Roland Alexander

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, he grew up with his parents and sister Gloria in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He graduated with a bachelor's degree from the Boston Conservatory in 1958 with a Major in composition, he was in the same graduating class with Kenneth Arthur McIntyre, later known as Ken Makanda MacIntyre. Roland was a prolific composer and arranger who wrote and played for many of the better known bands in Boston during the 1950s, i.e. Sabby Lewis, Preston 'Sandy' Sandiford, Richie Lowery, Jaki Byard and many more. He co-led a group called the Boston All Stars that featured Trumpeter Joe Gordon, and after Joe Gordon left to play with Dizzy Gillespie's band Joe was replaced by a few of the more innovative trumpet soloists in the area, like Wajid Lateef (Crazy Wilbur Lucaw), & Gordon Wooly. He then moved to New York City in 1958. In addition to two solo releases, he played and recorded with John Coltrane, Howard McGhee, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Roy Haynes, Philly Joe Jones, Blue Mitchell, Sam Rivers, Archie Shepp, and Mal Waldron.

Discography

As leader

1961 Pleasure Bent (Prestige Records, with Marcus Belgrave)

1978: Live at the Axis (Kharma Records, with Malachi Thompson and Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre)

As sideman

With Eric Gale

Black Rhythm Happening (Blue Note, 1969)

With Abdullah Ibrahim

African Space Program (Enja, 1973)

With Howard McGhee

Dusty Blue (Bethlehem, 1960)

With Charlie Persip

Charles Persip and the Jazz Statesmen (Bethlehem, 1960)

With Max Roach

Drums Unlimited (Atlantic, 1965)

With James Spaulding

Songs of Courage (Muse, 1991)