Biography
The tender acoustic piano-driven ballad "Say You Love Me" remains the track most closely identified with D.J. Rogers, having appeared as a charting single on his first RCA album, It's Good to Be Alive, issued in 1976. Natalie Cole selected the composition as the opening single from Snowfall in the Sahara, which WEA/Elektra Entertainment placed in stores in June 1999. Born DeWayne Julius Rogers in Los Angeles, the vocalist and pianist followed the familiar path of many soul artists by performing first in church settings before joining Rev. James Cleveland's Watts Community Choir and the Los Angeles Community Choir. That gospel foundation surfaced repeatedly in Rogers' later secular work through lyrics carrying inspirational themes. Once signed to RCA Records, he debuted with It's Good to Be Alive; the track "Say You Love Me" initially circulated as an album cut before climbing to number 51 R&B on Billboard's spring 1976 survey. Although the single earned substantial radio exposure as a "turntable hit," sales remained modest. In a Soul Magazine interview Rogers expressed frustration with the label's limited promotion, accusing the company of treating its record division primarily as a tax write-off. Despite that outcome, the song later attracted additional interpreters, among them Jennifer Holliday, whose version appears on Best of Jennifer Holliday, UNI/Geffen. Another album track, the moving narrative "Bula Jean" about a girl whose beauty went unrecognized by the world, also received airplay and showcased Rogers' most fervent gospel-rooted delivery. On the subsequent LP On the Road Again, Rogers began working with composer, keyboardist, arranger, and producer Jerry Peters, who had co-written the Friends of Distinction's 1969 gold single "Going in Circles" with Anita Poree and later contributed to the Gap Band's number-two R&B hit of the same title in 1986. The jubilant single "Let Your Life Shine," introduced by swirling strings, reached number 78 R&B in fall 1976. Rogers next moved to Lonnie Simmons' Total Experience Records, home to the Gap Band and Yarbrough and Peoples, where the album Love, Music & Life appeared in 1977. His first single for the RCA-distributed imprint, "Love Is All I Need," highlighted multi-tracked vocals by Deniece Williams ("Free," "Let's Hear It for the Boy," "Too Little Too Late" with Johnny Mathis). The follow-up, the intense "Saved by Love," was joined by other notable cuts such as "She Has Eyes for Me," "You Against You," and the energetic "Love Will Make It Better." Signing with Columbia Records finally brought stronger chart results; the highest-placing single, "Love Brought Me Back," widely viewed as Rogers' most autobiographical statement, reached number 20 R&B in summer 1978 as the singer appeared to testify about his industry struggles. Its successor, the lighthearted "All My Love (Part 1)," climbed to number 87 R&B late that year. While on Maurice White's Columbia-affiliated ARC label, Rogers released the enduring stepper favorite "Trust in Me (Part 1)," which carried a "shucking" string arrangement by Coleridge Taylor Perkinson and peaked at number 68 R&B in spring 1979. The next single, "Love Cycles," advanced to number 44 R&B in spring 1980. He also paired with singer-keyboardist Patrice Rushen on "Givin' It up Is Givin' Up" from her 1980 Elektra album Pizzazz; issued as a single, the duet reached number 47 R&B in summer 1980, while the same set contained her number-seven R&B hit "Haven't You Heard." Both selections later appeared on the 1996 Rhino compilation Haven't You Heard-The Best of Patrice Rushen. Rogers' final charting single was his reading of Kenny Rogers' number-five pop hit "She Believes in Me," which rose to number 66 R&B. In the mid- and late 1980s he turned to gospel recording, co-writing "My Faith in Jesus" with John Black for Keith Pringle ("Call Him Up") and composing and duetting with Pringle on "One More Day." He surfaced as a choir member on the 1997 UPN sitcom Good News, sharing the cast with fellow gospel-influenced keyboardist Billy Preston. Several of Rogers' RCA and Columbia recordings were later assembled on the 1996 Collectables set D.J. Rogers: Golden Classics.
Albums
