Blue Note reports that jazz drummer Max Roach died Thursday, 83 years old, in New York. The cause of his death was not reported, but Max Roach had been ill for a long time. Max Roach was drumming in orchestras from the age of ten (!), and in the 1940's he redefined jazz drumming with his explosive style. He played with great names like Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, and Miles Davis. I'll always remember him for his recordings with Clifford Brown and for his concert at London's South Bank back in the '80s.

There are a lot of Rolling Stones fans who know that Charlie Watts is a huge fan of Max Roach. I'm sure that he's taking some time to reflect on him.