Orwell Park, 11th July 2008
Well the day finally arrived, we were off to see Roger Hodgson, my excitement was indescribable. The weather was dreadful, and had been all week, nothing but rain & strong winds and Roger was to be playing at a private School on the edge of their Cricket Field ('could be interesting' I thought)!!!
We left the hotel (to Horizontal Rain) approx` 2 hours before Roger was to take to the stage. His support act on the night was Marillion who did a decent job of taking the crowds mind off how wet they were quickly becoming!!! Unbelievably @ 5 minutes before Roger walked on stage the rain stopped and It was quite obvious who the vast majority were here to see, & they weren`t about to be disappointed !!! I had never seen Roger before, either solo or with Supertramp, so this was it, could he be as good up there on stage with just a saxophonist for company (the Amazing Aaron Macdonald)??? When Roger finally appeared to a huge welcome from the Audience and started to play the 1st song on the set list (take the long way home) I knew we were
Rogers voice was as good if not better than I remembered it from the records, his playing of 12 string guitar, organ & piano exemplary, Aaron`s contribution to the fullness of sound was not to be underestimated either, he truly is a very talented musician & the two complimented each other beautifully!! The great songs just kept on coming covering his time with Supertramp and Solo career (Logical Song, Breakfast in America, Easy Does it, Sister Moonshine, Along came Mary, The more I look, Rosie had everything planned, to name but a few)!! Roger had the Audience completely spellbound, the humility of the man speaks volumes, but sadly all good things come to an end, and Roger, returning for an encore, finished off with the Fabulous "School" (from the Album Crime of the Century)and finally a reprise of his well loved & catchy hit "Give a little bit"!!!
The Euphoria I felt afterwards left me wondering why I had not been to see one of Rogers shows before or since that night??? Rogers show is a truly magical experience I would recommend to everyone & I for one hope to experience once again very soon!!!
Many Thanks Roger!!
Duncan Bradbury.