Mercury · in the Kissa Kissa racks
Rich Versus Roach
| Recorded | 1959 |
|---|---|
| Label | Mercury |
| Released | 1959 |
| Personnel | 10 credited players |
| Discogs | master 183532 |
The record
A late-'50s drum battle dressed up as a big-band date, pitting Rich's blistering technique against Roach's cerebral bebop pulse across two crack sextets. Stanley and Tommy Turrentine, Phil Woods, and Julian Priester give both sides real horn firepower, making this as much a showcase for the era's hard-bop talent as for its drummers.
Session personnel
- Phil Woods — alto saxophone
- Bob Boswell — bass
- Phil Leshin — bass
- Buddy Rich — drums
- Max Roach — drums
- John Bunch — piano
- Stanley Turrentine — tenor saxophone
- Julian Priester — trombone
- Willie Dennis — trombone
- Tommy Turrentine — trumpet
Contemporary reception
For drum fans this album will be hard to beat. Two of the best drummers in the business partake in a friendly duel, with each band playing a secondary role to the leaders. Gigi Gryce worked out the charts leaving much space for Rich and Roach to “blow” between the melodic choruses. Vehicles are “Sing, Sing, Sing,” “Yesterdays,” “Limehouse Blues,” an all-drum “Figure Eights” and four others. Stereo is needed to distinguish the drummers.
Pressings
The earliest pressing on file here is the 1959 US Mercury mono MG 20448; the stereo SR 60133 is listed the same year, including a Hollywood pressing variant, so both are original-era. Canadian and UK copies also date to 1959. Everything after that is reissue territory: Japanese Fontana and Mercury pressings through the Seventies, a 1982 US EXPR-1016, and a 2022 European issue flagged unofficial.
Showing the first pressing, audiophile reissues and copies carrying a collector marker, out of 43 pressings on file.
| 1959 | Mercury · MG 20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono earliest on file |
|---|---|
| 1982 | Mercury · EXPR-1016 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Stereo OJC |
| 1959 | Mercury — MONO |
| 1959 | Mercury · SR 60133 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG-C20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG 20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Promo, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · SR-C 60133 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG 20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG-20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · CMS 18021 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG 20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · MG 20448 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Mono |
| 1959 | Mercury · 6336 324 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo |
| 1959 | Mercury · SR 60133 — Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Hollywood Pressing |
Follow the players
Phil Woods also plays on
Bob Boswell also plays on
Phil Leshin also plays on