In 1988, Troutman made an appearance on Scritti Politti's third album Provision, providing talk box vocals on the songs "Boom There She Was" and "Sugar and Spice". He also produced for Zapp member Dale DeGroat on his solo efforts. Īlongside his successful career as Zapp member and solo artist, Troutman also became a producer and writer for other artists including Shirley Murdock, whose 1985 Platinum debut featured the Troutman-produced hit "As We Lay". In 1987, Troutman scored his most successful solo album with Unlimited!, carried by the hit " I Want to Be Your Man" which rose to number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the R&B chart. In 1984, Troutman issued his second solo album The Saga Continues., which featured the singles "Girl Cut It Out", "It's in the Mix" (which was dedicated to Soul Train and its host Don Cornelius), and a cover of Wilson Pickett's " In the Midnight Hour", which featured gospel group the Mighty Clouds of Joy. The same year, Troutman recorded with Parliament-Funkadelic on the band's final Warner Brothers' album The Electric Spanking of War Babies. The album also featured the hit "So Ruff, So Tuff". Featuring a funk cover of Marvin Gaye's " I Heard It Through the Grapevine", which went to number 1 on the R&B singles chart, the album sold over a million copies. In 1981, Troutman cut The Many Facets of Roger, his first solo album. Solo career and production work on other artists The album Zapp VI: Back by Popular Demand was released in 2002 by the remaining brothers after the deaths of Roger and Larry. It featured remixed cuts of Troutman's solo singles along with a new single " Slow and Easy", (featured vocalists Shirley Murdock and Ronnie Diamond). In 1993, Zapp released their biggest-selling album: Zapp & Roger: All the Greatest Hits. Throughout Zapp's history, around 15 musicians participated. The debut album reached the top 20 of the Billboard 200.įrom 1980 to 1985, Zapp released the gold-selling albums Zapp, Zapp II, Zapp III and The New Zapp IV U, including the Top 10 R&B singles "Be Alright", "Dance Floor", "I Can Make You Dance", "Heartbreaker", "It Doesn't Really Matter" and " Computer Love". The song peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Soul Singles chart in late 1980. Records and released his self-titled debut 'Zapp', which yielded " More Bounce to the Ounce", produced by Collins, co- produced, written, composed and performed by Troutman. Zapp made their professional television debut on the first and only Funk Music Awards show.Ī year later, as Uncle Jam Records was forced to close, Troutman signed with Bootsy Collins under Rubber Band Music to Warner Bros. The original line-up consisted of Troutman brothers Roger, Larry, Lester and Terry, along with Gregory Jackson and Bobby Glover. Within two years, Troutman and his brothers were discovered by George Clinton, who signed the newly christened Zapp to his Uncle Jam Records label in 1979. In 1977, he and the Human Body issued "Freedom", their first single. Troutman had formed various other bands with his four brothers, including Little Roger, and the Vels, and Roger and the Human Body. The band members were Rick Schoeny, Roy Beck, Dave Spitzmiller, and Denny Niebold. Troutman's band played in Cincinnati and recorded a single, "Busted Surfboard"/"Seminole". A graduate of Central State University, his first band was called the Crusaders however, they are not to be confused with the jazz group featuring Joe Sample and Wilton Felder. Troutman used a custom-made talkbox-the Electro Harmonix "Golden Throat"-through a Moog Minimoog and later in his career a Yamaha DX100 FM synthesizer.Īs both band leader of Zapp and in his subsequent solo releases, he scored a bevy of funk and R&B hits throughout the 1980s and regularly collaborated with hip hop artists in the 1990s.īorn in Hamilton, Ohio, Troutman was the fourth of ten children. Troutman frequently used the talk box, a device that is connected to an instrument (frequently a keyboard, but most commonly a guitar) to create different vocal effects. Roger Troutman (Novem– April 25, 1999) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and the founder of the band Zapp who helped spearhead the funk movement and influenced West Coast hip hop due to the scene's heavy sampling of his music.
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