Max Roach

Born in North Carolina and raised in Brooklyn, Max came from a musical home and was performing on drums by age 10. Fresh out of high school he was called to fill in for Sonny Greer in the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He also began playing at the jazz clubs on 52nd Street, before becoming one of the first drummers to play in the bebop style. Max went on to play with genre defining artists including Dizzie Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonius Monk, Sonny Rollins, Charles Mingus, Miles Davis and more. He played on many of Parker’s most important records, including Savoy Records November 1945 session, which marked a turning point in recorded jazz.

Roach received many honors during his career including being inducted into the DownBeat Hall of Fame (1980), Modern Drummer Hall of Fame (1992), PAS Hall of Fame (1990), the Harvard Jazz Master award and eight honorary doctorate degrees, all recognizing he was at the vanguard of jazz for more than 50 years.

Max played Gretsch drums from 1949 through to 1966 using a Broadkaster and later into the late ‘50s early ‘60s Gretsch Round Badge (early USA Custom).