Dink Roberts
James "Dink" Roberts (September 15, 1894 – August 30, 1989) was an American old-time banjo player. His performances, which were recorded in the 1970s by folklorists, illustrate a style of playing that predates the blues.
Born in Chatham County, North Carolina, Roberts learned the artistry of the banjo from local black musicians, including Mince Phillips, a close friend and fellow performer, and other performers in Alamance County. As a young adult, Roberts worked as a tenant farmer, and became well-respected among both black and white field hands when he performed at dances among other types of gatherings.[1]
His archaic clawhammer picking style was "noticeably different (among other things, more rhythmically complex, i.e., 'syncopated', for lack of a better term)", compared to many of Roberts's contemporaries.[2] Folklorist Cece Conway, in her analysis of Roberts's better-known recording, "Coo Coo", described his playing as "fascinating in how he constructs melody and wonders off on tangents mid-song that seem both random and perfectly expected at the same time".[3]
Roberts was visited by Conway and Scott Odell to record him at his home in 1974; the results appear on the compilation album Black Banjo Songsters of North Carolina and Virginia.[1][4]
Occasionally, Roberts returned to performing. Most notably, he made an appearance at the Winter Folk Festival in 1976.[5]
His life and music were the subject of the short documentary film Dink: A Pre-Blues Musician (1975).
Roberts died in 1989; he was 94 years old.[1]
External links
[edit]- Dink: A Pre-Blues Musician (1975), short 1975 documentary on Folkstreams
- Black Banjo Songsters of North Carolina and Virginia, 1997 album by Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Conway, Cece. "Liner notes to Black Banjo Songsters of North Carolina and Virginia" (PDF). Smithsonian Folkways. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
- ↑ Winans, Bob. "Dink Roberts". Field Recorder. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ↑ Conway, Cece (12 March 2013). "Coo Coo by Dink Roberts". Duke University. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ↑ Chadbourne, Eugene. "Dink Roberts - Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ↑ Mays, Vernon (January 20, 1976). "Winter Folk Festival to be held Jan. 22-24". The Daily Tar Heel. Chapel Hill, NC. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
