Cashbox : 01/11/1958

Here are five readings from some of jazzdom’s foremost personalities. The sextet features prominent musicians Mobley (tenor sax), Donald Byrd (trumpet), and “Philly” Joe Jones (drums). The items include two Mobley originals – Fit For A Hanker and Hi Groove, Low Feed-Back plus three others. Group captures the essence of the interesting material. Expressive readings.

—–

San Francisco Examiner
C.H. Garrigues : 03/09/1958

Mobley‘s tenor is warmer than usual, a welcome contrast to Jenkins‘ somewhat frenetic alto. Donald Byrd sounds more like the latter day Miles Davis: sensitive and intelligent but lacking the fine spatial quality for which he has been noted.

—–

Down Beat : 05/01/1958
John A. Tynan : 4 stars

One gathers from the liner notes that this album marks the record debut of young Chicago altoist John Jenkins. For a first appearance on record, then, Jenkins finds himself in some pretty tough company. He proves, though, that he can stand up and be counted in the blowing line with some of New York’s best modernists.

While the fledgling’s solo ideas lack the maturity of his comrades on this date, Byrd and Mobley, he is afforded plenty of room to extend himself in the seven tracks herein. But there’s a choppy quality to his playing, a quality that suggests ideational repetition particularly in the faster tunes. Throughout, however, Jenkins plays with eagerness and guts. His development, albeit along the Parker line he has chosen to toe, certainly will bear watching.

Though Mobley’s playing is consistently fine (he plays a sensitive solo topped by a brilliant coda on Time), the hero of the date is clearly Byrd. He blows clean, thoughtfully conceived solos leading to logically fashioned climaxes in that slightly breathless style of his.

Though Timmons appears to be developing a real voice of his own, his approach here is tentative at times, lacking a bit in guts. One keeps wishing he would get up and shout with the rest of the soloists. Still, his touch and intelligent development of statements make him one of the more interesting young pianists.

The rhythm section performs with punch and enthusiasm. One might, however, note an overenthusiasm in Philly Joe’s drumming. He is ever-present, diverting bombs and all. In the middle of an absorbing solo by Timmons, for instance, there’s a sudden rat-a-tat-tat by Joe as if he were rapping on a door demanding entry. This certainly is an effective method of announcing his presence, possibly in preparation for the series of thundering fours which immediately follow.

Easy to Love, the first track on Side 2, would be the best sample number in this set. It opens with a businesslike statement by the three horns of the song’s final four bars, then straightaway Mobley jumps into his long solo with ease and confidence.

A good blowing session with two attractive original Mobley lines and good solos all around.

—–

Liner Notes by Ira Gitler

There are sessions and then there are sessions. What is needed to make a session successful? Empathetic musicians? Musicians who have the urge to really play rather than just go through the motions? Material which will make them want to play? An inspiring rhythm section to lift the soloists? The answer to these rhetorical questions is emphatically “yes” and a living, breathing example of a session of this sort can be found here, between these covers, as another in the line of excellent Blue Note blowing sessions.

The emphatic musicians have come from many different cities in the United States to help comprise the fine modern jazz player pool that exists in New York.

Hank Mobley from Newark and Donald Byrd from Detroit have played and recorded together quite a few times in the past two years. They were the front line of the Jazz Messengers for part of 1956 and can be heard in Horace Silver‘s Six Pieces Of Silver (BLP 1539).

“Hankus,” the leader of this date, has reached the stage of his career where he has become a consistently steady performer – a real pro, so to speak. In addition to his full-bodied playing here, he has also penned two of the lines and expertly chosen the other three selections.

Donald has also improved by leaps and bounds to a new level of maturity. He is at his sharpest in this set with a singing, soaring style which is a personal expression within the Clifford Brown vein.

You have probably never heard of the alto saxophonist unless you are from Chicago. I had heard about him when I wrote in the January issue of Jazz Today, “words of praise were blown in for alto John Jenkins although he had not recorded.”

John Jenkins has recorded now, as of this LP, and proves himself to be in the first generation after Charlie Parker and a particularly virile exponent of the style.

The young pianist from Philadelphia, Bobby Timmons, whose playing Leonard Feather accurately described in Kenny Dorham’s ‘Round About Midnight At The Café Bohemia (BLP 1524) as reflecting “the intelligent absorption of a variety of modern influences rapidly evolving a style of is own,” is in fine form and certainly closer to a personal expression than before.

In the rhythm section Bobby combines with the two rocks who so effectively swung the proceedings during J.R. Monterose’s first date as a leader (BLP 1536), “Philly” Joe Jones and Wilbur Ware. Here they again achieve that inspiration that I spoke of earlier.

Jones, from Philadelphia of course, is best known for his work with the great Miles Davis quintet of 1956-57.

Ware, who left his native Chicago to come east with the Jazz Messengers, has been freelancing around New York during 1957 and has impressed everyone with his all-around capability.

The medium-up Fit For A Hanker and medium Hi Groove, Low Feedback are uncomplicated yet effective lines by leader Mobley.

Easy To Love is taken at up tempo with everyone cruising along comfortably on the crest of the steady rhythmic wave laid down by Jones, Ware and Timmons.

Time After Time, an extremely lovely ballad of the Forties, is revived here in a heartfelt version which shows that all the hornmen can play pretty as well as swing hard.

The set closer is Dance Of The Infidels, an original by Bud Powell which can also be heard in its original versions as played by the composer in The Amazing Bud Powell (BLP 1503) and The Fabulous Fats Navarro (BLP 1532).

The ingredients for a successful session are all here; the empathy, the pulse and the varied, interesting material. The results are self-evident in the happy listening.