Customer Reviews

Roll Call

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is one of Mobley's greatest records. He uses the same rhythm section that he had on his album "Soul Station", done some month earlier (Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers and Art Blakey), adding Freddie Hubbard on trumpet. With such a fast company, everybody bursting with enthusiasm, it was clear that that something great would happen. Hank Mobley had reached the peak of his career, with his unique sound, phrasing and harmonic skills fully developed. The addition of Freddie Hubbard is very rewarding. He was then"the new voice" and became one of the most influential trumpet players of the sixties. A particularly nice tune here is "A Baptist Beat", done twice (the original master and an alternate take). It is the album's feature of traditional influences, just like it happend on the title tune of the mentioned "Soul Station". The only non-original is the rarely performed "The More I See You", really a beautiful tune with a rare feature of Hubbard unsing the harmon mute. The special thing about Hank Mobley is his unique musicianship, he isn`t as spectacular like, let's say Johnny Griffin, with whom he recorded in 1957, with John Coltrane featured ("A Blowing Session", also available on RVG-Series), he has a more sublte way of expression, but once he has reached you, you'll love him the same way I do.

I purchased this album, largely based on my love of Soul Station. Roll Call is a very different animal. The tempo is energetic, and never lets up. Freddie Hubbard blows, and blows, and clearly dominates every track. In my opinion it would have been more correct of Blue Note to label this album a Freddie Hubbard album, rather than Hank Mobley (even though Hank was the leader).

If you are expecting to hear much of Wynton Kelly, then forget it. He has a few short solos, but otherwise you would barely notice that he was even present. Art Blakey and Paul Chambers do a fine job of backing Freddie and Hank. The whole band play in a unified, tight-knit group, and it is clear that they "clicked".

When you play this album, don't expect to sit back and relax. This is not an album to play late at night, to relax you after a hard day at the office. It is one that you should listen to in the morning to get your blood pumping for the day ahead.

Blue Note in their inscrutable wisdom let this disc drop out of catalogue for many years, while keeping its companion _Soul Station_ in print. Good to see it finally getting caught up in the latest wave of reissues. It reunites the band from _Soul Station_ a few months later--Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Art Blakey--with the new addition of a young Freddie Hubbard. It thus represents a dovetail of two future relationships for the horns: Hubbard after this was to become a longstanding member of Blakey's Jazz Messengers, while Mobley was to join Chambers & Kelly in Miles Davis's band.

This is a blunter album than _Soul Station_: whereas the former album had mostly quite brief tracks, this one has two ten-minute cookers, the title-track & "A Baptist Beat". Blakey is in imperious, hardhitting form, & Hubbard is quite wonderful: he's not yet become as slick & self-assured as he was in later years, & here he's got a slightly more acrid tone & an extra ounce of brashness & wildness. It's an album where the mix of musical personalities seems just right, giving the album an upbeat but laidback vibe that's very attractive.

The reissue is nicely done, & the bonus track (the alternate take of "A Baptist Beat") is quite good, not just a space-filler. (One nice touch is Wynton Kelly's sneaking in a little Gershwin under cover of Hubbard's solo; & Chambers also gets an arco feature not on the released take.) A pity that Van Gelder can't do anything about the album's one minor flaw--the bum note on the studio piano that's most prominent on the title-track--but that's hardly more than a minor quibble. This is an album good to have back in the racks.

This is by far my favorite Hank Mobley album. Recorded in 1960, this album features a young and blistering Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Wynton Kelly and Paul Chambers, a solid rhythm team on piano and bass, and the explosive Art Blakey on drums.

The title track takes off right from the beginning, a minor key powerhouse that inspires great solo work from the group. The other notable tune is "A Baptist's Beat," straight from the heart of hard bop, grooving insistently. Both are Mobley originals as are all but one of the others. The group dynamic is very good, the rhythm section surges ahead with Blakey in the driver's seat, and Hubbard and Mobley shine. Hank had a way of melding with trumpet players, in and out of the Jazz Messengers, specifically with the likes of Lee Morgan and Kenny Dorham, as well as Donald Byrd.

Buy this CD if you like highly charged, straight ahead jazz. If you want to pat your feet, pat your feet. If you want to take off your shoes, take off your shoes. Put this CD on to have a ball, and swing.

Rank this one slightly ahead of "Workout" and just behind "Soul Station," if only because the additional horn cuts down on Mobley's solo time. Hank is on fire, immediately throwing down the gauntlet on the opener, on which Hubbard accepts the challenge and acquits himself admirably.

As for Mobley, this was his most fertile period as an improviser. No one thinks faster or makes quicker decisions, whether he's responding to a Blakey press roll, a Kelly chord substitution, or simply a statement of his own (he brings no "agenda" to a solo; it's simply a matter of listening hard to yourself and letting imagination take its course).

To my ears, Hubbard is just as dramatic and full-sounding on this outing as Lee Morgan but more precise. Maybe because of the influence of the non-showmanship and ceaseless invention of Mobley, he goes for none of the flashy, often ill-placed stratospheric notes that, whether he hits them or not, bring a grimace of pain to the listener of many of his later recordings.

The compositions and arrangements are often inspired, though "My Groove Your Move" strikes me as another generic G minor blues, and "A Baptist Beat" mines the all too familiar territory of popular gospel-inflected standards like "Moanin'" and "The "Preacher." Fortunately, the soloists' contributions on both tunes overcome the limitations of the material.

With little fanfare, Blue Note or Amazon has reduced the prices on many of these most recent RVG reissues to levels that are more affordable than downloading the individual tunes as MP3 files. All the more incentive to pick this one up sooner rather than later.

I'm a newbee to jazz, so I don't have a wealth of information on the genre. I have a handful of albums and was familiar with Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Dizzie Gillespie, and Luis Armstrong. I like those artists, but it's Hank Mobley who has really driven my new found interest in jazz. I had heard a tune of his late night on digital cable and fell in love with his tone. Imagine my shock when I found that his sound is considered 'thin' by some jazz fans.

'Roll Call' is full of great tunes and great players. Mobley seems to be at his best when performing his own material and all of his originals, plus the standard 'The More I see You' are all exquisite. 'My Groove Your Move', 'Take Your Pick', and 'A Baptist Beat' all have great central riffs and stick in your head long after the album is over. This album features the same rhythm section from 'Soul Station' with the welcome addition of trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who adds some dynamic solos to the mix. A solid album from start to finish, guaranteed to make you tap your foot.

I have always loved Hank Mobley. Nothing he has performed in as a leader or a sideman has been of poor quality. Let the detractors lament his later albums and performances as being shadows of his former self. To me, Hank Mobley was, in the words of Benny Golson " the most lyrical saxaphonist I ever heard" Jazz is about improvisation, self expression, and the calling upon historical references that are contained within one's soul. He was clearly an elegant, soulful, bluesy, and spiritual and spiritual individual who was very sensitive and wordly. All of his personal attributes were expressed in his playing. He could not hide who he was. He was the best in my opinion as a writer, stylist, and a composer however, like most geniuses in this genre was not fully appreciated while he was alive but is lauded posthumously. His playing and lyricisms are timeless and are continuously being mined for their intricate details. Beautiful they all are. Roll Call is exceptional for his use of the call and response idiom that is found in the culture of the Black Church. So, because of this, I do understand why his music was overlooked for it's genius. While Bluenote did an exceptional job in recording and preserving the music of Hardbop, I am sure they limited the full expression of many of their artist, even Hank Mobley, for the business aspect of music. One of my favorite Mobley albums outside of the Bluenote Catalog was Messages on the Prestige Label. There Mobley shows more of his genius and personality.

Hank Mobley's "Roll Call" takes longer to appreciate than his all time classic "Soul Station". The more you hear this the better it sounds. Art Blakey is on fire and this is an added bonus here. The standard "The More I See You" is the stand out number of the set where Hank truely shines with his lovely tone on the tenor sax.