He learned guitar partly from American country records. S.E. Rogie, a Sierra Leonean who ran a tailor’s shop, listened to palm wine musicians at home and to the yodelling songs of Jimmie Rodgers on his brother’s records. He mixed them into a gentle, rolling guitar style that made him one of West Africa’s most loved singers.
Early life
Sooliman Ernest Rogers, known as S.E. Rogie, was born in 1926 in Fonikoh, in Sierra Leone’s Pujehun District. He was largely self-taught on guitar. For years he worked in a government accounts office and as a tailor while playing music.
Palm wine music
Palm wine music is an acoustic guitar style that grew in coastal West Africa, especially Sierra Leone, Ghana and Nigeria. It was played in bars where people drank palm wine, and it influenced both highlife and juju. Its relaxed, finger-picked style suits storytelling and love songs.
The Morning Stars
In 1965 Rogie formed a band called the Morning Stars. He released records on his own label and had local hits, including “My Lovely Elizabeth”, which made him a national star.
My Lovely Elizabeth
“My Lovely Elizabeth” became Rogie’s signature song, a sweet, lilting love song that travelled across West Africa. Its melody and guitar line are still recognised by fans of palm wine music.
England
In 1973, Rogie moved to England, where he worked in schools as a cultural ambassador, performing and teaching children about African music. He founded his own label and released new recordings.
The 1980s revival
In the 1980s and early 1990s, world music audiences discovered Rogie. Compilations of his 1960s recordings were released, and he toured internationally. His album Dead Men Don’t Smoke Marijuana appeared in 1994.
His death
Rogie died in 1994, as his international career was reaching new audiences.
Influence
Rogie’s gentle style influenced guitarists across West Africa and beyond. He is remembered as one of the great voices of palm wine music, alongside Ghanaian masters such as Koo Nimo.
Freetown’s music
Sierra Leone, and especially Freetown, has a long history of guitar music, influenced by Krio culture, sailors and returning travellers. Palm wine songs, gumbe drumming and later highlife all shaped the city’s sound. Rogie’s style grew from that mix, adding his own gentle voice and country-music influences.
Palm wine music is quiet music, made for evenings and conversation. S.E. Rogie took it from a Sierra Leonean bar to concert halls in Europe without ever making it loud.
