A native of Elgin, Illinois, United States,[1] he played on many recordings and in television orchestras and talk show bands.
[1] After playing drums in Army bands in World War II, he moved to New York City, working in several groups between 1945 and 1948, before becoming a busy studio musician.
Through the years, Rosengarden was an active studio musician, recording with Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Skitch Henderson, Quincy Jones, Peter Nero, Gil Evans, Miles Davis, Gerry Mulligan, Benny Goodman, Moondog, Dick Hyman, Arlo Guthrie, Carmen McRae, Ben E. King, Harry Belafonte, Barbra Streisand, Jimi Hendrix, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Walter Wanderley and Tony Bennett.
In later years, Rosengarden was most often heard as the drummer with a variety of all-star, swing-oriented groups, including Soprano Summit.
Bobby is the father to two sons, Neil and Mark Rosengarden, who were raised in the village of Kings Point in Great Neck, New York.