Crisis? What Crisis? in Bloomington, MN

Nestled between the accomplished
Crime of the Century
album and 1977's
Even in the Quietest Moments
,
Crisis? What Crisis?
may not have given the band any chart success, but it did help them capture a fan base that had no concern for
Supertramp
's commercial sound. With
Rick Davies
showing off his talent on the keyboards, and
Roger Hodgson
's vocals soaring on almost every track, they managed to win back their earlier progressive audience while gaining new fans at the same time.
Crisis
received extensive air play on FM stations, especially in Britain, and the album made it into the Top 20 there and fell just outside the Top 40 in the U.S.
"Ain't Nobody But Me,"
"Easy Does It,"
and the beautiful
"Sister Moonshine"
highlight
's buoyant and brisk instrumental and vocal alliance, while
John Helliwell
's saxophone gives the album even greater width. The songwriting is sharp, attentive, and passionate, and the lyrics showcase
's ease at invoking emotion into their music, which would be taken to even greater heights in albums to come. Even simple tracks like
"Lady"
and
"Just a Normal Day"
blend in nicely with the album's warm personality and charmingly subtle mood. Although the tracks aren't overly contagious or hook laden, there's still a work-in-process type of appeal spread through the cuts, which do grow on you over time. ~ Mike DeGagne