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 pre-dates the blues.

Born in Chatham County, North Carolina, Roberts learned the artistry of the banjo from local black musicians -- particularly Mince Phillips who was a close friend Roberts sometimes performed with -- active in the corresponding 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' contemporaries.^[2] Folklorist Cece Conway, in his analysis of Roberts' 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.^[4] Occasionally, Roberts returned to performing, most notably he made an appearance at the Winter Folk Festival in 1976. His style was the subject of the documentary film Dink: A Pre-Blues Musician. Roberts died in 1989; he was 94 years-old.^[1]

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