Courtesy of Funk-U Magazine & P-VIEWS
Q : When did you first start performing with a band, cos' we heard that you had one called Roger & the Veils, & also Roger & the Hungry People.
ROGER TROUTMAN : Yeah, actually between the age of 10 to 15, these were the names of my high school bands : Roger & the Veils. In fact Little Roger & the Fabulous Veils. That's how I really got started. Even back then Lester performed with me. After that I tried to diversify & make more money & I changed the name of the group to Roger & the Human Body & of course that evolved into what we 're dealing with now which is the group Zapp.
Q : Were there any recordings made by those early groups?
ROGER TROUTMAN : No. Huh, in fact one little single but you know. I can't even remember the name of the label but it was a local thing. It was such a long time ago!
Q : In 1976 you recorded your first LP, Roger & the Human Body : Introducing Roger. Who were the players in the band?
ROGER TROUTMAN : There was Bobby Glover, Beverly, Lester, that's the best I can remember.
Q : Why was the name of the band & the name of the album changed when it was reissued on the Soulciety label? And how did you get connected with the label?
ROGER TROUTMAN : Well my brother Larry, who's my business manager, was approached by Soulciety Records & they made a deal. But that's such an amazing act of God! In 1976 when I recorded it, I had no idea that it would resurface some 17 years after that. Very very heavy!
Q : You recorded 'Love TKO'(the great Teddy Pendergrass song) with The Human Body for the same label. Are there any plans for more songs or an album, or was this just a one off?
ROGER TROUTMAN : That was just that. It came and went.
Q : You mentioned your brother Larry, what about your other brothers? Isn't there another one named Rufus? And do you have any sisters?
ROGER TROUTMAN : In the beginning in our minds it seemed like we all should try to be stars. Solo albums & stuff. After a while we started to realize that what we needed to do was concentrate on me. We all thought that I could be like an enterprise, & we could make money & do the records. We aimed our focus at one thing. And it worked out so much better. Lester now does all the booking, & takes care in making sure everything goes from one point to the other in terms of geography, Terry is in charge of road managing, Larry is making sure that everything stays intact legally & financially. Then Rufus, well, he takes care of our construction company back in Ohio. That's all his baby. And I have just one sister. Her name is Loretta. She works under Rufus. She's a licensed electrician She never cared about singing. She always wanted to be in electronics. Like a tom boy so to speak.
Q : You did a lot of outside productions. Whatever happened to New Horizons?
ROGER TROUTMAN : They did two records with CBS & then their contract dissolved. The band split-up but Bart just came along with me. He decided that he wanted to pursue his musical carrier. He's been working with my group ever since. Very dedicated soldier-type comrade musician.
Q : What about Shirley Murdock?
ROGER TROUTMAN : I did three records with Shirley for Elektra Records & then she became disanchanted. She felt that she wasn't receiving the kind of attention she wanted, because Elektra was so big. So we decided to take her from Elektra & signed her to Warner Bros. That's where she's at now. I'm presently working on her new record at the moment.
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