Other than a
Blue Note
date from the previous year, this CD contains tenor saxophonist
Hank Mobley
's first two sessions as a leader. With trumpeter
Donald Byrd
, either
Hank Jones
or
Ronnie Ball
on piano,
Wendell Marshall
Doug Watkins
on bass, drummer
Kenny Clarke
and (on three numbers) the unusual altoist
John LaPorta
,
Mobley
performs a mixture of originals and
standards
. The results (highlighted by
"There'll Never Be Another You,"
"When I Fall in Love"
and
"Budo"
) are a swinging
hard bop
date. Nothing all that unusual occurs and the CD clocks in at an average LP's length but the swinging music is easily recommended to straight-ahead
jazz
fans and (unlike many of
Denon
's
Savoy
reissues), these two sessions are brought back complete. ~ Scott Yanow