The same source stated "Among the best of the Santa Fe group were Rob Cooper of Houston...",[6] and he had a similar playing style to Robert Shaw and Conish "Pinetop" Burks.
In addition to accompanying Pullum on songs such as "Married Woman Blues" and "Rack it Back and Tell it Right", Cooper recorded a couple of largely instrumental numbers of his own, "McKinney Street Stomp" and "Blues With Class", on both of which Pullum added spoken asides.
[5] "McKinney Street Stomp" and the two versions of "West Dallas Drag", were Cooper's take on an earlier tune, "The Ma Grinder", originally composed by Robert Shaw.
[10] This was a technically complex number, which allowed Cooper to utilise his many links to stride and ragtime piano playing.
[5] A third session occurred on February 25, 1936, resulting in Cooper backing Pullum on tracks released as singles on the Bluebird label.
[9] Ultimately, Pullum was accompanied on his recordings by two different pianists; typically Cooper on his earlier discs, and Andy Boy on his later efforts.
Guido van Rijn located an advertisement in the Chicago Defender dated March 16, 1946, regarding Marvin Cates and his Earls of Rhythm, featuring a Robert Cooper (piano, vocals); but it is not certain whether this was the same individual.