Supertramp reunion chance is gone

Moved on: Roger Hodgson

Roger Hodgson believes the chance of a Supertramp reunion passed when he offered to tour with Rick Davies but was ignored.

And he insists he doesn’t feel the need to reunite anyway.

The co-founder and co-frontman has built up a solo career beyond the Supertramp name, which, added to the breakdown in relations with Davies, means the pair aren’t likely to be seen on stage together again.

Hodgson tells Cincinatti.com: “I’m not really needing a reunion –  I know a lot of fans would love to see it.

“A couple of years ago Rick Davies put a band together and went out as Supertramp. Because of the fans really pressuring me, wanting to see me with Rick again, I did put out the offer to join him for a few shows. But the offer was declined.

“I kind of feel that, maybe, that was the last opportunity.”

He’s currently touring the US with his Breakfast In America tour, and says: “What I’m doing now in my shows, and how people are receiving it, is so rewarding that I don’t know whether I want to go backwards in a way and recreate something that was magic 35 years ago. Who knows what it would be like today?

“I’m just so happy that I can come back and sell out theatres, and people know who I am. Everyone knows my voice and my songs, but the name Roger Hodgson is not so well known. That’s always been the challenge in touring in America.”

Despite the bad blood of the past, he insists he’s not bitter – even though he believes Davies has wrongly taken songwriting credits on material he wrote alone.

“I realise I wasn’t very good at business back then. I didn’t get very good counsel from my managers,” Hodgson reflects. “He shares 50-50 with me, so he’s the one benefitting.

“I think there’s a lot of misunderstanding between he and I. We’ve only really sat down and talked once since I left, and that was 20 or 30 years ago.

“He has his life, I have mine. I don’t bear him any hard feelings – and to tell you the truth, I don’t know what feeling he bears me at all. Life’s too short.

“Success isn’t just financial. Success is how you sleep in your bed at night and how much you’re able to give to people. Audiences are going home feeling very happy – that’s me reward as a performer.”