RODAN

MAX (aka RODAN) was an American brass-rock band active from 1970 through 1974, when Pandora issued their recordings under the unauthorized title Rodan, which misidentified several contributors. Group leader David Cortopassi restored the archive through the expanded Beyond Rodan, released by Digital Cellars for the fiftieth anniversary.

Members: David Cortopassi (bass, guitar, vibraphone, piano, vocals), Scott Williams (bass, guitar, vocals), Roger Conway (drums, percussion, vocals), Scott Page (saxophones, oboe, English horn, flute, trumpet, flugelhorn, banjo), Steve Mann (saxophones, flute), Stephen Coyne (trumpet, flugelhorn), John Leys (trombone, bass trombone), Sheldon Bermont (trombone, vocals)

Background

David Cortopassi started on marimba at age five beside his brother and sister in the Cortopassi Trio, which appeared in Braiden’s Follies for United Service Organizations programs. He later studied composition and orchestration and played bass violin in his high-school orchestra. Cortopassi led the Soul Survivors before two personnel changes produced This Side Up after graduation. Producer George Dipaola introduced the group to engineer Brian Gardner, who recorded the 1966 Century single “Lose Yourself” (b/w “Turn Your Head”) on a two-track machine at home.

Hank Donig renamed the act The Elastik Band and supervised the 1967 DCA single “Got a Better Reason Now” (b/w “Mixed Emotions”). Atco followed with “Spazz” (b/w “Paper Mache”), while UNI and Kapp issued further singles after a move from San Francisco to Los Angeles. UNI then renamed the musicians Dangerfield and paired them with manager Joey Fischer and producer Norman Ratner for unreleased album sessions engineered by Donn Landee.

Dangerfield dissolved in 1970, and Cortopassi and guitarist Scott Williams advertised in The Hollywood Reporter for a seven-piece band with a multi-instrumental horn section. Saxophonists Scott Page and Steve Mann joined trumpeter Stephen Coyne and trombonist John Leys; drummer Roger Conway completed MAX. Trombonist Sheldon Bermont entered a later lineup and supplied the vocal text for “Aub de Baub,” adapted from an abandoned arrangement of the Coasters recording “Poison Ivy.”

Concert promoter David Forrest booked MAX through Concert Management Associates. The group opened selected shows for Tower of Power at the Fox Theatres and for Malo at the Whisky a Go Go, then held a three-week house-band run at The Buccaneer in Manhattan Beach. Wooden Nickel and Lamont Dozier approached the musicians with separate contract offers, but MAX accepted neither proposal. Sound City co-owner Joe Gottfried offered studio time after hearing a rehearsal, establishing the sessions later appropriated for Rodan.

Rodan

In 1974, Pandora issued the singular MAX album as Rodan without consent from the composers.

The LP combines eleven MAX selections with “Pandora’s Theme,” a Cortopassi piano piece originally titled “Of Aries for Scorpio.” Recordings came from changing lineups and several California studios. The sleeve omitted the MAX name and assigned inaccurate personnel and production credits. Cortopassi and Williams wrote most selections; Conway co-wrote “Today’s the Day” and “Salty Lady,” while Bermont supplied the vocal text for “Aub de Baub.”

“Soldier of Fortune” charges across syncopated accents and closely packed brass figures. “Today’s the Day” settles into blues-marked midtempo sway as ensemble replies answer a recurring refrain. “Aub de Baub” snarls over ad-libbed lead phrases and terse horn punctuation. “Juicy Lucy” darts between dense improvisatory runs and sudden section changes. “Music Man” glides on airy group phrasing before a flute solo yields to a forceful closing guitar lead.

“Frizzle Frazzle Gal” crawls across staggered accents with a restless bass figure underneath. “You Are the One” sways on Latin accents and buoyant ensemble lines. “Pandora’s Theme” drifts as a measured piano solo with spare, reflective phrasing. “Salty Lady” bounces between bright lead lines and group replies. “Watch Tower Seller” jolts across broken accents and short, percussive phrases.

A1. “Soldier of Fortune” (3:46) – Cortopassi, Williams
A2. “Today’s the Day” (2:55) – Cortopassi, Conway
A3. “Aub de Baub” (3:27) – Cortopassi, Bermont
A4. “Rainbows” (2:05) – Cortopassi
A5. “Juicy Lucy” (4:28) – Cortopassi, Williams
A6. “Music Man” (3:21) – Cortopassi, Williams

B1. “Frizzle Frazzle Gal” (2:39) – Cortopassi
B2. “You Are the One” (4:14) – Cortopassi, Williams
B3. “Pandora’s Theme” (2:42) – Cortopassi
B4. “Pay for the Muzak” (2:37) – Cortopassi, Williams
B5. “Salty Lady” (2:28) – Cortopassi, Conway
B6. “Watch Tower Seller” (2:55) – Cortopassi, Williams

MAX recorded the material at several California studios between 1970 and 1974, including Sound City and Pacific Recorders. Corrected archival credits name David Cortopassi as producer and horn arranger. Fred Catero and Glen Kolotkin engineered portions of the archive. Catero’s adjacent credits include 1972–74 albums by Malo and Herbie Hancock (Thrust). Kolotkin worked concurrently with Santana on Caravanserai and Borboletta. The Pandora sleeve named Forrest Buchtel as producer, but Digital Cellars rejected that annotation.

Rodan appeared with artwork by Edgar Monroe. The monochrome front depicts two winged creatures above rocky terrain, with a tower on a conical hill beside a vertical title panel.

In late 2024, Digital Cellars issued Beyond Rodan as a 19-track, two-LP gatefold set on 180-gram vinyl. David Grover remastered the source tapes at Mystic Mountain Sound. Joshua Cortopassi restored Monroe’s artwork and assembled a layout with photographs by Karen Engstrom and Marilyn “Mony” Coyne; Tim Bonner supplied further images. The corrected edition restores eleven MAX titles from Rodan and adds eight unreleased recordings. It excludes “Pandora’s Theme” and expands “You Are the One” under the title “You Are the Only One.”

Later Activity

MAX dissolved in 1974 after four years without a recording contract. Cortopassi and Williams formed the nightclub duo Free & Easy, which joined two North American tours with the Mitzi Gaynor Show after Gaynor and agent Jack Bean saw the pair at the Portofino in Redondo Beach.

Cortopassi later led Rage and Fourplay, then established Digital Cellars for solo and archival releases. Page recorded with Supertramp and Toto before joining Pink Floyd’s touring band. Leys played bass trombone on the 1971–73 Buddy Rich albums A Different Drummer and The Roar of ’74.

Discography:

• Rodan (1974 • Pandora)
• Beyond Rodan (2024 • Digital Cellars; credited to MAX)

Sources:

• Discogs: RODAN (MAX)
• RYM: RODAN (MAX)
• DigitalCellars: David Cortopassi