Ma Petite Entreprise

Residents de la Republique

Elvire

One of my favorite french artists. Compositions and expression…exquisite…

Rest in peace…

Photo of Alain by Ludovic Carème

So I only saw Max Roach play once live, but it was up close and personal. I was living on Staten Island in New York and amazingly, he came to Sailors Snug Harbor. It was a long time ago.

It’s kind of a blur now, how many musicians, what they played, but I’ll never forget it. It was in what used to be an old church, one of the buildings they were renovating at the time. And we (Val, Sue and I) sat on an old pew. I remember Mr. Roach stopping to give us all a lesson in what he was doing. I don’t remember what pieces they played that night, but I do remember him showing us something about his art. It was incredible to see and hear him explain his work to us. It was something totally unexpected.

A few years later I caught him on a PBS special. He was sitting in front of his drums and explaining what he was doing. This part of the show was a lesson in what it was to play the drums. He talked as the things he was doing became more and more complex. He kept talking. He kept playing. Showing. And I never realized how much one person could do until I saw him perform his magic. It was nothing short of that for me and he did it like taking a stroll through Central Park. I’ve never seen anything like that. I had no idea that a drummer could have that kind of control, depth, order, ease, intelligence. I’ll never forget that or him. He’ll be with me till my dying day.