Roger Pope (drummer)
From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia
Roger Pope | |
|---|---|
.png) Pope in 1971 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 20 March 1947 Whitstable, Kent, England, UK |
| Died | 18 September 2013 (aged 66) Southampton, England, UK |
| Genres | rock, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Drummer and percussionist |
| Instrument(s) | drums |
| Years active | 1960s–2013 |
| Formerly of | Hookfoot, Elton John Band |
Roger Pope (20 March 1947 – 18 September 2013[1]) was an English drummer. He was the drummer for the Elton John Band in the 1970s.
Early life and education[edit]
Roger Pope was born in Whitstable, Kent in 1947. His father was a drummer and his mother was a singer.[2] He attended Itchen Grammar School.[3] After leaving school at fifteen, he joined local band "The Soul Agents".
Career[edit]
He was a session musician for DJM Records, and formed Hookfoot with other associates. The name "Hookfoot" came from Pope, who used to hook his foot to a hi-hat stand to keep it from sliding around during rehearsal.[4] The group were members of the Elton John Band from 1975 to 1976.[5] Pope replaced Nigel Olsson, who John had fired. Pope played on two of Elton's albums: Rock of the Westies and Blue Moves. When John's Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy turned 30 in 2005, a deluxe CD was released, that featured an exclusive disc that held audio of the Elton John Band performing at Wembley Stadium on 21 June 1975, a performance Pope played drums on.
Pope was also the drummer for Kiki Dee's touring band.[2] He played drums on albums by Cliff Richard, Hall & Oates, Kevin Ayers, Seals and Crofts, Rod Stewart, Paul McCartney, and Al Stewart.[1][6][3] Pope played drums on track seven of Harry Nilsson's 1971 album Nilsson Schmilsson. It is rumoured that Pope, along with Keith Moon and Ginger Baker, were main inspirations for the character Animal, the muppet drummer for Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem.[1][2]
Death[edit]
Pope died of cancer in Southampton on 18 September 2013, aged 66. He was married twice.[1]
Pope married his second wife, Sue Tressider, just hours before his death, when the couple realised that they didn't have long before Roger's demise. They had been partners for eighteen years, and tied the knot at Southampton General Hospital.[3] The wedding was arranged after a nurse overheard Pope and Tressider talking about how they never got the chance to get married.[3] The nurse soon got hold of registrar, and within an hour, the couple were officially married.[3]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Roger Pope: Sideman who backed Elton John on hits such as 'Don't Go". The Independent. 2013-11-07. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ a b c Specials, George Matlock | 14/08/13 | (2013-08-14). "BACKSTAGE: Roger Pope, the party's not over". Elton John World. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e "Southampton drummer Roger Pope marries hours before losing cancer battle". Daily Echo. 2013-09-23. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ Dukes, Billy DukesBilly (2013-09-19). "Elton John Drummer Roger Pope Dead at 66". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1184. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
- ^ "Roger Pope". 2024-04-12. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
Additional[edit]
- Roger Pope discography at MusicBrainz
