HANK MOBLEY - No Room for Squares (1964-2000) RM | RVG Edition | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Why any critic would think that Hank Mobley was at the end of his creative spark in 1963 -- a commonly if stupidly held view among the eggheads who do this for a living -- is ridiculous, as this fine session proves. By 1963, Mobley had undergone a transformation of tone. Replacing the scintillating airiness of his late-'50s sides was a harder, more strident, almost honking one, due in part to the influence of John Coltrane and in part to Mobley's deeper concentration on the expressing blues feeling in his trademark hard bop tunes. The CD version of this album sets the record straight, dropping some tunes form a session months earlier and replacing them with alternate takes of the title cut and "Carolyn" for historical integrity, as well as adding "Syrup and Biscuits" and "Comin' Back." Mobley assembled a crack band for this blues-drenched hard-rollicking set made up of material written by either him or trumpeter Lee Morgan. Other members of the ensemble were pianist Andrew Hill, drummer Philly Joe Jones, and bassist John Ore. The title track, which opens the set, is a stand-in metaphor for the rest: Mobley's strong and knotty off-minor front-line trading fours with Hill that moves into brief but aggressive soloing for he and Morgan and brings the melody back, altered with the changes from Hill. On Morgan's "Me 'n' You," an aggressive but short bluesed-out vamp backed by a mutated samba beat, comes right out of the Art Blakey book of the blues and is articulated wonderfully by Mobley's solo, which alternates between short, clipped phrases along the line of the changes and longer trill and ostinatos where the end of a musical line is dictated by his breath rather than a chord change. Morgan is in the pocket of the blue shades, coloring the ends of his lines with trills and short staccato bursts, warping them in Hill's open, chromatic voicings. All eight cuts here move with similar fluidity and offer a very gritty and realist approach to the roots of hard bop. Highly recommended.                                 
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Tracklist :
1     Three Way Split 7'49
Hank Mobley    
2     Carolyn 5'30
Lee Morgan    
3     Up a Step 8'31
Hank Mobley    
4     No Room for Squares 6'57
Hank Mobley    
5     Me 'N You 7'17
Lee Morgan    
6     Old World Imports 6'08
Hank Mobley    
7     Carolyn (Alternate Take) 5'35
Lee Morgan    
8     No Room for Squares 6'45
Hank Mobley
Credits :
Bass – Butch Warren (tracks: 3, 6), John Ore (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 5)
Drums – Philly Joe Jones
Piano – Andrew Hill (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 5), Herbie Hancock (tracks: 3, 6)
Recorded By [Recording By], Remastered By – Rudy Van Gelder
Tenor Saxophone – Hank Mobley
Trumpet – Donald Byrd (tracks: 3, 6), Lee Morgan (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 5)

HANK MOBLEY - Straight No Filter (1986-2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Straight No Filter finds tenor Hank Mobley in several settings from the mid-'60s, each of them excellent. The overall roster is quite impressive, starting with the first set which features trumpeter Lee Morgan, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Billy Higgins. The upbeat title cut is given a loose, post-bop feel by Tyner's comping, but things are brought back to earth by Mobley's emotional playing. A number of exchanges between Morgan and Mobley's horns give the piece an effective ending. "Chain Reaction" gives this group nearly 11 minutes to stretch things out, while "Soft Impressions" features a heavy blues groove. A couple of other standouts on this album -- "This Feelin's Good" and "Yes Indeed" -- feature trumpeter Donald Byrd, pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Butch Warren, and drummer Philly Joe Jones. Hancock provides a distinctive backdrop for Mobley and Morgan's solos while turning in some fine work himself. Mobley shines on Sy Oliver's "Yes Indeed," delivering a soulful solo, shot through with the blues. His playing throughout Straight No Filter is warm, accessible, and inventive, and it is instructive to have these sessions side by side, giving the listener a chance to compare Mobley's work in different settings. It should be mentioned that he penned eight out of the nine of these fine compositions. Bob Blumenthal's liner notes are helpful, breaking down the individual sessions and providing a good overview of Mobley's career. Straight No Filter will be welcomed by Mobley's fans and lovers of hard bop. It shouldn't be missed. Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.
Tracklist :
1     Straight No Filter 5:56
Hank Mobley    
2     Chain Reaction 11:00 crans
Hank Mobley    
3     Soft Impressions 4:46
Hank Mobley    
4     Third Time Around 6:23
Hank Mobley    
5     Hank's Waltz 7:41
Hank Mobley    
6     Syrup and Biscuits 5:34
Hank Mobley    
7     Comin' Back 6:24
Hank Mobley    
8     The Feelin's Good 5:38
Hank Mobley    
9     Yes Indeed 5:34
Sy Oliver
Notas.
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on June 17, 1966 (#1-3), February 4, 1965 (#4-5), October 2, 1963 (#6-7) and March 7, 1963 (#8-9).
Credits :
Bass – Bob Cranshaw (pistas: 1 to 3), Butch Warren (pistas: 8, 9), John Ore (pistas: 6, 7), Paul Chambers (pistas: 4, 5)
Drums – Philly Joe Jones (pistas: 6 to 9), Billy Higgins (pistas: 1 to 5)
Engineer [Recording Engineer] – Rudy Van Gelder
Mastered By [Using 24-bit Super Bit Mapping] – Ron McMaster
Piano – Andrew Hill (pistas: 6, 7), Barry Harris (pistas: 4, 5), Herbie Hancock (pistas: 8, 9), McCoy Tyner (pistas: 1 to 3)
Tenor Saxophone – Hank Mobley
Trumpet – Donald Byrd (pistas: 8, 9), Freddie Hubbard (pistas: 4, 5), Lee Morgan (pistas: 1 to 3, 6, 7)