Customer Reviews

Dippin' (24bt)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If anyone is still wondering what it means to "swing", crank up your best speakers, put on "Recado Bossa Nova", and listen to what Mobley and Co. do to revive this 1960's chestnut. These five supremely gifted guys get under the bn beat, swing it, and drive it up somewhere into the stratosphere. Also of note: Mobley's own compositions, which as usual are fresh and exciting; the beautiful sound of Mobley and Morgan on "I See Your Face Before Me"; and last but not least, the knock-your-socks off technique of Harold Mabern Jr. on keyboard, who deserves a lot of credit for giving this CD its pizazz. If you dig tenor sax, or 60's jazz, or just great ensemble playing -- this album is a must!

The most recent batch of six RVG reissues (2/21/06) has left me scratching my head, as the original CD incarnations of four of these titles have never even gone out-of-print, and are still readily available, even new on Amazon. Certainly, there are more deserving titles to re-release that have actually been missing from the catalog for years, but I guess EMI must have plans to make most every golden-era Blue Note album an RVG edition at this point. To be fair, "Dippin'" is another enjoyable recording from tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley, and it is great to have it available in this remastered version. This June 18, 1965 session features the stand-out rhythm trio of Harold Mabern Jr. on piano, Larry Ridley on bass and Billy Higgins on drums, with old pal Lee Morgan joining Hank on the frontline. It's too bad the trumpeter couldn't provide another "Sidewinder" type single for his good friend the middleweight champ, but it's not for a lack of trying. Either "The Dip" or "The Vamp" could easily have been a hit, with their catchy melodies and upbeat, funky grooves. The rest of the album is solid as well with two more Mobley originals, a great Bossa Nova number and a lovely standard. As with most of Mobley's later Blue Notes, this session is a notch below classic discs like "Soul Station" and "Roll Call" and thus receives only four-stars in my opinion. With that being said, dive in and take Hank for a "Dip," the water's quite nice.

This is one CD many fans seem to not be aware of, it's a shame. All the tracks on the disc have a good modern sound, The Vamp and The Breakthrough are especially nice. The tunes by Mobley are characteristic, he puts little twists and turns in his compositions that keep you on your toes as a listener. The musicians are in top form, Mobley and Lee Morgan cook as expected. The real treat for me on the disc is Billy Higgins, who provides an inspiring pulse for the music. Recommended for anybody with a taste for good music.

This is just a phenomenal bunch of tunes by a consistently great artist! This music is so swingin' and catchy that it should be illegal to listen to this while driving-it's hard to keep still and concentrate. I have numerous Hank Mobley CD's in heavy rotation, but this one finds its way into the CD player more often than the others.

Hank Mobley is probably one of the most under-rated tenor saxophonists of the post-bop era because of his introspective, non-intrusive style. But his soulful compositions always drew A-list sidemen and Dippi ' is no exception. Melodically, this is a very accessible album, with a variety of rhythms and modes of attack. For trumpet fans, one cut features the legend Lee Morgan using a mute, again displaying why purists rank his playing well above Miles Davis.

This is my favorite Hank Mobley disc. The numbers on the disc range from groovy (Dippin') to dense and swirling. This is an excellent counterpoint to Soul Station, since a trumpet (Lee Morgan) is added, and the piano playing is much funkier. Try this one; it's very underrated.

Can't praise it enough.

Took me a while to get used to this version of Recado Bossa Nova (more up beat than both Frazer McPerson's and Zoot Sims') but, man, it does have more verve and bounce, and the entire CD is a wonder. I can't get enough of Mobley's playing and will be purchasing other CDs by him.

Wish this great sax artist was still around so we could see him blow that horn live.

Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan are two of my favorite Jazz musicians and deserve more appreciation than they get. I already owned several Blue Note CDs from each of them including some where they performed together: Morgan's "Cornbread" and Mobley's "No Room For Squares". I think both of those albums are 5 star recordings with great music. However, I feel that this album from 1965 is somewhat monotonous in comparison to them. Sure, there's a bossa nova tune and a ballad in addition to the four upbeat, funky numbers written by Mobley; but these latter tunes are all somewhat similar in structure, consisting of unison or parallel blowing of theme statements alternating with solos by Mobley, Morgan, and pianist Harold Mabern, Jr. Don't get me wrong -- each tune has catchy melodic ideas and great solos, but the overall effect is repetitious and the arrangements could have used more contrapuntal blowing.

I agree with another reviewer who felt that Mobley might have been striving too hard to score a hit like Morgan had with "The Sidewinder" back in 1963. ("The Dip" does come close.) I think one could also argue that Morgan is a better composer/arranger than Mobley and that this could account for the additional variety on the other albums I mentioned. (Note that Morgan wrote all but 1 tune on "Cornbread" and even wrote 2 tunes on "No Room for Squares".)

All that being said, all five musicians play very well on this CD. So, if you like Morgan and Mobley and hard bop Jazz, then you'll enjoy having this album in your collection. You can also hear Mobley and Morgan together on Mobley's "Peckin' Time" and posthumous "Straight No Filter" albums. Since first writing this review, I've gotten and listened to both of these albums and gave both of them 5 stars.

This album has been on my top 10 list of jazz favorites for many years. Lee Morgan does a mind-blowing solo on Redacdo Bossa Nova (So does Mobley), that is worth the price of this CD alone. Buy it, enrich your life!

Any Mobley performance between 1955-1961, whether his own date or with Silver, Blakey, Kenny Dorham or Donald Byrd, is an automatic five stars. His later recordings are hit and miss, often on the same session. The title tune of 1965's "Dippin'" is yet another attempt by Blue Note to cash in on the success of Lee Morgan's "Sidewinder." It's a reductive boogaloo, a period piece with a bridge that could have been written by a garage band, followed by the requisite fade out. The remaining tunes, including the infectious "Recada Bossa Nova" and lovely "I See Your Face Before Me," are good late Mobley.

This may be essential for Mobley completists but can otherwise be judged one of Hank's lesser recordings. It's definitely superior to the contemporaneous, equally if not more formulaic session, "A Caddy for Daddy" (thank goodness, Blue Note chose to remaster "Dippin'" ahead of that yawner).

If you're new to Mobley, just beginning to take a dip into the music of this extraordinarily-gifted, always fresh and inventive artist, whose recordings I confess I listen to more than any other in my bloated collection, take a look at the newly remastered "Soul Station" or "Roll Call," both of which are currently being offered at substantial discounts on Amazon (as are a number of other superior RVG editions). Other strong candidates: "Workout" and "Another Workout," or any of Mobley's appearances with virtually any other musician, 1954-1963 (some available only from Japanese companies at inflated prices). After 1963, be careful, and be prepared to witness the gradual self-destruction and ultimate neglect of a giant as singular and creative (but less dramatically so) as Parker or Coltrane (at least recognition of his understated genius seems to be on a gradual incline over the past two decades).