Max Roach

American jazz drummer and bandleader. One of the pioneers of bebop.

Born: 10 January 1924 in Newland, Pasquotank County, North Carolina, USA.

Died: 16 August 2007 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA (aged 83).

Married several times, a.o. to singer [a271898] between 1962 and 1970.

Survived by 5 children, a.o. [a=Raoul Roach] and viola player [a311415]. Godfather of [a41279].

Roach was one of the most accomplished jazz drummers and percussionists of his time. He worked with many of the greatest jazz musicians, including [a=Charlie Parker], [a=Dizzy Gillespie], [a=Duke Ellington], [a=Charles Mingus], [a145256], [a=Miles Davis], [a=Sonny Rollins] and [a259082]. Taught at University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) between 1972 and the mid-1990s. Pioneering all his life, he was also a pioneer of Afro American awareness and an important figure in the black civil rights movement.