Music Monday: The Logical Song

The first Supertramp song I remember hearing, liking, and knowing who sang it, was probably “Breakfast in America.” Their 1974 hit, “Dreamer,” was somewhere in my musical subconscious, but in 1979 I hadn’t made the connection that it was also a Supertramp song (I don’t know why; Roger Hodgson’s voice is pretty distinctive). “The Logical Song” would have been playing on the radio so I was aware of it, and I suppose that song more than “Breakfast” kept coming back to me. It has a haunting quality to it, memorable lines, and it’s strangely catchy. Not in the “hummable tune” way, but in the way the song just stays with you, that electric piano sound, the sax solo, the bass line, and the words… “At night, when all the world’s asleep, the questions run so deep for such a simple man…” A raw, philosophical honesty that, frankly, was rare in popular music.

I think I’ve mentioned before that much of my music theory learning happened within a 4 or 5 year period in the mid 80s, where I read and played like my life depended on it. I played along with Beatles, Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Joe Jackson, and a variety of other albums for hours on end. I borrowed records and sheet music from the library. Sometimes the sheet music would help me out with songs that were, at that time, a bit too complex for my developing ear. Often the sheet music confirmed what I had already figured out. On occasion, I would dispute the sheet music!

I recall borrowing Supertramp’s “Breakfast in America” album a few times, and while I listened to the whole thing at least once or twice, I always came back to three songs: “Breakfast in America,” “Take the Long Way Home” (which is worthy of a Music Monday article of its own), and “The Logical Song.” And to this day, “The Logical Song” remains one of my all-time favorites.

The song is in C-Minor (or Eb-Major), and is really not terribly complex. The introduction is simply a C-Minor chord, but it’s the bass underneath along with the electric piano sound that makes it instantly recognizable:

The main chords are all based around a C-Minor. The AbΔ7 (Ab Major 7) is just a C-Minor with an Ab in the bass. The Aº (A half-diminished, or Am7b5) is simply a C-Minor with an A in the bass. Here’s the lyric/chord sheet for the whole song (click to enlarge):

If you’re playing on guitar, I think it sounds best if you capo the third fret and play in A-Minor. Here’s a conversion chart for you:

You’ll notice I’ve pretty much ignored the piano bass notes for the guitar. I think that works better for the guitar, and if you have a bass guitarist, let him or her worry about those notes. That’s their job after all!

The ending to the song has that groovy bass riff that, as a young starting-out musician, I was not only really pleased to figure out, but also to learn how to play. Keeping that right hand rhythm going while playing the somewhat syncopated bass line is a challenge to untrained fingers. Try it for yourself!:

I have a video of Supertramp performing “The Logical Song” which I would love to upload to YouTube for your enjoyment. However, it seems Roger Hodgson and/or Supertramp’s copyright holders are quite militantly policing YouTube, as Richie Castellano found out. If you’re regular to the blog, you might remember Richie as being the guy who made the “Split-Screen Bohemian Rhapsody” video (if you haven’t seen this, check it out–it’s OSSUM!). Well he and his Band Geek buddies recorded a cover of “The Logical Song” which they posted on YouTube. Not long after, the copyright holders contacted him demanding he take it down. This wasn’t even the original Supertramp track–it was Richie, his wife, and some musician friends playing the song for the love of the song, not even for profit. We all scratch our heads. So, needless to say, I won’t risk the ire of Supertramp by posting the video I have. Instead I’ll go with the “official,” non-performance video that’s on YouTube:

The video may be a bit dull, but it’s still a great song!

Program Note: Music Monday will be taking a break through the month of April while I participate in the A-to-Z Blogging Challenge. It will return on Monday, May 4th!