Among the songs, only one of them - 1982's "Dance Floor" - managed to hit number-one on the R&B chart while two of Roger's solo numbers - a cover of Marvin Gaye's " I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "I Want to Be Your Man" - hit the top spot of that chart. Within five years, the band scored more top ten R&B hits such as "Doo Wa Ditty", "I Can Make You Dance", "Heartbreaker", and ballads such as "Computer Love" and a cover of The Miracles' " Ooo Baby Baby". Roger and Zapp worked on both group albums and albums Roger released on his own merit.
Roger Troutman started his music career in the 1960s as a solo artist under the name Lil Roger and His Fabulous Vels. The group’s sound would later become a key ingredient of G-funk hip-hop. He and older brother Larry, who served as percussionist in the band's early years and later retired from music to serve as his younger brother's manager, often collaborated on songs together. The electro-funk band Zapp & Roger, led by frontman Roger Troutman, were known for their innovative use of talk boxes throughout the 1980s. Roger, who was the leader of the group and most famous for using the talk box in his recordings, was also the band's producer, chief writer, arranger, and composer. Zapp's trek to fame continued within the Troutmans, who started Troutman Enterprises shortly after the Zapp album was released. Released in the late summer of 1980, Zapp's seminal self-titled debut album became a platinum success peaking at the top twenty of the Billboard Top 200 thanks to the success of their leading single, the Roger composition, "More Bounce to the Ounce", which reached number two on the Hot Soul Singles chart. Records, and began working on their first album courtesy of co-production from Bootsy Collins. When that label folded the following year, the group signed with P-Funk's parent label, Warner Bros. Discovered by members of P-Funk in 1979, the funk collective's leader George Clinton signed them to his Uncle Jam Records. Zapp & Roger may not roll off the tongue before names such as George Clinton, Bootsy Collins and Parliament, but theyve proven just as influential as their better-known peers. Join Napster and access full-length songs on your phone, computer or home audio device. The name change to Zapp came courtesy of Terry, whose nickname was that of "Zapp". Listen to albums and tracks from Zapp and Roger. Larry and Tony eventually joined their brothers when their name became Roger and the Human Body, which also included youngest brother Terry. The duo of Lester and Roger started several groups including Little Roger and the Vels. The nucleus of Zapp circled around three of the five Troutman brothers: Lester, Larry and their younger brother Roger.