| Roger Hodgson |
|
| Background information |
| Birth name |
Charles Roger Pomfret Hodgson |
| Born |
March 21, 1950 (1950-03-21) (age 57)
Portsmouth,
England |
| Genre(s) |
Progressive
Rock
Soft
rock
Art
Rock |
| Occupation(s) |
Musician |
| Instrument(s) |
Vocals
Keyboards
Guitar
Bass |
| Years active |
1969 - Present |
| Label(s) |
A&M |
Associated
acts |
Supertramp |
| Website |
RogerHodgson.com |
Charles Roger Pomfret Hodgson, born 21 March 1950, in Portsmouth,
Hampshire,
England
is a British vocalist and musician, and
he was one of the founding members of the progressive
rock group Supertramp. He is recognized
for his high-pitched voice, which became a trademark for Supertramp,
and often writes about somewhat spiritual and philosophical
topics.
|
Contents
- 1 Biography
- 1.1 (1950-1969)
Early Years
- 1.2 (1969-1983)
Supertramp
- 1.3 (1984-Present)
Solo Hodgson
- 2 Discography
- 3 External
link
|
Biography
(1950-1969) Early Years
Hodgson was born in 1950 and grew up in Oxford, England in a
wealthy middle-class
family, and was also sent to Stowe School in Buckinghamshire.
It is known he wrote the song "Breakfast
in America" in his teenage years.
(1969-1983) Supertramp
As a copyright agreement similar to Lennon/McCartney
with The
Beatles, almost all Supertramp songs were credited to Davies
and Hodgson, regardless of who actually wrote them, but in most of the
cases the main writer was also the lead singer. Roger Hodgson is the
main writer of well known hits such as "The
Logical Song", "Dreamer",
"Give A Little Bit", "Breakfast
in America", "It's Raining Again", "Take the Long Way Home" and "Fool's
Overture".
(1984-Present) Solo Hodgson
After his departure from Supertramp in 1983, Hodgson
launched into his solo career with 1984's In the Eye
of the Storm. Compared favourably to his
Supertramp work, it includes "Had a Dream (Sleeping with the Enemy)"
and "In Jeopardy". Hodgson is credited with playing nearly all the
instruments as well as writing and producing the album.
His second album, 1987's Hai Hai
1987 had a distinctive synthpop-oriented feel, in the vein of the
mid-80s trends, but it also maintains a songwriting style true to
Hodgson's standards. However, just prior to the release of Hai
Hai, Hodgson fell from a loft in his home and broke both
wrists, which disabled him from successfully promoting the album. He
also took a long break from both touring and recording. In this time,
he also turned towards a more spiritual path.
After a long break, he launched into his first tour since 1984
and released 1997's "Rites of Passage" to document the tour. He
performs with a full band including his son Andrew, and Supertramp sax
player John Helliwell. He then
embarked on his first world solo tour in 1998.
Hodgson appeared on the album Excalibur: La Legende
Des Celtes for two songs: "The Elements," and "The Will of
God." The project was headed by Alan Simon and released in 1999.
In 2000, Roger Hodgson contributed vocals on a track titled
"The Moon Says Hello" by Carlos Núñez, on the CD Mayo
Longo.
Hodgson's third solo effort Open
the Door was released in 2000 and continues the
vein of his previous work. It is considered by most fans to be much
more true to the Supertramp style than Rick
Davies' latest, more bluesy Slow
Motion album, which was published under the
Supertramp name with a collection of session
musicians.
In 2001, Hodgson toured as a member of the All-Starr Band in
2001, playing lead guitar, and has since collaborated with Trevor
Rabin (who appears on a track on Open the Door) and
Ringo
Starr. He also co-wrote the single "Walls" on the Yes
album Talk.
Hodgson is still giving concerts, often playing alone, but from time
to time he is joined by other musicians or has a full orchestra
accompanying him. He has taken part in the Night of the Proms concert
series in Belgium
and Germany
in late 2004, as well as the rock festival, Bospop in 2005.
In May
2006 Roger Hodgson
was honored by ASCAP
(American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) in recognition
of his song Give A Little Bit being one of the
most played songs in the ASCAP repertoire in 2005.
On 30 November 2005, he held his first concert in England in over
twenty years, at Shepherd's Bush, London. While that
performance was filmed and scheduled for a DVD release, the plan was scrapped. Instead, the
concert recorded at the Place Des Arts in Montreal, Canada on June 6, 2006 was his his first
DVD, released on August 22, 2006, entitled Take
The Long Way Home - Live In Montreal. In October,
2006 the DVD was certified platinum by the CRIA (Canadian Recording
Industry Association).
Hodgson participated as a mentor on Canadian Idol along with Dennis
DeYoung. He continuted mentoring several of the finalists during his
2006 Canadian Tour.
A new tour is launching in May of 2007, which will include his
first of the UK in over twenty years.
Hodgson performed at the Concert
for Diana at Wembley Stadium , UK on July 1st 2007. He sung a Supertramp
medley: "Dreamer",
"The
Logical Song", "Breakfast in America" and "Give
A Little Bit".
Discography
Solo albums
For his work with Supertramp, see Supertramp
discography between 1969 and 1982
| 1984 |
In the Eye
of the Storm |
| 1987 |
Hai Hai |
| 1997 |
Rites of Passage
(Live) |
| 2000 |
Open the Door |
DVDs
| 2006 |
Take The Long Way Home
(DVD) - Live In Montreal |
External link
Roger Hodgson noquotend
-->
