Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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Best known for his stint fronting art pop hitmakers Supertramp, Roger Hodgson was born in Portsmouth, England, on March 21, 1950. While growing up in Oxford, Hodgson started playing guitar before he was a teenager, and was soon writing songs while at boarding school. He began recording during the late '60s, issuing a single in 1969 as part of the session band Argosy with Elton John (then known as Reg Dwight).

Also in 1969, he co-founded Supertramp, serving with Rick Davies as songwriter and vocalist for 14 years. Originally funded by Dutch millionaire Stanley August Mieseages, the group lost his patronage after their first two albums failed to generate much interest. However, 1974's Crime of the Century was a major hit, launching the radio favorites "Dreamer" and "Bloody Well Right." After scoring an international hit in 1977 with "Give a Little Bit" from the album Even in the Quietest Moments…, Supertramp reached their commercial peak with 1979's chart-topping Breakfast in America, which yielded the smashes "Take the Long Way Home," "The Logical Song," and "Goodbye, Stranger" on its way to selling 20 million copies.

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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In the wake of 1982's …Famous Last Words…, Hodgson left Supertramp and relocated to Northern California to focus on his family, eventually issuing his solo debut, In the Eye of the Storm, in 1984. Within days of issuing the follow-up, 1987's Hai Hai, Hodgson fell and broke both of his wrists; the accident kept him out of action for several years, and he did not resurface until he co-wrote several songs on Yes' 1994 album, Talk. A live solo album, Rites of Passage, followed three years later and featured Hodgson collaborating with son Andrew.

Open the Door, his first new studio effort in 13 years, appeared in the spring of 2000. The album received positive responses from critics and fans alike, and Hodgson was subsequently recruited to tour with Ringo Starr as a member of the All-Starr Band. He continued to play solo shows as well, releasing a DVD of one such performance, Take the Long Way Home: Live in Montreal, in summer 2006. (The DVD would go multi-platinum in Canada and gold in France and Germany.) Classics Live, a collection of tracks from a solo tour of the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Europe, and Canada, arrived in 2010. Hodgson continued to tour worldwide in many formats including in a duo, with a band, and with a symphony orchestra. In 2012, he received a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters from the French Ministry of Culture.

by Jason Ankeny

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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Vocalist/guitarist Roger Hodgson must have really felt stifled toward the end of his tenure in Supertramp in the early '80s – despite co-writing and singing many of the band's biggest hits – because his solo debut, 1984's In the Eye of the Storm, is a remarkable work of explosive creativity. Hodgson wrote, sang, arranged, and produced In the Eye of the Storm, but the real kicker is the fact that he played every instrument himself, with a few exceptions such as drums and fretless bass guitar on a few cuts. As a result, In the Eye of the Storm is easily the best synthesis of pop and progressive rock since, well, prime Supertramp. The spirit of traditional progressive rock experimentation is alive on this album; five of the seven songs exceed six minutes. The brilliant leadoff track, "Had a Dream (Sleeping With the Enemy)," is nine minutes long. An edited single just missed the Top 40, but every second of the sound effects, driving piano, tasteful guitar, and Hodgson's aggressive singing of this cynical song must be heard to be fully appreciated. "In Jeopardy" has a cha-cha, shuffle-like flavor and Hodgson's monotone vocals provide a faintly creepy effect. The gentle ballad "Lovers in the Wind" is sweetly arranged. "Give Me Love, Give Me Life" is exuberantly optimistic and hyperactively bouncy. "I'm Not Afraid" fearlessly flows back and forth between darker sounding melodies and upbeat pop. The creamy "Only Because of You" can be favorably compared to the floating instrumental passages on Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here. Without question, In the Eye of the Storm is an exceptional piece of highly listenable craftsmanship.

by Bret Adams

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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With this release,Hodgson dove head first into the '80s sound, both with production and instruments. Gone was the music of Supertramp(long, drawn-out prog/art rock pieces), and in its place, '80s dance-pop, not unlikeWang Chung. Hodgson wanted to leave the past behind him, and with the help of top session players (including drummer Jeff Porcaro), he seemed to want to branch out and experiment with other forms of music, such as reggae, pop, dance, and synth pop. The problem is that for the most part, it did not work. The songs lack the melodies that he is capable of writing, and the lyrics are at times juvenile and embarrassing (for example "Who's Afraid," or "My Magazine"). He may have had the best intentions, and he may have been trying to say something, but the poetry reads like a bored high school student wrote them. And while he hints at experimentation with other forms of music, he does not go far enough. For example, the listener is left with the small flavor of reggae without the structure or commitment to go all the way with the sound. The brief shining moments harken back to the Supertramp days, including a song he wrote with fellow Supertramp member Rick Davies in 1974 (the highlight of the album, the brilliant and moving "Land Ho"). He relies way too much on technology, and the music comes off as sounding cold and distant. What could have been beautiful melodies are lost in the heavy electro beat production and arrangements. For such a talented artist, this album is a big disappointment.

by Aaron Badgley

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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After taking several years off from the music business, former Supertramp singer Roger Hodgson got back into the saddle with 1997's "Rites Of Passage," a live album recorded near Hodgson's home of Nevada City, California, featuring 8 new, previously unheard songs, plus a few Supertramp hits and a couple of other songs contributed by Hodgson's band members (including his very talented son Andrew Hodgson, who plays drums for most of the album). "Rites Of Passage" isn't really a "proper" new album from Hodgson, but it's a very excellent live performance, and the new songs are great, including the catchy "Every Trick In The Book," the punchy "Showdown" (which Hodgson would later record for his 2000 album "Open The Door"), the beautiful "Don't You Want To Get High," and the magical, majestic "Time Waits For No One." Supertramp faves "Take The Long Way Home," "The Logical Song," and "Give A Little Bit" are all given superb treatments (featuring 'Tramp sax man John Helliwell), and there's also a terrific moment as Hodgson steps aside and lets his son Andrew take a solo spotlight at the piano & microphone with his very lovely song, "Melancholic." For any diehard fan of Roger Hodgson and Supertramp, "Rites Of Passage" is a major treat.

By Alan Caylow

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Roger Hodgson (ex-Supertramp) Discography (1984-2000)

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This is Roger Hodgson's third solo studio album, 13 years after his second, the experimentalHai Hai (1987). During those 13 years, Hodgson had his personal challenges, including some health difficulties, but he did manage a tour, which is represented by 1997's Rites of Passage. During that tour, Hodgson dipped into the Supertramp catalog and this seemed to free him of his ghosts, because Open the Door is the closest thing to Supertramp since …Famous Last Words…. Hodgson still experiments with his music on this release (the title track, for example), but here it is couched in much more melodic tunes and personal lyrics. Also, the music has a tinge of a French style to it. Perhaps he was influenced by the French countryside, in which this album was recorded (Les Sorinieres, France); he used French artists as his backup band. The music is much more acoustic and much more gentle. The French influence is a breath of fresh air, as it is not often in heard in English releases, and Hodgson is able to mix it with his other influences (e.g., John Lennon). The highlights are many and as a whole it is a strong album. Fans will be delighted to hear Hodgson returning to the craft of writing high-quality songs. It is a shame it took 13 years for Hodgson to get to this point in his career.

by Aaron Badgley