Supertramp (Roger Hodgson)

0:03Hey Roger you got a big tour can coming up Right the important cities though the important cities of the West which I love yeah, what was lost him you were here Um boy Edmonton's been a few years now. I think three 90 2006 having the last time what is a setup like for this tour is it full band or just use solo piano or what's going on? What's up? I'm bringing a full band this time and they're a great band and pretty really sounding good We just done a few show accomplished up. So who's in the band people are in for a treat well Aaron McDonald who I've been touring with for Seven years now the multi-instrumentalist sex play and actually three Canadians and one American Canadian nice. Yeah Something about you Canadians I like

0:49Any easy to come with I think that's what I like. What do you play more of live piano guitar? I play keyboard a 12 string guitar and The piano which is from a game first for you guitar I started when I was 12 and then the piano I started when I was about 16 What led you to the piano because at a young age like that a lot of kids seem to rebel against against the piano Well me well, yeah, I did I did too But it was the only way I could get access to a taking piano But pretending to learn the classical pieces they were trying to get me to play but meanwhile I was writing my own stuff and developing my own style I wonder about your voice too because it's so distinct and so it's perfect live now still

1:35It's a really stayed intact. What do you do to keep your voice on? Far, I mean it's been a long time since those records were made. You know it keeps on It keeps on going. It's amazing. It's better than ever. I really don't do anything except I mean I live healthily. I mean I'm you know I take care of myself, but what I've noticed is that what's happened how my voice sounds is Really dependent on what's happening inside me and if I'm if I'm good in my heart in my spirit then my voice seems like a bird and when I'm stressed or lack of sleep or Or unhappy whatever my song my voice really you can tell so I think so so much so much is the state of state of mind state of heart

2:24It really affects the voice and you're feeling good these days these days. I'm feeling great You know, I'm older. I'm wiser. I'm having more fun than I ever have I Have to say I'm enjoying playing concerts more now than I ever have in my life What do you think that is? Well, I think just because I've learned how to enjoy myself and not get too caught up in it All and I just enjoy giving and I I feel very comfortable on stage Which was not always the case and I love keep I love talking to people I love talking to audiences I love to create good good vibes and make people happy when I had the best job in the world and I had some great songs to sing that I I still love and people obviously Been listening to them for most of their lives a lot of a lot of it's a wonderful chemistry to

3:15Be able to offer people now you mentioned some of those songs and just before we got on the phone here Linda was telling me that super tramp just announced a tour of Canada for this summer. Yeah, yeah, that's that I just got that new that's quite interesting. What are your thoughts on it? How do you feel? Well, please? Unfortunately, it happened last year to I was in Europe and and super champ announced and Unfortunately, people don't know who or what super champ is Rick David's own for the trademark super champ And he he's put together a different group of musicians each time when he's gonna add on tour This time it is with John and Bob but and but the one thing that that's happening that I'm not too crazy about I'm not happy about at all actually is that they are performing seven of my songs

4:03sung by a Sideman and they're not letting the audience know that that's gonna happen ahead of time So there's a lot of disappointed fans coming away from the concerts in Europe I just spoke up to fan after fan up to fan who expressed their disappointment to me that How disappointed they were going to the show and not seeing me there and not hearing my voice and these songs are so personal to me It's very hard for people who love my songs to be fooled in that way and that's really what what's happening So I don't know how they're gonna advertise this during in Canada But if the radio stations start advertising, you know If you hear super tramp tour of advertised with my song logical song or breakfast in America or school or dreamer Or it's raining again or whatever on the radio then I'm not gonna be there with the tour

4:52And that's why I'm really happy you're on the phone right now because we're letting people know You know we're clearing the air a little bit letting people know exactly What is happening with the super tramp tour? I guess it just in the sense that you won't be there I thought legally though like I thought that was part of the agreement they couldn't play your songs anymore Well, there wasn't agreement when I left super tramp obviously very Pippetal decision for me because I put 14 years of my life into the band and I did actually Rickenized your hands and you know, it was very very clear that Rick was gonna take the name and yet But the name was gonna become a vehicle for his music and his songs going forward And I would begin a solo career with my voice and my songs and that's how the future would unfold For about eight years Rick did a tour with Sukechamp and playing all his songs and it was it was fine

5:41But then the subsequent tour he actually played he started playing three of my songs and I felt very portrayed when that happened and You can imagine I don't feel too good about the fact that now it's You know a third of the show is is my songs being played so it makes it very difficult for Rick and I to Come together in any shape or form when that's going on. Well, let's get to a happier topic then. Yeah Well, your last solo disc it was great. It was but it was like 11 years ago Are you writing can we expect any new material from you in the near future? I'm always writing and I have a Huge backlog of material so I hope at some point if you come to the show you'll hear one or two new songs Oh nice And that's the way I'm introducing them at the moment and at some point

6:29I'll probably what it is what it will be nowadays because there's so many new meetings Maybe I'll just start putting the song wrap on the internet I don't know but I'd like to get these these song that you bring up an interesting point. How do you feel about that? I mean you grew you know you guys used to release vinyl you records on you know if kids know what records anymore are even You know this pros and cons to it. I mean, I love the new technology Thing that I like about it and the things I don't I mean I always used to put together albums like a 40-minute listening experience That's the way I thought about what is what how can I take people on a journey for 40 minutes? Well, people don't even listen to me for 40 minutes nowadays very rarely It's a much more immediate fast-paced world we live in and people want song by song

7:17So so times of changing in a lot of different ways and that's a huge discussion in itself I think that the thing I'm sad is about most of them said about really is that it's very hard for new Talent to find sponsorship in today's world and that's what the record companies really were they were Patrons or sponsors of all their faults. They were the ones that sponsored new new artists and allowed them to develop And we don't get that to a large degree nowadays, you know the record companies are fighting for survival They don't have the budgets. They don't have the and take time or allow an artist to develop over time and sponsor them Financially, it's it's a hard world You know that basically the American Idol type shows of Canadian Idol type shows about the one of the few places where

8:07Young artists can try to attract attention and make a career themselves, which is a very sad fit of a Yeah, you mentioned in there Canadian Idol and you mentored something Canadian hours a few years ago You shot a DVD here in this country to here pretty often as well You seem to have a real kinship with our country like an infatuation. Why do you love so much? Well, I love Canada. I love Canadians. I love the mentality up there I It's a beautiful country and wonderful people and I've always felt very home with Canadians and as I said I've got three Canadians in my band. I love working with them and I just I don't know you you seem to have the best the North American mentality but also some European mentality to do you have a nice mixture and yet your your your your own

8:55identity to I mean it's More More saying up there. I don't know. I just feel I just I just feel very at home in Canada and obviously Canada has really taken my me and my songs to their heart I mean I know at one point one and every 15 Canadians at the crown of the century so obviously, you know the huge Relationship that based on the music I've created in the past and it's still going on. I mean it's still very currently songs have not aged and And so I get I get asked to come up and play concerts all the time I'm very very happy about that and very happy to be coming to the game. It's a wonderful city I was hoping I can get a couple of sound bits from you about some of the songs that we play here on the station

9:43Let's start with breakfast in America because you just mentioned the record Breakfast in America was I wrote when I was about 17 or 18 on a Pompole them that I just bought I think it was the first song I wrote of it and And Definitely still makes me smile today. I don't know where that song came from but I think the The whole song and there's a couple of lines in the song. I'm I'm playing my jokes upon you while there's nothing better to do I think I was just playing with words and this matters you came into my head and I'm not even sure I had a girlfriend I met but obviously if I did have a girlfriend, I don't think she was my girlfriend after she heard that song So but it's a great it's a fun song and people still love it today speaking and playing with words the logical song

10:32Yeah, that would be really fun to put together, but it's also a very profound message to and very true to me in my life and true to I think A lot of people's experiences I mean we are stand the way the school could be taught how to be you know sensible and logical and intellectual and cynical and and that ultimately were really not taught that the deeper Questions and life and we're not given any tools to function as as who we truly are and I think that's the missing missing question to tell me who I am is a very deep question and Ironically, it's the song that's been very heavily quoted in schools always. It's funny It can't came full circle like that, but the logical song was a song that I'm and I love to sing

11:24Even today give a little bit give a little bit is songs really taking on life of its own it's funny when I wrote it I just thought wow It's such a simple song. It's I didn't even play it to the band for about six years and but now it's a song that has really become an anthem and become even more Important in this message. I think today than even when I wrote it I mean we are really living in times where we we do need to start giving more and thinking about giving more rather than What we can get out of life because we're living in pretty precarious times and we really need to pull together Give a little bit is Really conveys that spirit in a very beautiful way. We do something on the show called five questions five quick questions one word answers

12:10Road or studio road Lennon or McCartney Most important thing in a song lyrics melody or rhythm melody song you've written your most proud of and in one word Roger Hodgson