Music Monday: Max Roach Centennial

It was genuinely depressing to see how little the national media cared about Max Roach’s centennial this past week. You’d think its coincidence with the MLK Day weekend alone would have given the itchy pens at the New York Times, NPR, and so on a chance to talk about both men’s contribution to the Civil Rights Movement.

For whatever reason, Max Roach’s centennial has passed with only comment in regional media or media devoted to jazz and improvised music. It’s a real bummer.

I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for Roach largely owing to his association with Wilmington, Delaware native Clifford Brown. As I listed to more jazz and improvised music, however, I came to more fully appreciate him not only as a drummer but also as a composed and an activist.

In particular, I’ve enjoyed listening to his early to mid-1960s recordings starting with We Insist! (1960), which was written to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1963:

Percussion Bitter Sweet (1961):

And It’s Time (1962):

His 1970s live recordings, especially his duets with Archie Sheep, trace his continued commitment to radical causes. His 1976 album Sweet Mao (released with a live recording called “Suid Afrika 76” as Force) is powerful and compelling: 

The Long March (1979) is pretty fantastic as well:

Finally, no review of Max Roach’s 1970s output would be complete without including his duet album with Cecil Taylor, Historic Concert (1979). It’s brilliant, challenging music:

Roach’s politics, music, and personality were complex and hard to summarize. Perhaps he lacked the larger than life personality and musical identity of Mingus, the quirkiness and pathos of Monk, or even the understate cool of Sam Rivers. Hecks, even Elmo Hope gets some centennial recognition. To my mind, Roach was the equal of all these guys and carved a powerful and important legacy as a musician and activist.