Henry "Hank" Mobley was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone, that was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Lester Young, and his style that was laid-back, subtle and melodic, especially in contrast with players like Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. The critic Stacia Proefrock claimed him "one of the most underrated musicians of the bop era." Mobley's compositions included "Double Exposure," "Soul Station", and "Dig Dis," among others.
Douglas Watkins was an American jazz double bassist. He was best known for being an accompanist to various hard bop artists in the Detroit area, including Donald Byrd and Jackie McLean.
At the Cafe Bohemia, Vol. 1 is a live album by the Jazz Messengers for Blue Note Records. It featured the original incarnation of the Jazz Messengers, Art Blakey's career-spanning band, and is the first of two volumes recorded on November 23, 1955, at Café Bohemia, a famous night club in Greenwich Village in New York.
At the Cafe Bohemia, Vol. 2 is a 1956 live album release by the Jazz Messengers. It was first released by Blue Note Records. This record featured the original incarnation of The Jazz Messengers, one of Art Blakey's most endearing bands, and was the second of two volumes recorded at Café Bohemia, a famous night club in Greenwich Village in New York, New York on November 23, 1955.
The Jazz Messengers is the first studio album by the Jazz Messengers, released in 1956 by Columbia Records. It was their fourth overall album, and also their last recording to feature the group's co-founder, Horace Silver, on piano.
Originally is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded in 1956, but not released on the Columbia label until 1982. The album features unreleased tracks from the sessions that produced The Jazz Messengers and Hard Bop which have since been released as bonus tracks on those albums and Drum Suite.
Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers is a 1956 repackage of 1955 10” LPs by jazz pianist Horace Silver with drummer Art Blakey and featuring Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone, Kenny Dorham on trumpet, and Doug Watkins on bass. By the time this repackage was released, this quintet had named themselves the Jazz Messengers, and the band name on the label reflected that. These recordings helped establish the hard bop style. Scott Yanow on Allmusic describes it as "a true classic". Originally released as an LP, the album has subsequently been reissued on CD several times.
Hank Mobley with Donald Byrd and Lee Morgan is an album by jazz saxophonist Hank Mobley released on the Blue Note label in 1957 as BLP 1540. It was recorded on November 25, 1956 and features Mobley along with trumpeters Donald Byrd and Lee Morgan, pianist Horace Silver, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Charli Persip.
Hank Mobley Quartet is the debut album by jazz saxophonist Hank Mobley released on the Blue Note label in 1955 as BLP 5066, a 10" LP. It was recorded on March 27, 1955, and features Mobley, Horace Silver, Doug Watkins and Art Blakey. The album was released on CD only in Japan, as a limited edition.
Hank Mobley and His All Stars is an album by jazz saxophonist Hank Mobley, released on the Blue Note label in 1957 as BLP 1544. It was recorded on January 13, 1957, and features Mobley along with the other members of the first lineup of the Jazz Messengers: pianist Horace Silver, bassist Doug Watkins, and drummer Art Blakey, with vibraphonist Milt Jackson of Modern Jazz Quartet.
Mobley's Message is an album by jazz saxophonist Hank Mobley, released on the Prestige label in 1957. It was recorded on July 20, 1956 and features performances by Mobley, Donald Byrd, Barry Harris, Doug Watkins and Art Taylor, with Jackie McLean guesting on one track.
The Jazz Message of Hank Mobley is an album by jazz saxophonist Hank Mobley released on the Savoy label in 1956. It was recorded on February 8, 1956, and features performances by Mobley, Donald Byrd, Ronnie Ball, Horace Silver, Doug Watkins, Wendell Marshall, John LaPorta and Kenny Clarke. It was not issued as a Hank Mobley leader album until the CD era.
6 Pieces of Silver is a studio album by jazz pianist Horace Silver released on the Blue Note label in 1957 featuring performances by Silver with Donald Byrd, Hank Mobley, Doug Watkins and Louis Hayes. The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4½ stars and states "The early Silver quintet was essentially The Jazz Messengers of the year before but already the band was starting to develop a sound of its own. "Señor Blues" officially put Horace Silver on the map". The front cover photograph was taken at Central Park West, Upper West Side.
The Stylings of Silver is an album by jazz pianist Horace Silver released on the Blue Note label in 1957 featuring performances by Silver with Art Farmer, Hank Mobley, Teddy Kotick, and Louis Hayes.
Silver's Blue is a studio album by American jazz pianist Horace Silver recorded for the Epic label in 1956 featuring performances by Silver with Joe Gordon, Hank Mobley, Doug Watkins, and Kenny Clarke and another session with Donald Byrd and Art Taylor replacing Gordon and Clarke. Silver, Mobley, Watkins, and Byrd all had recently left The Jazz Messengers. These were Silver's first sessions as a leader after leaving the Messengers.
Minor Move is an album by American hard bop tenor Tina Brooks. It features performances by Brooks, Lee Morgan, Sonny Clark, Doug Watkins and Art Blakey. It was recorded on March 16, 1958, and was the first album Brooks recorded as a leader for the Blue Note label. The album, however, remained unreleased until being issued in Japan in 1980. In 2000, Minor Move was released on CD. The composition "Nutville" is sometimes credited to Lee Morgan, but as producer Michael Cuscuna explains in the liner notes to the 2000 release: "Lee brought the tune to the session, but never claimed credit for it. Curtis Fuller also confirms that it was indeed a Tina Brooks original."
K. B. Blues is an album by guitarist Kenny Burrell recorded in 1957 and originally released on the Japanese Blue Note label in 1979. The tracks were reissued on CD as part of Introducing Kenny Burrell: The First Blue Note Sessions but incorrectly identified as being recorded in 1956.
Byrd's Eye View is an album by trumpeter Donald Byrd recorded in 1955 and originally released on Tom Wilson's Transition label. The album was later re-released as part of the compilation CD set The Transition Sessions on the Blue Note label.
The Cool Voice of Rita Reys is the debut album by Dutch jazz singer Rita Reys which features sessions recorded with bands led by drummers Art Blakey and her husband Wessel Ilcken. The sessions are divided over each side of the original LP which was released on the Dutch Philips and US Columbia labels.
"The Preacher" is a composition by Horace Silver. The original version was recorded by Silver's quintet on February 6, 1955. It was soon covered by other musicians, including with lyrics added by Babs Gonzales. It has become a jazz standard.
