from '' ...Famous Last Words...'', 1982) – 4:25
#"Cannonball" (Single edit, from ''Brother Where You Bound'', 1985) (Davies) – 4:47

Compact disc (Issued as A&M ''Classics, Volume 9'' in the U.S. and Canada)

#"Goodbye Stranger" (Single edit) – 4:29
#"The Logical Song" (Single edit) – 3:47
#"Bloody Well Right" (Single edit) – 4:17
#"Breakfast in America" – 2:38
#"Rudy" (from ''Crime of the Century'') – 7:17
#"Take the Long Way Home" (Single edit) – 4:06
#"Crime of the Century" – 5:32
#"Dreamer" – 3:31
#"Ain't Nobody But Me" (from ''Crisis? What Crisis?'', 1975) – 5:07
#"Hide in Your Shell" (from ''Crime of the Century'') – 6:47
#"From Now On" – 6:10
#"Give a Little Bit" – 4:08
#"It's Raining Again" – 4:23
#"Cannonball" (Single edit) (Davies) – 4:51
#"Sister Moonshine" - 5:30
#"Potter" - 2:23
#"Easy Does It" - 2:19
#"Casual Conversations" - 2:57
#"Thing for You" - 4:02
#"Just a Normal Day" - 4:04

Personnel

;Supertramp
*Rick Davies - keyboard, harmonica, vocals
* Roger Hodgson (except on "Cannonball") - guitar, keyboards, vocals
*Dougie Thomson - bass
*John Helliwell - saxophone, woodwinds, keyboards, glockenspiel
*Bob Siebenberg - drums, percussion

;Additional musicians
*Slyde Hyde - trombone on "Breakfast in America"
*Marty Walsh – guitar on "Cannonball"
*Doug Wintz – trombone on "Cannonball"

Production

* Producers: Ken Scott, Peter Henderson, David Kershenbaum and Supertramp
* Mastering: Bernie Grundman, Norman Hall - Bernie Grundman Mastering, Inc.
*Cover design: Richard Frankel, Norman Moore
*Photography: Ron Slenzak
*Poster illustrations: Holly Hollington

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Autobiography of Supertramp
Albums produced by Ken Scott
1986 greatest hits albums
Supertramp compilation albums
A&M Records compilation albums
Albums produced by David Kershenbaum