"Driva Man/"Tears for Johannesburg"
Penned by Roach and singer/songwriter Oscar Brown Jr. and recorded in 1960, We Insist! stands as one of the most forceful politically charged jazz records of its time, blurring Afrocentricity and Civil Rights into a stirring narrative. This overseas broadcast of unknown origin finds Roach in a quintet setting, performing the album in its entirety, with Roach operating at full power and his then wife Abbey Lincoln, who is pouring her heart out with every note. Sometimes the group - which also features Clifford Jordan, Eddie Kahn and Coleridge Perkins - delivering these caged bird laments in a traditional stage setting, other times they are quite literally behind behind bars. There is a lot of music on YouTube and this is quite possibly the most powerful of it all. I am always searching for modern music that bleeds as brutally as stuff like this does, if you have any suggestions please leave them in the comments. If not just listen and have your wig blown completely back.
"Triptych: Prayer/Protest/Peace"
"All Africa"
"Freedom Day"