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Breakfast in America
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==Critical reception== {{Album ratings | title = Retrospective professional reviews | rev1 = [[AllMusic]] | rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="AllMusic">{{cite web | url = http://www.allmusic.com/album/breakfast-in-america-mw0000308462 | title = Supertramp Breakfast in America Review |access-date=11 July 2011 |last = Erlewine | first = Stephen Thomas | author-link = Stephen Thomas Erlewine |work=[[AllMusic]] | publisher = [[Rovi Corporation]]}}</ref> | rev2 = ''[[Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|Christgau's Record Guide]]'' | rev2score = C+<ref name="CG">{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|publisher=[[Ticknor & Fields]]|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: S|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=S&bk=70|access-date=March 13, 2019|via=robertchristgau.com|title-link=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies}}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]'' | rev3score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Larkin"/> | rev4 = ''[[The Great Rock Discography]]'' | rev4score = 7/10<ref>{{cite book|last=Strong|first=Martin Charles|author-link=Martin C. Strong|title=The Great Rock Discography|publisher=[[National Academies Press|The National Academies]]|year=2002|isbn=1-84195-312-1|chapter=Supertramp}}</ref> | rev5 = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'' | rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite news|title=Review: Breakfast in America|work=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]|location=London|date=December 2010|page=123}}</ref> | rev6 = ''[[Record Collector]]'' | rev6score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="Pinfold" >{{cite news | title = Supertramp β Breakfast in America:Deluxe 2-Disc Edition| work = [[Record Collector]] | date = December 2010 | first = William | last = Pinfold | issue = 382| url = http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/breakfast-in-americadeluxe-2-disc-edition |access-date=12 July 2012}}</ref> | rev7 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]'' | rev7score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="Sheffield"/> | rev8 = ''[[Smash Hits]]'' | rev8score = 8/10<ref name="SmashHits">{{cite news|last=Starr|first=Red|title=Albums|work=[[Smash Hits]]|issue=19 April β 2 May 1979|page=25}}</ref> | rev9 = Sputnikmusic | rev9score = 3/5<ref name="Fisher"/> | rev10 = ''[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]]'' | rev10score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Staunton|first=Terry|title=Supertramp ''Breakfast in America''|work=[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]]|location=London|date=December 2010|page=102}}</ref> }} In a positive review for ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine, music critic [[Stephen Holden]] viewed ''Breakfast in America'' as an improvement over the "swatches of meandering, [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]]-like esoterica" on Supertramp's previous albums, and called it "a textbook-perfect album of post-[[the Beatles|Beatles]], keyboard-centered English [[art rock]] that strikes the shrewdest possible balance between quasi-symphonic classicism and rock & roll ... the songs here are extraordinarily melodic and concisely structured, reflecting these musicians' saturation in American pop since their move to Los Angeles in 1977."<ref name="Holden">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/breakfast-in-america-255426 |title=Supertramp: Breakfast in America|last=Holden|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen Holden|date=14 June 1979|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|location=New York|access-date=20 June 2021}}</ref> ''[[Village Voice]]'' critic [[Robert Christgau]] was less impressed, saying that the "hooky album" evokes "random grunts of pleasure" but lacks emotional substance because of "glib" lyrics and no "vocal personality (as opposed to accurate singing) and rhythmic thrust (as opposed to a beat)".<ref name="Christgau">{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=2 July 1979|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv6-79.php|title=Consumer Guide|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|location=New York|access-date=11 June 2013}}</ref> [[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]], writing in the ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]'' (2006), said that the "faultless" album "elevated" Supertramp to "rock's first division".<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|year=2006|title=Encyclopedia of Popular Music|page=857|volume=7|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|edition=4th|isbn=0195313739|title-link=Encyclopedia of Popular Music}}</ref> In a retrospective review for [[AllMusic]], [[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] praised the album's "tightly written, catchy, well-constructed pop songs" and described it as the band's "high-water mark".<ref name="AllMusic"/> John Doran of [[BBC Music]] said that the songwriting has an "unbeatable quality" and asserted that "any of the ten tracks could have been hit singles".<ref name="bbc">{{cite web | url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/bb28 | title = Supertramp Breakfast in America Review |access-date=13 June 2011 |last = Doran | first = John | date = 29 October 2010 | publisher = [[BBC Music]]}}</ref> Sputnikmusic's Tyler Fisher said that its singles are mostly the highlights because of their "catchy hooks", and found the ballads "absolutely terrible".<ref name="Fisher">{{cite web|last=Fisher|first=Tyler|date=2 July 2006|url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/8084/Supertramp-Breakfast-in-America/|title=Supertramp - Breakfast in America (album review)|website=Sputnikmusic|access-date=11 June 2013}}</ref> [[Rob Sheffield]], writing in ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]'' (2004), also felt that its "nice moments" were the highlights, including "the jolly 'Take the Long Way Home,' the adjectively crazed 'Logical Song,' [and] 'Goodbye Stranger.'"<ref name="Sheffield">{{cite book|author=Sheffield, Rob|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-link=Nathan Brackett|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-last=Hoard|title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide|publisher=Simon & Schuster|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/797 797]|display-authors=etal|author-link=Rob Sheffield|title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide}}</ref> William Pinfold of ''[[Record Collector]]'' considered the album "a classic example of flawlessly-played and -produced late 70s transatlantic soft rock".<ref name="Pinfold" /> === Accolades === In the 1987 edition of ''The World Critics List'', music historian [[Joel Whitburn]] ranked ''Breakfast in America'' the fourth-greatest album of all time.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20121223205039/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/world_critics_lists.htm ''The World Critics List'']}}. 1987</ref> In the 1994 edition of [[Guinness World Records|The Guinness All Time Top 1000 Albums]], ''Breakfast in America'' was voted No. 207 in the all-time greatest rock and pop albums,<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20120629191316/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/larkin1000_94.htm Guinness: All-time top 1000 albums]}}. 1994. Archived at rocklistmusic.co.uk</ref> and it was voted the 69th-greatest British rock album of all time in a 2006 ''[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]'' industry poll.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20120628233705/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/classicrock2.htm "100 Greatest British Rock Album Ever"]}}. ''[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]''. April 2006. Archived at rocklistmusic.co.uk</ref> [[Triple M]] listeners voted the album No. 43 in the "100 Greatest Albums of All Time".<ref>[http://www.triplem.com.au/melbourne/music/100-greatest-rock-albums 100 Greatest Albums] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227114732/http://www.triplem.com.au/melbourne/music/100-greatest-rock-albums |date=27 February 2011}}. [[Triple M Melbourne]] Retrieved 18 June 2011.</ref> Recognising the band's disfavour among music critics during their career,<ref>[[Dave Marsh|Marsh, Dave]]. "Sez Who? Bands & Singers Critics Love to Hate". ''New Book of Rock Lists''. [[Sidgwick & Jackson]]. 1994.</ref> [[Q (magazine)|''Q'' magazine]] ranked ''Breakfast in America'' second on its "Records it's OK to Love" list in 2006.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060224054627/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/qlistspage3.htm Guilty Pleasures!: Essential Playlist of the 115 Records it's OK to Love]}}. [[Q (magazine)|''Q'' magazine]]. September 2006. Archived at rocklistmusic.co.uk</ref> In 2000 it was voted No. 294 in [[Colin Larkin]]'s ''[[All Time Top 1000 Albums]]''.<ref>{{cite book|title=[[All Time Top 1000 Albums]]|author=Colin Larkin|author-link=Colin Larkin|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=2000|edition=3rd|isbn=0-7535-0493-6|page=124}}</ref> "The Logical Song" won the 1979 [[Ivor Novello Awards|Ivor Novello Award]] for "Best Song Musically and Lyrically".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/pop-ballads-bite-back-in-lyrical-fashion-david-lister-charts-a-sea-change-away-from-rap-towards-memorable-melodies-1438995.html |title=Pop ballads bite back in lyrical fashion: David Lister charts a sea change away from rap towards memorable melodies |access-date=21 March 2012 |last=Lister |first=David |date=28 May 1994 |work=Independent.co.uk |publisher=[[The Independent]]}}</ref>
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