Roger Ashley Mason is an Australian keyboardist who has been a member of new wave groups

Models A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided int ...

, Absent Friends and Icehouse. He was a session and backing musician for United Kingdom's

Gary Numan Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the New wave music, new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two st ...

and for various Australian artists. From the early 1990s he has composed music for television and feature films. He appeared on Models best performed album, '' Out of Mind, Out of Sight'' (1985), which reached No. 3 on the Australian

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music historian David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July 19 ...

Albums Chart and provided a No. 2 hit "Barbados" and a No. 1 hit " Out of Mind, Out of Sight". On 27 October 2010, Models were inducted into the

ARIA Hall of Fame Since 1988 the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) has inducted artists into its annual ARIA Hall of Fame. While most have been recognised at the annual ARIA Music Awards, in 2005 ARIA sought to create a separate standalone ceremo ...

by former member,

Wendy Matthews Wendy Joan Matthews (born 13 January 1960) is a Canadian-born Australian singer-songwriter who has been a member of Models (band), Models and Absent Friends (band), Absent Friends and is a solo artist. She released Top 20 hit singles in th ...

. As a composer, Mason has won 12

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwri ...

(APRA)

Awards An award, sometimes called a distinction, is given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award may be d ...

for his TV and film work, '' MDA'' (presented in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

), '' The Extra'' (

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

), ''

Peking to Paris The Peking to Paris motor race was an automobile race, originally held in 1907, between Beijing, Peking (now Beijing), then Qing dynasty, Qing China (now the China, People's Republic of China) and Paris, France (then the Third French Republic), a ...

'' (

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

), ''

The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce ''The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce'' is a 2008 Australian-Irish film directed by Michael James Rowland starring Irish actors Adrian Dunbar as Philip Conolly and Ciarán McMenamin as bushranger Alexander Pearce and an ensemble Australian cas ...

'' (

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

), '' My Place'' (

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

), '' The Outlaw Michael Howe '' (

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

), '' The Code'' (

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

), ''

The Principal ''The Principal'' is a 1987 action comedy film starring Jim Belushi, Louis Gossett Jr. and Rae Dawn Chong. Written by Frank Deese and directed by Christopher Cain, it was filmed in Oakland, California, and at Northgate High School in near ...

'' (

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

) and ''

Hungry Ghosts Hungry ghost is a term in Buddhism and Chinese traditional religion, representing beings who are driven by intense emotional needs in an animalistic way. The term zh, c= 餓鬼, p=èguǐ, l=hungry ghost is the Chinese translation of the Sansk ...

'' (

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

Biography

Early years

Roger Ashley Mason was a keyboardist in Colt early in 1979. He joined vocalist and guitarist James Freud (ex-Spread, Teenage Radio Stars) in James Freud & the Radio Stars with fellow Colt members Murray Doherty on bass guitar, Glenn McGrath on drums and Bryan Thomas on guitar, and later Tony Harvey on guitar and Mick Prague on bass. This line up plus various guest artists recorded the album " Breaking Silence" between July and November 1979 with further contributions made by Tony Lugton and Peter Cook before its completion and release in 1980. Further changes by year's end resulted in Freud and Mason joined by Peter Cook on guitar and backing vocals and Tommy Hosie on drums. They signed with

Mushroom Records Mushroom Records was an Australian flagship record label, founded in 1972 in Melbourne. It published and distributed many successful Australian artists and expanded internationally, until it was merged with Festival Records in 1998. Festival ...

and their debut single, "Modern Girl," was released in May 1980, which peaked at No. 12 on the Australian

Singles Chart. They supported the English singer-keyboardist,

, on his Australian tour. James Freud & the Radio Stars' debut album ''Breaking Silence'' was released in June, it was produced by

Tony Cohen Anthony Lawrence Cohen (4 June 19572 August 2017) was an Australian music record producer and sound engineer. He worked with Nick Cave's groups the Birthday Party, and then the Bad Seeds from 1979 to 2001. In mid-1986 he followed Cave to Lond ...

. Numan liked the album and offered to produce the next one in London, as there was already a UK band called The Radio Stars, a name change to James Freud & Berlin occurred. While in London, Mason joined Numan's backing band and was recorded on the live album, ''

Living Ornaments '80 ''Living Ornaments '80'' is a live album by British musician Gary Numan, first released in 1981. It was also issued as a limited edition box set with '' Living Ornaments '79'' (as '' Living Ornaments '79 and '80'') the same year. The original ...

''. Neither Freud nor Numan were happy with the London-recorded album for James Freud & Berlin and it was not released and one month later, in March 1981, Freud disbanded the group. Freud and Mason returned to the UK with the intention of forming a new band, Orient-R, which only played a single performance before disbanding. Mason then went on to join Numan's touring band, and appeared on Numan's 1981 album, ''

Dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

'' and subsequent 1982 album, '' I, Assassin''. While in London, Mason worked for

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...

guitarist,

Rob Dean Rob Dean (born 23 April 1955) is a British musician turned professional illustrator, who rose to prominence playing lead guitar as a member of the English New wave music, new wave band Japan (band), Japan from 1975 to 1981. Biography He is fr ...

(ex-

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

) on a potential solo album. By 1984, Mason and Dean had combined with Hugo Burnham (

Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes due to th ...

) and Australian singer and bass guitarist Philip Foxman ( Supernaut) to form

funk rock Funk rock is a fusion genre that mixes elements of funk and Rock music, rock. James Brown and others declared that Little Richard and his mid-1950s road band, The Upsetters (American band), the Upsetters, were the first to put the funk in the ...

outfit, Illustrated Man. They released a six-track mini-LP, ''Illustrated Man'', then toured to New York but soon disbanded.

Models

In late 1984, Mason re-joined with Freud to replace

Andrew Duffield Andrew Peter Duffield (born 9 February 1958) is an Australian musician, producer and teacher. He has been a member, on keyboards, synthesisers or electronics, for various groups, including Whirlywirld, Models, and Absent Friends. Duffield has ...

on keyboards in

. He appeared on their best performed album, '' Out of Mind, Out of Sight'' which reached No. 3 on the Australian

Albums Chart and spawned a No. 2 hit "Barbados" and a No. 1 hit " Out of Mind, Out of Sight". With Mason and Freud, the line-up of Models was Sean Kelly on lead guitar and vocals, Canadian-born

on backing vocals, New Zealand-born Barton Price on drums and James Valentine on saxophone. Their final studio album, '' Models' Media'' was released in December 1986, which peaked in the Top 30 and the band had a slot on the Australian Made Tour into early 1987. Mason as lead singer and Kelly, formed a side-project, The Clampetts, to record

cover versions In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song released ...

of nine

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

tracks, which was released in 1987 as ''The Last Hoedown''.

Later projects

Mason joined Jenny Morris's backing band late in 1987, together with Amanda Vincent (ex-

Eurogliders Eurogliders are a band formed in 1980 in Perth, Western Australia, which included Grace Knight on vocals, Bernie Lynch on guitar and vocals, and Amanda Vincent on keyboards. * First edition (online copy): * Second edition: In 1984, Eurogli ...

), Jehan Lindsay (

Richard Clapton Richard Clapton (born 18 May 1948) is an Australian singer-songwriter-guitarist and producer. His solo top 20 hits on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart are " Girls on the Avenue" (1975) and " I Am an Island" (1982). He reached the top& ...

Band), Paul Burton ( Mark Williams Band) following the release of Morris' debut solo album, '' Body and Soul''. In 1988 Mason toured with Los Angeles new wave group

Wall of Voodoo Wall of Voodoo was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California who were active from 1977 until disbanding in 1989. Though largely an underground act for the majority of its existence, the band came to prominence when its 1982 single " ...

and appeared on their live album '' The Ugly Americans in Australia''. In late 1989 Mason re-united with former Models members, Kelly and Matthews performing on Absent Friends' first single, "Hallelujah". Mason then toured with Icehouse, following the release of their seventh studio album, '' Code Blue''. He also was a member of

Tommy Emmanuel William Thomas Emmanuel (born 31 May 1955) is an Australian guitarist. Originally a session player in many bands, he has released many award-winning recordings as a solo artist. In June 2010, Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Aus ...

's touring band between 1988 and 1992. In 1990, Matthews recorded her debut solo album ''

Émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social exile or self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French verb ''émigrer'' meaning "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Huguenot ...

'' with the assistance of Mason and various bandmates,

Garry Gary Beers Garry William Beers (born 22 June 1957), known as Garry Gary Beers, is an Australian musician and was the bass guitarist for the Rock music, rock group INXS. Career Garry William Beers was born to Lola (died 2011) and William Beers. William Be ...

(Absent Friends,

INXS INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as the Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney. The founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, gu ...

), Kelly, Mick King (Absent Friends), Valentine and Duffield as well as

Tim Finn Brian Timothy Finn (born 25 June 1952) is a New Zealand singer, songwriter, musician, and composer. He is best known as a founding member of Split Enz. Finn founded the band in 1972 with Phil Judd and served as lead singer and principal songw ...

and

Peter Blakeley Peter Blakeley is an Australian white soul/adult contemporary singer and songwriter. Blakeley was a lead singer of the Rockmelons in the mid-1980s. He launched a solo career in 1987 and had a massive hit single in Australia in 1989 with " C ...

. Mason wrote her hit song, "Token Angels" which reached No. 18 on the Australian singles chart and won Matthews an ARIA Award in 1991 for 'Breakthrough Artist – Single'. 1992 saw Mason (keyboards) join

Johnny Diesel Mark Denis Lizotte (born 31 May 1966) is an American-born Australian singer-songwriter and musician, who has released material under the name Diesel, Johnny Diesel, as leader of band Johnny Diesel & the Injectors, and as a solo performer, as we ...

's Rock 'n' Soul Tour, with Kane Baker on drums, Leslie Barlow on

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

, Matthew Branton on guitar and Jim Hilbun on bass guitar. In 1997, Mason teamed up with

Graeme Revell Graeme Revell (born 23 October 1955) is a New Zealand musician and composer. He came to prominence in the 1980s as the leader of the industrial rock/ electronic rock group SPK. Since the 1990s he has worked primarily as a film score composer. ...

to create the album ''Vision II - Spirit of Rumi'', released through New York based

Angel Records Angel Records was a record label founded by EMI in 1953. It specialised in European classical music, classical music, but included an occasional operetta or Broadway score. and one Peter Sellers comedy disc. The famous Recording Angel trademark ...

. The two coproduced, supplied some of the instrumental accompaniment, and set to music 11 poems by renowned 13th century poet

Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī (), or simply Rumi (30 September 1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century poet, Hanafi '' faqih'' (jurist), Maturidi theologian (''mutakallim''), and Sufi mystic born during the Khwarazmian Empire ...

. Vocals were provided by Noa, Lori Garson, Esther Dobong'Na Essiene a.k.a. Estha Divine, and the late

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (, ; born Pervez Fateh Ali Khan; 13 October 1948 – 16 August 1997), also known by his initials NFAK, was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, and music director. Khan was primarily a singer of qawwali, a form of Sufi devot ...

. As a composer, Mason has won

(APRA)

for 'Best Soundtrack Album' for '' The Extra'' in

, 'Best Music for a Television Series or Serial' for ''

'' in

, 'Best Music for a Telemovie' for ''

'' in

, and

Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) is a professional organisation of film and television practitioners in Australia. The academy's aim is "to identify, award, promote, and celebrate Australia's greatest achievements i ...

(AACTA)

for 'Best Original Music Score in Television' for '' The Code (Episode 1) (ABC)'' in 2015.{ On 27 October 2010, Models were inducted into the

by Matthews. He has played with

Steve Kilbey Steven John Kilbey (born 13 September 1954) is an English born Australian singer-songwriter best known as the lead singer and bass guitarist for the rock band The Church. He is also a music producer, poet, and painter. As of 2020, Kilbey has r ...

and the Winged Heels.

Awards and nominations

AGSC Awards

The

Australian Guild of Screen Composers The Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) is a not for profit organisation, which was established in 1981, "to represent the interests of Australian screen composers by developing and promoting employment opportunities, undertaking educationa ...

(AGSC) presented their annual awards for works by their members from 1996 to 2000. These awards were incorporated into the APRA Music Awards as the Screen Music Awards from 2002 (see below). ! , - , rowspan="2", 1998 , , ''Africa's Elephant Kingdom'' (Roger Mason) , , Best Music for a Documentary , , , , rowspan="5", , - , ''Africa's Elephant Kingdom'' (Mason) and ''Land of the Future Eaters'' (Robert Moss) , , Best Original Music in a Television Series or Serial , , , - , rowspan="2", 1999 , , rowspan="2", ''

The Day of the Roses ''The Day of the Roses'' is a two-part Australian television mini-series, a docu-drama directed by Peter Fisk, based on the events of the 1977 Granville railway disaster. The film was made in 1998 and runs over 3.5 hours. Described as "a dra ...

'' (Mason) , , Best Original Title Theme Composed for a Television Series, Serial or Mini-Series , , , - , Best Music for a Mini-Series or a Telemovie , , , - , 2000 , , ''Confessions of a Headhunter'' (Mason) , , Best Original Music for a Short Film , , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

, ''The Extra'' , Best Original Cast or Show Album , , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

APRA Music Awards

The

APRA Music Awards The APRA Music Awards in Australia celebrate excellence in contemporary music, honoring songwriters and publishers who have achieved artistic excellence and outstanding success in their fields. Several award ceremonies are run in Australia b ...

are presented annually from 1982 by the

(APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters." After 2002 they also include the associated Screen Music Awards handed out by APRA,

Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

(AMCOS) and

(AGSC), which "acknowledges excellence and innovation in the field of screen composition." ! , - , rowspan="3",

, , ''Horses – The Story of Equus'' (Roger Mason) , , Best Music for a Documentary , , , , rowspan="3", , - , '' MDA'' – "Episode 8" (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , - , ''MDA'' (Mason) , , Best Television Theme , , , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, , ''MDA'' – "Series 2, Episode 27" (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , , , - , rowspan="2",

, , rowspan="2", '' The Extra'' (Mason) , , Feature Film Score of the Year , , , , rowspan="2", , - , Best Soundtrack Album , , , - ,

, , ''

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , , , - ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, , SBS Station ID – "Six Billion Stories & Counting" (Mason, Bryony Marks) , , Best Music for an Advertisement , , , , , - ,

, , ''

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie , , , , , - , rowspan="3",

, , ''The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce'' (Mason) , , Best Soundtrack Album , , , , rowspan="3", , - , '' My Place'' – "Episode 13: 1888 Victoria" (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , - , ''My Place'' (Mason) , , Best Television Theme , , , - ,

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, , ''My Place'' – " Season 2: Episode 1 – Henry 1878" , , Best Music for Children's Television , , , , , - , rowspan="2",

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, , ''My Place'' – " Season 2: Episode 8 – Sarah 1798" (Mason) , , Best Music for Children's Television , , , , , - , ''This Dog's Life'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Short Film , , , , , - , rowspan="2",

, , ''

The Outlaw Michael Howe ''The Outlaw Michael Howe'' is a 2013 Australian historical drama film written and directed by Brendan Cowell. Set in the early 19th century, the film is based on the exploits of Michael Howe, an Englishman who was transported as a convict t ...

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie , , , , , - , ''The Outlaw Michael Howe'' – "The Harvest & The Glory" (Mason) , , Best Original Song Composed for the Screen , , , , , - , rowspan="2",

, , '' The Code'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , , , - , ''The Code'' (Mason) , , Best Television Theme , , , , , - ,

, , ''

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , , , - ,

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, , ''The Code'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , , , , , - , rowspan="2",

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, , rowspan="2", ''

The Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons c ...

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie , , , , rowspan="2", , - , Best Television Theme , , , - , rowspan="2",

, , rowspan="2", ''

'' (Mason) , , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie , , , , rowspan="2", , - , Best Television Theme , , , -

References

;General * Note: Archived n-linecopy has limited functionality. * ;Specific

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mason, Roger 20th-century births Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Australian male composers 21st-century Australian male composers APRA Award winners Australian electronic musicians Australian rock keyboardists Australian film score composers Icehouse (band) members Living people Models (band) members