Frank Rogers & Bob Zuder "Back Home In Indiana"

Joel Johnston · Post by **Joel Johnston** » 27 Feb 2011 9:50 pm

I asked Frank if I could post these songs and he graciously agreed and suggested I included the back story for them, so I'll try to be brief.
Robert Zuder was my Uncle and a friend of Franks for probably 35 years. He was a "musical hero" to us both and one of the finest lead pickers you could ever hope to play music with. Uncle Bob was diagnosed with terminal cancer in the spring of 2008 and given 3-6 months to live. He passed away in November of that year.
In the months leading up to his passing, he worked vigorously at recording a dozen or more songs that were special tunes and represent his favorite brand of music. During this time the disease was taking hold and he had his good days and bad days. He invited Frank to play on several of these. Frank was familiar with some, and actually had NEVER played several of them before.
Long story short. When Uncle Bob passed, I made a copy of his hard drive and have spent a lot of time getting intimate with these tunes as I mixed them down to final configuration. I hope I did them justice. I need to mention another nephew of Uncle Bob's, Walter Goeres, plays some fantastic drums on each of these.
Here is the link to "Back Home In Indiana":

http://picosong.com/5Lv/

And a great swing version of "Secret Love" with Uncle Bob using his "Roland Ready" Fender Strat to simulate a saxophone lead:

http://picosong.com/5LN/

And one that I believe Frank said he had never played before, "So Rare" describes Uncle Bob very well. Again, he uses his Roland Ready Strat to play Hammond B3 and Sax leads in this and give it a "Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White" feel:

http://picosong.com/5LD/

There are more, but I will hold them for another post. Please, if you like these mention this post to other forum users and urge them to take a listen. Nothing would make Uncle Bob more happy or proud than to have his music appreciated by other musicians.
Joel

Papa Joe Pollick · Post by **Papa Joe Pollick** » 27 Feb 2011 10:16 pm

That was indeed sweet..Thank you for sharing..Your uncle would have been proud for sure, I'm looking forward to more..

Dave Burton · Post by **Dave Burton** » 27 Feb 2011 11:00 pm

Great stuff here Joel! Reminds me of Curly...

David Wright · Post by **David Wright** » 28 Feb 2011 4:45 am

Joel,
Very nice, Frank s one of my favorite players, great tone, ... !!!!

Paul Wade · Post by **Paul Wade** » 28 Feb 2011 11:09 am

joel,

great great stuff!!! come on everone give a listen

p.w

Ray Montee · Post by **Ray Montee** » 28 Feb 2011 7:53 pm

Thanx Joel for sharing with us. Music like this is very hard to come by these days, as you realize. An excellent example of how real musicians of the past used to share in the production of great tunes like these. Oh where have all those great musicians gone?

Paul Sutherland · Post by **Paul Sutherland** » 28 Feb 2011 10:55 pm

I really enjoyed all three tunes. And the story behind the recording was very touching. Thank you.

Tommy Auldridge · Post by **Tommy Auldridge** » 1 Mar 2011 6:00 am

was the sound of the sax done with the Strat?
If you read farther down the page on that link, thats what it seems like. Roland Ready? I would like to learn more about that. And great music and talent, by the way. Thanks, Tommy.......

Paul Graupp · Post by **Paul Graupp** » 1 Mar 2011 12:26 pm

Several months ago I crossed the name Frank Rogers; visited his site and listened to the song there and at least then, I knew he was something special. I was going to write a post and enquire as to who he was and from where but, health reasons and other things prevented that.

Imagine my surprise when I listened to this work !! I could repeat every comment so far and feel on solid ground but where it gets shaky is when I ask myself, with all that writing and steel guitar exposure, how could you have missed him... I don't have an answer for that and I am rather ashamed of myself !!

Suffice it to say he is a shining example of what can be accomplished even in obscurity...Bravo to you Sir ! I wish I could say it better...

Regards, Paul

Joel Johnston · Post by **Joel Johnston** » 1 Mar 2011 10:21 pm

Thanks to all for listening and commenting.
To answer Tommy's question about the Saxophone (and the B3 Organ on "So Rare"), YES Uncle Bob created those instrument sounds on his Strat. The "Roland Ready" term refers to a Strat that has a special connector and controls on it that links it to a Roland pedal that contains sample sounds of other instruments.
Uncle Bob had learned to simulate a Sax or Fiddle and even that Organ to provide some diversity in his playing. I think he practiced every day until he was too weak to hold a guitar. His passion was deep for music.
And Paul - Frankie Rogers is one of the most talented all around musicians I know and has played steel professionally for about 35 years, toured with the group Dave & Sugar, did a stint with Ray Price and others. I think Frank grew up in his Dad's music store in Muskegon and is a chip off that very talented block.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 2 Mar 2011 3:35 pm

So tasty! Sweet music like this is rare to find played anymore. Thanks for sharing these awesome recordings.

Joel Johnston · Post by **Joel Johnston** » 2 Mar 2011 11:22 pm

I just realized that I stated twice in posts above that Uncle Bob used the Roland Ready Strat to simulate a B3 Organ in "So Rare." I was wrong - the B3 simulation is in a song called "There Will Never Be Another You" a link to which is posted below. This is another that I think Frank had never played before, but does a real bang up job on. I hope you enjoy.

http://picosong.com/52y/

This is a great old tune with bouncy feel and the B3 fits well.
Joel

Paul Graupp · Post by **Paul Graupp** » 3 Mar 2011 3:29 am

Thanks for posting this one as well. It sure is easy listening music and it is sad to note there will never be another one like him...

Regards, Paul

Lonnie Portwood · Post by **Lonnie Portwood** » 3 Mar 2011 7:43 pm

Joel, thanks for sharing this with us. It is a pleasure listening to such tastful renderings of these songs, and your uncle Bob had a touch few others can duplicate. We are losing so many of our "masters" now-a-days and they will be missed.

Frank Rogers is also a master performer, and a real gentleman to boot! Frank came into the "Fulawka" room at St. Louis a couple years ago, and treated us with some of the best music we'd heard in quite some time! I was blessed to be able to pick with Frank on a few songs, and I will never forget that experience.

Save this music somehow, and share it again and again! God bless you. Lonnie Portwood

Stephen Gregory · Post by **Stephen Gregory** » 4 Mar 2011 2:44 pm

Great Stuff, Thanks Joel!

frank rogers · Post by **frank rogers** » 7 Mar 2011 6:36 pm

Thanks for all the positive feedback concerning my very good friend and mentor Bob Zuder. As Joel stated Bob was in failng health the the day I was there to help him create this musical documentation. He was already quite ill and weak, but he managed to be a guitar player, engineer, producer, and arranger that day. Sad to say, the subsequent times I saw him his health had deteriorated even more. For those that did not get to hear Bob in his prime you missed out on a great treat his playing was reminiscent of Garland, Rhodes, Grady Martin and many of the great Nashville guitarists of the 1960s. I had never played the C6th tuning to any extent until I started working in Bob's band, but because Bob played so many of the tunes from Garland's Jazz Winds and Buddy's jazz album I had to learn fast, and Bob's steady encouragement and patience were huge in my beginning to "unravel" those styles. Yet the most important aspect about Bob was his outstanding example of honesty,humility, kindness,and his Christian values. Thanks again to all, for your kind words regarding my very good friend, I miss him.

Tony Smart · Post by **Tony Smart** » 9 Mar 2011 2:00 pm

Great stuff from both players - very tuneful.
Frank's solo on Secret Love is perfect.

Joel Johnston · Post by **Joel Johnston** » 12 Mar 2011 10:03 am

Thanks to everyone for listening and posting, and thanks especially to Frank for adding to the back story with his heartfelt words. I have one more song to add to this thread along with a couple of pics.
"Tea for Two Cha Cha" is what this file was labeled. This may have been one of the extemporaneous tunes that Uncle Bob threw at Frank - I don't recall hearing them play this version before. Walter Goeres shines on drums throughout this tune and leads them through a tempo change to a swing rhythm and then back to the cha cha before it ends. This is typical of the kind of instrumental Bob Zuder and Frank Rogers could take and mold into a version that they alone would own.

http://picosong.com/52F/

A picture that Walter e-mailed me this week of him playing drums for Uncle Bob and Frank around 1975 when Walter was around 15 yrs old.

And finally, a picture of Uncle Bob on his back porch in Manton, MI in July of 2008 when I was fortunate to spend the night with them and help him work on several of these songs. He was aware of his fate at this point and as Frank mentioned his health was deteriorating and he would be gone by November. This was the last time I saw him and the smiling face in this picture is the way I will always remember him. We do love and miss him dearly.

Joel

Paul Graupp · Post by **Paul Graupp** » 12 Mar 2011 2:43 pm

I'd been wondering about the closeness of Bob and Frank's music in this work...Then I see the picture, no wonder they were close...they've been togeather since Frank was what...16 or 17 years old ?? Nice to see such a long term friendship come to bear fruit.

Regards, Paul

Stephen Gregory · Post by **Stephen Gregory** » 8 Apr 2011 7:49 pm

Any more?

The Steel Guitar Forum

Frank Rogers & Bob Zuder "Back Home In Indiana"

Frank Rogers & Bob Zuder "Back Home In Indiana"

GREAT MUSIC! Fine arrangement! Excellent musicians.....

Sax??

Thanks for all the positive comments

Correction to previous reference to B3 Organ

Another good one !!

Thanks again