Breakfast in America (song)
"Breakfast in America" | ||||
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Single by Supertramp | ||||
from the album Breakfast in America | ||||
B-side | "Gone Hollywood" | |||
Released | June 1979 | |||
Recorded | 1978 | |||
Studio | The Village Recorder/Studio B, Los Angeles, California | |||
Genre | Progressive rock | |||
Length | 2:39 | |||
Label | A&M | |||
Songwriter(s) | Rick Davies, Roger Hodgson[1] | |||
Producer(s) | Supertramp, Peter Henderson | |||
Supertramp singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Breakfast in America" on YouTube |
"Breakfast in America" is the title track from English rock band Supertramp's 1979 album of the same name. Credited to Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, it was a top-ten hit in the UK[2] and a live version of the song reached No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1981. The lyrics tell about a person, presumably British, who dreams of visiting the United States.
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Composition
The inner sleeve of the 1979 Breakfast in America album lists one musician – Roger Hodgson or Rick Davies – as composer for each song. For the "Breakfast in America" title track, Davies alone is listed as composer and lyricist.[3] However, the center label of the 12-inch vinyl disc credits all songs to both Hodgson and Davies.[4] Similarly, on the vinyl single, it was credited to Hodgson and Davies.[5]
Supertramp started performing the song during a reunion tour without Hodgson, the latter took credit for writing the song, telling reporters that Davies initially "hated" the song, and that he believed Davies did not play on the recording at all.[6] However, in other interviews Hodgson has credited Davies with creating the vocalized retort line, "What's she got? Not a lot."[7] According to Ultimate Classic Rock critic Nick DeRiso, Hodgson started writing the song as a teenager, and Davies later "helped sharpen the lyrics."[8] Billboard critic Gary Graff agrees with this assessment, including Davies contributing the "What's she got? Not a lot" lyric.[9]
DeRiso describes the lyrics as being about a child dreaming about visiting the United States some day.[8]
Hodgson included the song in his 2010 world tour, produced as a live album titled Classics Live.
In 2005, rap rock band Gym Class Heroes released the hit song "Cupid's Chokehold", which features the chorus from "Breakfast in America".
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Personnel
- Roger Hodgson: lead vocals, piano, pump organ, electric guitar
- Rick Davies: harpsichord, synthesizers, vocals
- John Helliwell: clarinet
- Dougie Thomson: bass[11]
- Bob Siebenberg: drums and percussion
- Slyde Hyde: trombone, tuba
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Charts
Chart (1979–80) | Peak position |
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Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[12] | 16 |
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[13] | 18 |
Germany (Official German Charts)[14] | 23 |
Ireland (IRMA)[15] | 6 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] | 14 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[17] | 16 |
South Africa (Springbok)[18] | 9 |
UK Singles (OCC)[2] | 9 |
US Billboard Hot 100[19] | 62 |
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Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI)[20] | Silver | 200,000![]() |
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Source: "Breakfast in America (song)", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2022, October 30th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakfast_in_America_(song).
Further Reading

Supertramp

Rick Davies

Breakfast in America

Crime of the Century (album)

Crisis? What Crisis?

Even in the Quietest Moments...

Paris (Supertramp album)

...Famous Last Words...

Roger Hodgson
The Logical Song

Take the Long Way Home (Supertramp song)

Dreamer (Supertramp song)

Goodbye Stranger

Give a Little Bit

My Kind of Lady

Cannonball (Supertramp song)

The Very Best of Supertramp 2

The Very Best of Supertramp
References
- ^ "ACE Repertory: Breakfast in America". ASCAP. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
- ^ a b Supertramp UK chart history, The Official Charts. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
- ^ Breakfast in America (1979). Inner sleeve credits. A&M Records.
- ^ Breakfast in America (1979). Center label credits. A&M Records.
- ^ "Breakfast in America" (1979). Vinyl disc in-lay credits. A&M Records.
- ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Roger Hodgson Explains His Reaction To Supertramp Tour - Undercover.fm News". Undercover.fm. 25 April 2010. Archived from the original on 25 October 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- ^ "CRR Interview - Roger Hodgson: What's He Got? Quite A Lot!". Classicrockrevisited.com. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- ^ a b c DeRiso, Nick. "Top 10 Supertramp Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
- ^ a b Graff, Gary (10 October 2017). "Supertramp's 10 Best Songs: Critic's Picks". Billboard. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
- ^ "Closeup" (PDF). Billboard Magazine. 31 March 1979. p. 166. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
- ^ "Breakfast in America by Supertramp - Songfacts".
- ^ "Supertramp – Breakfast in America" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
- ^ "Supertramp – Breakfast in America" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
- ^ "Supertramp – Breakfast in America" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Breakfast in America". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
- ^ "Supertramp – Breakfast in America" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Supertramp" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
- ^ "South African Rock Lists Website - SA Charts 1969 - 1989 Songs (A-B)".
- ^ allmusic ((( Supertramp > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))
- ^ "British single certifications – Supertramp – Breakfast in America". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
Sources
- Melhuish, Martin (1986). The Supertramp Book (1st ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0711907874.
External links
Categories
- 1979 singles
- 1979 songs
- A&M Records singles
- Articles with MusicBrainz work identifiers
- Articles with hAudio microformats
- Articles with short description
- Certification Table Entry usages for United Kingdom
- Music videos directed by Bruce Gowers
- Pages using certification Table Entry with streaming figures
- Pages using certification Table Entry with streaming footnote
- Short description matches Wikidata
- Singlechart called without artist
- Singlechart usages for Austria
- Singlechart usages for Dutch100
- Singlechart usages for Dutch40
- Singlechart usages for Flanders
- Singlechart usages for Germany
- Singlechart usages for Ireland2
- Songs about the United States
- Songs written by Rick Davies
- Supertramp songs
- Use dmy dates from October 2020
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