Rick Davies, Supertramp Legend, Dies at 81 After Brave Battle with Cancer
Rick Davies, theco-founder and driving force behind the iconic British band Supertramp, has failed at 81.
The band verified the sad news on 7 September, participating that he’d been living with multiple myeloma, a rare form of blood cancer, for further than ten times.
For decades, Davies’ distinctive voice and masterful keyboard work helped shape the sound of progressive gemstone. Alongside Roger Hodgson, he penned indelible tracks like “ Goodbye Stranger”, “ Bloody Well Right”, and “ The Logical Song.”
“As co-writer, along with partner Roger Hodgson, he was the voice and pianist behind Supertramp’s most iconic songs, leaving an indelible mark on rock music history,” the band’s statement read.
“His soulful vocals and unmistakable touch on the Wurlitzer became the heartbeat of the band’s sound.”
Hailing from Swindon, England, Davies started out in a band called The Joint. When that group split in 1969, he was determined not to let the dream bones.
Rick Davies, the Supertramp co-founder, singer, and keyboardist who penned some of the band’s most popular and enduring songs, including “Goodbye Stranger,” “My Kind of Lady,” and “Cannonball,” has died at age 81.
Access the free article here: https://t.co/IVdkF4iX7a pic.twitter.com/qwtkT8H2OQ
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) September 8, 2025
He placed an announcement in Melody Maker, hoping to find musicians who shared his vision. That’s how he met Roger Hodgson, a meeting that would change music history.
Their first two albums didn’t quite hit the mark, but everything shifted with 1974’s Crime of the Century.
The record, featuring drummer Bob Siebenberg, bassist Dougie Thomson, and saxophonist John Helliwell, put Supertramp firmly on the map.
Tracks like “Bloody Well Right,” “Rudy,” and “Dreamer” became instant classics.
Success kept rolling in with albums like Crisis? What Crisis? ( 1975) and Indeed in the Quietest Moments( 1977).
But it was Breakfast in America in 1979 that propelled them to global superstardom.
The reader soared to number one on the Billboard charts, spawning successes like “ The Logical Song”, “ Goodbye Stranger”, and “ Take the Long Way Home”.
It indeed earned two Grammy nominations. Though their collaboration defined Supertramp’s golden times, Davies and Hodgson’s paths began to diverge by the early 1980s.
“Hodgson and Davies were drifting further apart, not in hostility, but in philosophy. Hodgson built a home in the Northern California mountains, where he raised his family and pursued spiritual interests.
Davies stayed in Los Angeles, more rooted in urban grit,” the band’s biography later explained.
In 1983, Hodgson left the band for good. But Davies wasn’t one to give up.
He carried the band forward, releasing Brother Where You Bound (1985) and Free as a Bird (1987), where he took on lead vocals and songwriting by himself. After a 1988 tour, Supertramp went quiet—but not for long.
In 1996, Davies revived the group with new faces, going on to release Some Things Never Change (1997) and Slow Motion (2002). A planned tour in 2015 was sadly cancelled after his health took a turn for the worse.
The band’s tribute didn’t just focus on his achievements but his character too.
“Beyond the stage, Rick was known for his warmth, resilience, and devotion to his wife Sue, with whom he shared over five decades,” they wrote.
Even when illness kept him off the road, Davies stayed connected to music and friendship. He performed with his hometown pals in Ricky and the Rockets, finding joy in simpler gigs and cherished memories.
Rick Davies’s impact on music is immense and enduring. The band’s final words summed it up beautifully: “Rick’s music and legacy continue to inspire many and bear testament to the fact that great songs never die, they live on.”
His songs, his sound, and his spirit will continue to reverberate with suckers old and new. Rick Davies may be gone, but his music lives on.
