Rick Davies, the founder, vocalist and keyboardist of the rock band Supertramp, has died at the age of 81, the group said Saturday. Davies had lived with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, for about a decade, and the band credited him as "the voice and pianist behind Supertramp's most iconic songs, leaving an indelible mark on rock music history."
Davies co-wrote many of the band's best-known tracks with bandmate Roger Hodgson and is specifically credited with songs such as 1974's "Bloody Well Right" and 1979's "Goodbye Stranger." The band said his "soulful vocals and unmistakable touch on the Wurlitzer became the heartbeat of the band's sound." Born in Swindon, Wiltshire, in 1944, Davies began his musical career in a series of local groups before forming the ensemble that became Supertramp.
Davies's path to wider success was helped by Dutch benefactor Stanley August Miesegaes, who financed a new lineup after Davies advertised for bandmates in Melody Maker in 1969. That backing allowed Supertramp to develop its sound through early records and personnel changes that culminated in chart success with their third album, Crime of the Century, in 1974.
The band's international breakthrough came with 1979's Breakfast in America, which featured Hodgson-penned hits such as "The Logical Song," the title track and Davies's own "Goodbye Stranger." The LP sold more than 30 million copies worldwide and received two Grammy nominations in 1980, including album of the year.
Relations between Davies and Hodgson grew strained over time, and Hodgson left Supertramp in 1983. Davies continued to record and tour under the Supertramp name with other members, including bassist Dougie Thomson, saxophonist John Helliwell and drummer Bob Siebenberg. The group announced a reunion tour in 2015 that was later cancelled when Davies was diagnosed with cancer that year. In later years he also performed with a hometown outfit billed as Ricky and the Rockets.
The band paid tribute to Davies's personal qualities, saying he was known for his "warmth, resilience, and devotion to his wife Sue, with whom he shared over five decades." The statement added that Davies enjoyed performing close to home after health problems prevented further touring with Supertramp.
Legal disputes over songwriting royalties shadowed the band's later history. In 1977 Davies and Hodgson agreed to reduce their 50% share of songwriting royalties to give other members and the band's manager a share, a practice that remained in effect until 2018. Three long-serving members — Thomson, Helliwell and Siebenberg — sued Hodgson and Davies in 2021; Davies settled his part of that litigation out of court in 2023. Last month, a U.S. appeals court ruled that Hodgson must share royalties with his ex-bandmates.
Davies's death leaves a catalog of songs that helped define Supertramp's sound and influence late-20th century rock. "Rick's music and legacy continue to inspire many and bears testament to the fact that great songs never die, they live on," the band said in its statement.