Hank Mobley's tenor saxophone was such an integral part of the Blue Note sound that his albums were often given such basic names as Hank, Hank Mobley, Hank Mobley Quintet and Sextet. All that Blue Note fans needed to know was that Hank Mobley was on the job. That meant that they had to acquire the record, for Mobley was the definitive hard bop saxophonist and a sparkplug who made every session something special.

From the time that he emerged as a hot young tenor player who had worked with Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie, the original version of the Jazz Messengers and the Horace Silver Quintet up until the end of the 1960s, Mobley was a regular on Blue Note, recording one memorable album after another.

This 1957 project simply titled Hank Mobley, in addition to fine contributions from trumpeter Bill Hardman and the great pianist Sonny Clark, is particularly special due to the playing and compositions of altoist Curtis Porter. Porter, who was later known as Shafi Hadi, is best remembered for his association with Charles Mingus but he sounds even more inspired and passionate on this album than he did with the explosive bassist. And with Hank Mobley in exceptional form, the result is a rare classic.

For many listeners, "Hank Mobley-1568" is an album that utterly defines hard bop and the Blue Note label. It is no wonder that an original copy of this LP fetches five figures!

Like all Music Matters Jazz releases, this audiophile vinyl reissue is mastered from the original analog tape and pressed on 180g virgin vinyl at RTI in Camarillo, CA. The highest quality gatefold cover features original session photography on the inside.

See more Hank Mobley records here.