Roger Hodgson

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Biography

Charles Roger Pomfret Hodgson (born 21 March 1950) is a British musician and songwriter, best known as the former co- lead vocalist|frontman , and founding member, of progressive rock band Supertramp .

Hodgson composed and sang on the majority of the band's biggest hits, including " Dreamer (Supertramp song)|Dreamer ", " Give a Little Bit ", " The Logical Song ", " Breakfast in America (song)|Breakfast in America ", " Take the Long Way Home " and " It's Raining Again ".

He left Supertramp in 1983 to pursue a solo career, but after two albums he retired from touring and other industry obligations. In 1997 he returned to doing solo tours, and released a third album in 2000. He is recognised for his tenor singing voice, which became a trademark of his former band Supertramp, and often writes about spirituality|spiritual and philosophy|philosophical topics.

Biography

1950–1969: Early years

Hodgson was born in Portsmouth , Hampshire , England, in 1950 and grew up in Oxford . He is the son of Charles Hodgson and Jill Hodgson (died in June 2009). He attended The Oratory School|Woodcote House near Wallingford , Oxfordshire , where he was the first boy to learn electric guitar, and Stowe School near Buckingham , Buckinghamshire . His first guitar was a parting gift from his father at age 12 when his parents divorced. He took it to boarding school with him, where his teacher taught him three chords. He began composing his own music and lyrics and within a year gave his first concert at school with nine original songs. Hodgson's first band at school consisted of him on guitar and his friend Roy Hoby playing snare drums. They were dubbed the "H-bombs" because of their last names.

At age 19, Roger Hodgson made his first appearance in a recording studio as guitarist for People Like Us, a band he formed shortly after graduating from boarding school. The group recorded a single, "Duck Pond" b/w "Send Me No Flowers", which was never released.Joynson, Vernon (1995). . London: Borderline Books. See entry on "People Like Us".

After People Like Us disbanded, Hodgson auditioned for Island Records , with Traffic (band)|Traffic 's road manager providing him a foot in the door with the label. Island set him up in a recording studio as vocalist for the one-off " flower power " pop band Argosy, which also included Reginald Dwight (later known as Elton John ), Caleb Quaye , and Nigel Olsson .Joynson, Vernon (1995). . London: Borderline Books. See entry on "Argosy". Their sole single, "Mr. Boyd" b/w "Imagine", consisted of two pieces of orchestrated pop (both penned by Hodgson) and was issued in 1969 on the DJM (U.K.) and Congress (U.S.) record labels. It sold poorly and consequently has become rare and sought after. "Mr. Boyd" was covered in 1997 by Jake Shillingford and his band My Life Story on their album "The Golden Mile".

1969–1983: Supertramp

After the breakup of Argosy, Hodgson, responding to an advert placed in Melody Maker by Rick Davies , auditioned for the guitarist spot in the progressive rock band Supertramp. Hodgson was offered the job, but when Richard Palmer-James|Richard Palmer arrived the next day to audition for the same spot, Hodgson agreed to learn how to play bass instead.

The songs on Supertramp's Supertramp (album)|self-titled first album , released in 1970, were composed by Roger Hodgson, Rick Davies, and Richard Palmer; however, since both Hodgson and Davies were unwilling to write lyrics, Palmer wrote all the album's lyrics., Elephant Talk. Palmer left shortly after the album's recording, allowing Hodgson to switch back to guitar, but leaving him and Davies no choice but to serve as the band's lyricists. In a parallel to fellow British prog rockers Genesis (band)|Genesis and their Genesis (band)#1976–1977: The four-man era|search for a new lead vocalist , Supertramp auditioned 93 guitarists before turning the role over to Hodgson. The hugely successful Crime of the Century (album)|Crime of the Century was released in 1974. Crisis? What Crisis? , released in 1975, was followed by Even in the Quietest Moments in 1977. In 1979, they released their most successful album, Breakfast in America . This album has sold over 20 million copies to date.Todd, Ben. . Daily Mail . 8 October 2010. Retrieved 16 October 2010. The live album, Paris , was released in 1980. …Famous Last Words… , released in 1982, included Hodgson's first solo recording, "Know Who You Are".

From 1974 through 1983, all songs recorded by Supertramp were legally credited with a shared writing credit of Davies/Hodgson. Roger Hodgson was the writer of hits such as " Give a Little Bit ", " Breakfast in America (song)|Breakfast in America ", " It's Raining Again ", " Take the Long Way Home " and " Fool's Overture ". Hodgson wrote "Breakfast in America", "The Logical Song", and some of "Fool's Overture" at home with a harmonium he had bought from a neighbour when he was 17 years old (this instrument is used in the background of "Breakfast in America", and prominently appears on "Two of Us" and his solo track "The Garden").

In 1981, Hodgson left Los Angeles and moved his family to Northern California, where he built a home studio and began contemplating solo recordings. The rest of Supertramp remained in Los Angeles, and the geographic separation created a rift between them and Hodgson; there was little to no feuding, but the group harmony was lost. Hodgson felt increasingly constrained in the group context, and during the tour for …Famous Last Words… he made the final decision to leave Supertramp. He has stated that there were not any real problems in his relationship with Davies, as was speculated.(8 March 2009). , Swindonweb.

1984–present: Solo career

Hodgson recorded three solo albums at his new home studio, the first before his departure from Supertramp. Titled Sleeping With the Enemy , it was cut in the months between the release of …Famous Last Words… and its supporting tour, and mixed during Supertramp rehearsals for said tour in hopes of fitting in some solo promotion while on the road. However, at the last minute Hodgson had second thoughts about the album's quality and decided to scrap it, planning to record a new and better album after his last tour with Supertramp.

This second effort, In the Eye of the Storm (Hodgson album)|In the Eye of The Storm , was released in 1984. Despite being heavily publicized as the solo album of a former member of Supertramp, it failed to break the top 40 in either the US or UK., Allmusic. Retrieved July 26, 2011., The Official Charts. Retrieved August 9, 2011. The single "Had a Dream (Sleeping With the Enemy)" was able to reach no higher than number 48 in the US,, Billboard.com. Retrieved July 26, 2011. while the follow-up single, "In Jeopardy", failed to chart at all.

Though a major commercial disappointment after his last six albums with Supertramp, In the Eye of the Storm would prove to be Hodgson's biggest success without the group. His second album was Hai Hai (1987), 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 promoting the album. It would barely scrape into the Billboard 200,, Allmusic. Retrieved October 4, 2011. and did not make the UK Chart. He decided to take a long break from both touring and recording in order to spend more time with his children.

In 1990, Hodgson was approached by Yes (band)|Yes to take the lead singer position but declined the offer. One of the songs he co-wrote with Trevor Rabin , " Walls (Yes song)|Walls ", appears on Yes's 1994 Talk (Yes album)|Talk album, with lyrics revised by Anderson. A version of "Walls" with only Hodgson and Rabin on vocals was released on Trevor Rabin's 2003 archival release 90124 .

After a long break, he launched into his first tour in over ten years, and released 1997's live Rites of Passage (Roger Hodgson album)|Rites of Passage to document the tour. The live album was recorded at the Miners Foundry in Nevada City, California . He performed with a full band including his son Andrew and Supertramp sax player John Helliwell . The album was a total flop in both the UK and US, but gave Hodgson his only significant solo success in Germany, reaching number 34 in the charts there.

Hodgson played King Arthur in the rock opera Excalibur (rock opera)|Excalibur: La Legende Des Celtes , and appeared on the album for two songs: "The Elements," and "The Will of God." The project was headed by Alan Simon (musician)|Alan Simon and released in 1999. In 2000, he contributed vocals on a track titled "The Moon Says Hello" by Carlos Núñez , on the CD Mayo Longo .

Hodgson's fourth solo effort Open the Door (Roger Hodgson album)|Open the Door was released in 2000 and continued in the vein of his previous work. He collaborated again with Alan Simon on the album. In August 2000, Hodgson guested with Fairport Convention at that years Cropredy Festival . He performed "Breakfast In America", "The Logical Song", "Open The Door" and "Give A Little Bit".

Hodgson toured as a member of the Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band|All-Starr Band in 2001, playing lead guitar, and has since collaborated with Trevor Rabin (who appears on the track "The More I Look" on Open the Door ) and Ringo Starr .

Hodgson is still touring, often playing alone, but from time to time he is joined by other musicians or a full orchestra. He took 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. On 30 November 2005, he held his first concert in England in over twenty years, at Shepherd's Bush , London. While the 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 6 June 2006 was his first DVD, released on 22 August 2006, entitled Take The Long Way Home - Live In Montreal . In October 2006, the DVD was certified multi-platinum by the CRIA (Canadian Recording Industry Association).

In May 2006, Hodgson was honoured by ASCAP in recognition of his song "Give A Little Bit" being one of the most played songs in the ASCAP repertoire in 2005. He received another ASCAP award on 9 April 2008 for the Gym Class Heroes' song "Cupid's Chokehold", recognized as one of the most played songs in ASCAP's repertoire in 2007.

Hodgson participated as a mentor on Canadian Idol along with Dennis DeYoung . He continued mentoring several of the finalists during his 2006 Canadian Tour.

Hodgson performed at the Concert for Diana at Wembley Stadium , UK on 1 July 2007. He sang a medley of his most popular songs: "Dreamer", "The Logical Song", "Breakfast in America" and "Give A Little Bit".

On 18 September 2007, Eagle Vision released the DVD Take the Long Way Home - Live in Montreal worldwide, achieving gold in Germany and France.

Hodgson toured the US, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Europe, and Canada in 2010. Though Hodgson's former bandmates in Supertramp announced a 40th Anniversary reunion tour, he was not invited to join them, and his own touring schedule would have prohibited him from any participation beyond the occasional guest spot in any case.(April 21, 2010). , Jam& #33; Music. Both Hodgson and Supertramp released tour material on download only on their websites. Hodgson's Classics Live is a collection of recordings taken from solo, band, and orchestra shows from his 2010 world tour. Hodgson again toured worldwide in 2011 and is again on a world tour which started in February and will finish in November., Official Website. Retrieved April 21, 2012.

Personal life

Hodgson has been a vegetarian all of his life. He said in a 1983 interview about the topic: "I've always loved going out in the woods with all the trees because I also have the respect for the wilderness because I am a vegetarian and I don't eat meat."

Discography

For his work with Supertramp, see Supertramp discography between 1969 and 1983

Copyright Citations

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1. Lennie Gallant 2. My Life Story 3. Nigel Olsson 4. Jeff Porcaro 5. Trevor Rabin 6. Dennis DeYoung 7. John, Elton 8. Michael Shrieve 9. Star Académie

Undetermined Music Artists

Roger Hodgson

Biography

Biography

1950–1969: Early years

1969–1983: Supertramp

1984–present: Solo career

Personal life

Discography

References

External links

Copyright Citations