Album Review

It was only a matter of time before I got here. I am quite vocal in promoting all things Zapp, whether it was their marvellous debut album or their equally impressive follow-up. They hold a prominent position in the pantheon of Ohio’s funk scene and rightly so. And with this story, I complete the Zapp trilogy, in a way.

Essentially a family band, the driving force behind the group was Roger Troutman. He would go on to make a name for himself in his own right, notably leaving an unremovable mark on the evolution of hip-hop music, epitomized by his collaboration with 2Pac and Dr. Dre on 1996’s California Love. Roger was the charismatic genius behind Zapp’s success. He refined and defined the group’s sound. He was the focal point of everything they did, leading their live shows with his infectious energy:

Funk legend George Clinton mentored him in the late 70s. Unconvinced by Clinton’s management style, Troutman took his band to Warner Bros. Records, where they released an influential debut album, 1980s Zapp. The follow-up, 1982’s Zapp II, was another serving of what the group did so well. However, in between these two, Troutman decided to break out on his own. The result was 1981’s The Many Facets of Roger:

The title gives it away: here, he compiled an eclectic mix of sounds into a modest six songs that serve as a faithful testimony to the music he was interested in and capable of producing. With this move, he was emulating his former tutor, following Clinton’s example of managing two separate entities with different styles while using the same personnel.

There is the question, of course, is this truly a solo Roger album? After all, all the same names from the Zapp albums appear between them. There is a continuation in sound and personnel, and yet, you can hear the difference. He delivers several long-form jams, expanding on themes he had already established on Zapp; songs like Brand New Player and Funky Bounce have their counterparts on this album.

And yet, Roger builds on those extended jams. Lyrically, this album is stripped down. There are no serenading love songs, broken heart laments, or working man anthems. This is an album you can put on at a party and never have to worry about skipping any track. Two songs are complete instrumentals, while the other two have minimal lyrics. From the other two, one is a cover, and the remaining one merely contains a thorough description of what is so great about this talismanic figure.

The album starts with an ode to Roger’s heroes. We could see it as merely a cover of Marvin Gaye’s “Heard It Through the Grapevine,” but it’s the way he does it that makes it so special. And here, he is possibly channelling another influence; Isaac Hayes. Hayes’ solo career took off with his slowed-down, extended, orchestral cover of Dionne Warwick’s Walk On By, re-inventing it to the point that it bears scant resemblance to the original. In the case of Roger, he takes a Motown standard and updates it for the electronic sounds of the 1980s, most notably relying on his treasured voice box.

The next track is a typical Roger/Zapp groove; a deep bass groove, hypnotic guitar, and repeating simple chants, making So Ruff, So Tuff a fitting sequel to Zapp’s debut hit, More Bounce to the Ounce.

A Chunk of Sugar is a change of pace. It is a mellow, laidback, relaxing tune, with plenty of improvisation, flow, and groove —a delightfully smooth journey.

Do It, Roger is Roger at his peak, his purest form, his most egotistical, self-loving essence. The song title tells us what we need to know, encouraging Roger to whisk us away and work us into a frenzy with his supercharged groove. He teases us at the start with fuzzy, lazy keys and a soft, sprinkling guitar matched with tinkling chimes before abruptly cutting it short and launching into a pacey tune, bringing several different grooves together. The chorus urges him on further as he tells them to sit back, reassuring them ‘You got to let me do it’.

You know that feeling: You’re on the dancefloor and you’re caught up in the excitement of losing yourself and unlocking your body to a tune you haven’t heard in a long time. As the song winds down and you get your breath back, you think about what you’ll do next. Will you go sit down, or will you get yourself another drink? Or will you wait to see what the DJ’s going to stick on next? Before you have time to make a choice, the DJ’s got ahead of you and they’ve put on another danceable tune, one that gets a roar from the crowd. You get your second wind and you launch yourself back into it.

That’s what Roger does as he segues into Maxx Axe. Once more, he starts slow, with a strummed guitar, and you hear the strings strain under the playing. The song picks up pace with some handclaps before leading us through another musical odyssey. Maxx Axe is not just another jam to groove to; here, Roger offers insight into his approach to music. The lyrics are filled with descriptions of the titular instrument — looks like a guitar, sounds like a sax — while also detailing its effect on its listeners, that danceability mentioned above. He also nods to George Clinton’s influence. Between these two songs, Roger gives us more than a quarter of an hour of bouncy, buzzing fun that’ll get you seriously moving.

The final track is Blue (A Tribute to the Blues), recorded as if he were playing in a crowded, dingy bar. It contains an announcer introducing him, saying, “We’ve got a young guy who plays the blues. His name is Roger and he’s formerly with — well, ladies and gentlemen, without any further ado, let’s just get on with the show.” Was this a suggestion that Roger was trying to break free with this record? Whatever the case, the final track is true to its name, doing so with a short, improvisational piece.

On this album, Roger established himself as a musical Tarzan, swinging from groove to groove through a funky jungle. He also established two trends that would stick with him throughout his career. The first being his tradition of covering songs from his youth. Not only did he cover them, though, he was always sure to do so in a contemporary style, breathing new life into classics and eschewing a more faithful homage. He delivers several long-form jams, expanding on a theme he had already established on the Zapp album; songs like Brand New Player and Funky Bounce have their equivalents on this album.

Secondly, he began composing songs dedicated to specific musical styles, something indicative of a wider aspect of his own and Zapp’s sound; paying tribute to and incorporating sounds that inspired him. This was true about him and Zapp: the music was often just about the music. While more obvious on songs with titles like Blue here or A Touch of Jazz and Rock ’n’ Roll by Zapp, a lot of their songs were often celebrations of the music they liked and inspired them.

Roger himself, though never as successful, had a charisma that matched Prince’s. They both shared a desire to thoroughly explore music and see where they could take it, picking up on the new sounds that emerged and adding elements from them to their ever-evolving styles. The influence of Prince on Roger became even more evident as the 80s progressed.

But Roger was his own man, and this record is just another example of the energy and ideas he brought to it. Roger continued to release solo albums alongside Zapp’s, though, as with Parliament and Funkadelic in the 70s, the dividing lines were often porous. Later in their career, they would perform jointly as Zapp and Roger with sets jumping back and forth between song choices. Roger could never truly shake Zapp, but another question is whether he really wanted to.