Timbrell was born in Canada but moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue his career in music.
A "first call" guitarist at Warner Brothers Studios, in the late 1940s Timbrell appeared in several motion pictures playing as part of a band.
His reputation was such that he was hired to play guitar on recording sessions for singing stars such as Doris Day, Billy Vaughn & His Orchestra, Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby, Harry James, and pop and country music artists such as Ricky Nelson and Marty Robbins.
Roger is a studio production accountant responsible for developing Showbiz Crew and SAG-AFTRA software.
In his later years, Timbrell worked as Los Angeles district sales representative for Chicago Musical Instrument Co., later named Norlin Music Corp., which at the time owned many instrument brands, including Gibson and Epiphone guitars.