Roger Blank (born December 19, 1938, New York City) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

drummer. Blank's grandfather played saxophone and his father William Blank was a trumpeter who had performed with

Cootie Williams Charles Melvin "Cootie" Williams (July 10, 1911 – September 15, 1985) was an American jazz, jump blues, and rhythm and blues trumpeter. Biography Born in Mobile, Alabama, Williams began his professional career at the age of 14 with the Yo ...

. Blank worked with

Hank Mobley Henry Mobley (July 7, 1930 – May 30, 1986) was an American tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone, that was neithe ...

in Harlem for several years and studied under

Charlie Persip Charles Lawrence Persip (July 26, 1929 – August 23, 2020), known as Charli Persip and formerly as Charlie Persip (he changed the spelling of his name to Charli in the late 1960s), was an American jazz drummer. Biography Born in Morristown, N ...

. He worked with

Sun Ra Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific ou ...

starting in 1964 and recorded several times with him. He worked extensively on the New York jazz scene in the 1960s and 1970s; he played with and was influenced by

Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, trumpeter, violinist, and composer. He is best known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Ja ...

, and helped found a group called the Melodic Art-Tet in 1971 which was devoted to playing in Coleman's harmolodic style. This group also included

Charles Brackeen Charles Brackeen (March 13, 1940, in Eufaula, Oklahoma, United States – November 5, 2021, Carson, California) was an American jazz saxophonist who primarily played tenor saxophone, but also played soprano saxophone. He was previously married to ...

Ahmed Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah (born Leroy Bland; May 10, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter who was a prominent member of Sun Ra's band. Biography He began playing the trumpet at age 13 in his native New York City. One of the first groups he performed with wa ...

, William Parker, and

Ronnie Boykins Ronald Boykins (December 17, 1935 – April 20, 1980) was a jazz double bass, bassist and is best known for his work with pianist/bandleader Sun Ra, although he had played with such disparate musicians as Muddy Waters, Johnny Griffin, and Jimmy Wi ...

. Other associations included work with

Bill Barron William Barron (26 October 1917 – 2 January 2006) was an English sportsman, who played football in the higher leagues before the Second World War and, along with some football, first-class cricket afterwards. Sporting career William Barron ...

Don Cherry Donald Stewart Cherry (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, coach, and television commentator. He played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins. After concluding a playing career in the A ...

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century musi ...

Dennis Charles Denis Alphonso Charles (December 4, 1933 – March 26, 1998) was a jazz drummer. Biography Charles was born in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, and first played bongos at age seven with local ensembles in the Virgin Islands. In 1945, he moved to Ne ...

, Walt Dickerson,

Kenny Dorham McKinley Howard "Kenny" Dorham (August 30, 1924 – December 5, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and occasional singer. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention ...

, Frank Foster, Charles Greenlee,

John Hicks Sir John Richard Hicks (8 April 1904 – 20 May 1989) was a British economist. He is considered one of the most important and influential economists of the twentieth century. The most familiar of his many contributions in the field of economics ...

, Ken McIntyre,

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

Archie Shepp Archie Shepp (born May 24, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist, educator and playwright who since the 1960s has played a central part in the development of avant-garde jazz. Biography Early life Shepp was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but ...

, and

Charles Tolliver Charles Tolliver (born March 6, 1942) is an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and co-founder of Strata East Records. Biography Tolliver was born in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1942 and moved with his family to New York City when he was 10. Durin ...

. Blank appeared on the piece "Hambone" with Shepp on the 1965 live album ''

The New Wave in Jazz ''The New Wave in Jazz'' is a live album recorded on March 28, 1965, at the Village Gate in New York City. It features groups led by major avant-garde jazz artists performing at a concert for the benefit of The Black Arts Repertory Theater/School f ...

''. He relocated to Atlanta in the 1980s and led an ensemble there, but moved back to New York in the 1990s, where he lived in the

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

neighborhood. His daughter Radha Blank is a filmmaker, writer, and actress, known for the

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada * Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated pl ...

-winning film '' The 40-Year-Old Version.''

Discography

As sideman

With

Albert Ayler Albert Ayler (; July 13, 1936 – November 25, 1970) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist and composer. After early experience playing rhythm and blues and bebop, Ayler began recording music during the free jazz era of the 1960s. Ho ...

* '' Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70)'' (Revenant, 2004) one track With

Earl Cross Earl Cross (December 8, 1933 – 1987) was a free jazz trumpeter best known for his association with saxophonists Noah Howard and Charles Tyler and percussionist Juma Sultan, as well as with the 1970s loft jazz scene in New York City. Career Cr ...

* ''Jazz of the Seventies: Sam Rivers Tuba Trio & Earl Cross Sextet'' (Circle, 1977) With Walt Dickerson * '' Impressions of a Patch of Blue'' (MGM, 1966) With Frank Foster * ''Shiny Stockings'' (Denon, 1977) With Andrew Hill * ''

Nefertiti Nefertiti () () was a queen of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt, the Great Royal Wife, great royal wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten. Nefertiti and her husband were known for their radical overhaul of state religious poli ...

'' (East Wind, 1976) With Leroy Jenkins and the

Jazz Composer's Orchestra The Jazz Composer's Orchestra was an American jazz group, founded by Carla Bley and Michael Mantler in 1965, to perform orchestral avant-garde jazz. Its origins lay in the Jazz Composers Guild, an organization founded by Bill Dixon which grew out ...

* ''

For Players Only ''For Players Only'' is a live album by violinist and composer Leroy Jenkins, his first as a leader. It was recorded in January 1975 at Wollman Auditorium, Columbia University in New York City, and was released by JCOA Records later that year. On ...

'' (JCOA, 1975) With

Clifford Jordan Clifford Laconia Jordan (September 2, 1931 – March 27, 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player and composer. Originally from Chicago, Jordan later moved to New York City, where he recorded extensively in addition to touring across ...

* ''The Complete Clifford Jordan Strata-East Sessions'' (Mosaic, 2017) With

Jimmy Lyons Jimmy Lyons (December 1, 1931 – May 19, 1986) was an American alto saxophone player. He is best known for his long tenure in the Cecil Taylor Unit. Lyons was the only constant member of the band from the mid-1960s until his death. Taylor never ...

* '' Push Pull'' (Hathut, 1979) With The Melodic Art-Tet (with

, William Parker, and Ramadan Mumeen) * '' Melodic Art–Tet'' (NoBusiness, 2013) With Sam Rivers * ''

Crystals A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macrosc ...

'' (Impulse!, 1974) With

* ''

Tauhid ''Tawhid'' () is the concept of monotheism in Islam, it is the religion's central and single most important concept upon which a Muslim's entire religious adherence rests. It unequivocally holds that God is indivisibly one (''ahad'') and si ...

'' (Impulse!, 1967) * ''Priceless Jazz Collection'' (compilation) (GRP, 1997) * ''Anthology: You’ve Got to Have Freedom'' (compilation) (Soul Brother, 2005) * ''The Impulse Story'' (compilation) (Impulse!, 2006) With

* ''

'' (Impulse!, 1965) one track With

* ''

Other Planes of There ''Other Planes of There'' is an album by the American Jazz musician Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra. Recorded in 1964, the album had been released by 1966 on Sun Ra's own ''Saturn'' label. The record was reissued on compact disc by Evidence in 199 ...

'' (Saturn, 1966) * '' The Magic City'' (Saturn, 1966) * ''

The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two ''The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume Two'' is a 1965 recording by the jazz musician Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra. Where '' ''Volume One' of the ''Heliocentric Worlds'' series had predominantly featured short abstract pieces, ''Volume T ...

'' (Saturn, 1966) * '' Nothing Is'' (ESP-Disk, 1970) * ''Heliocentric Worlds Vol. 3 (The Lost Tapes)'' (ESP-Disk, 2005) * ''The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Vols. 1-3'' (compilation) (ESP-Disk, 2010) * ''Heliocentric Worlds 1 & 2 Revisited'' (compilation) (Ezz-thetics, 2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blank, Roger American jazz drummers Jazz musicians from New York City 1938 births Living people 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Drummers from New York City