Walter Roland
| Walter Roland | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 20, 1902 or December 4, 1903 Ralph, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, United States. |
| Died | October 12, 1972 Fairfield, Alabama, United States |
| Genres | Blues, boogie-woogie, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Pianist, singer, guitarist, songwriter |
| Instruments | Piano, guitar, vocals |
| Years active | 1920s–1935 |
| Labels | ARC, Banner Records |
Walter Roland (possibly December 20, 1902 – October 12, 1972) was an American blues, boogie-woogie and jazz pianist, guitarist and singer, noted for his association with Lucille Bogan, Josh White and Sonny Scott. The music journalist Gérard Herzhaft stated that Roland was "a great piano player... as comfortable in boogie-woogies as in slow blues," adding that "Roland – with his manner of playing and his singing – was direct and rural."
Roland was born in Ralph, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. Possible dates include December 20, 1902 (according to his Social Security documentation), or December 4, 1903 (according to his death certificate), though the researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc suggest 1900 on the basis of 1910 census information.
He started playing on the Birmingham blues circuit in the 1920s. A competent and versatile pianist, his range covered slow blues to upbeat, jaunty boogie-woogie numbers. He was also skilled as a guitar player and had a forceful singing voice. Between 1933 and 1935, Roland traveled to New York on three occasions, recording around fifty songs under his own name for Banner Records (ARC). In 1933, he recorded "Red Cross Store Blues" (variously "Red Cross Blues"), his cynical viewpoint on welfare benefits. Amongst his other better-known efforts are "No Good Biddie", "Jookit Jookit", "Piano Stomp", "Whatcha Gonna Do", and "Early This Morning".
In addition to his solo output, Roland also recorded as an accompanist for other musicians. For example, the guitarist and singer Sonny Scott recorded fourteen tracks for Vocalion in 1933, all of them backed by Roland. The tracks included two instrumentals ("Guitar Stomp" and "Railroad Stomp"), billed on record as the Jolly Two, in which Roland matched Scott's guitar work.
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