(Hard Bop) Hank Mobley - Hank Mobley - 1957 (2007 Japan RVG Edition), FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Count yourself fortunate to get your hands on this session, originally released on Blue Note, and not simply for the incredibly hip photo of Mobley on the cover (though I'll admit that's what initially hooked me). On this Toshiba EMI International reissue, the liner notes are in Japanese, the audio is merely ”good” (undoubtedly a Van Gelder remastering would provide more presence to both piano and drums), and the front line is probably unknown to many listeners. But in terms of the program, and the execution by the ensemble, as well as the performances of individual soloists, this eponymously titled album belongs with some of Mobley's best sessions.
Curtis Porter is a name I recall only from some of his appearances on Mingus recordings. On alto he has a thoughtful melodic approach and a “cool,” assured sound that matches Mobley's unforced lyricism. On tenor, his more aggressive rhythmic phrasing is a complementary contrast to Mobley's seamless melodic stitching.
Bill Hardman, rather than Kenny Dorham, is my candidate for most underrated trumpet player, if not musician, in jazz (boasting three separate tours of duty in as many decades with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers). Originally a “crackling” hard bopper with blazing technique, crisp articulations, and a no-frills sound, at this time (1957) he was just beginning to play with some of the fuller, more extroverted “romantic” passion of a Clifford Brown, a direction he would take increasingly throughout the '60s and '70s. Dig his solo on “Double Exposure,” played with a driving, practically prancing energy that's equalled by few other masters of the horn—and reason enough for Mobley to follow with his own best solo on the date.
Mobley sounds as lyrical, melodically inventive and winsome as ever. Porter picks up a tenor and invites him to turn up the fire on “Bag's Groove,” but the leader demurs, sticking to warmth, simplicity and pure musical substance. Sonny Clark's piano accompaniment and soloing are both sterling (more appealing to my ears than his own 1961 session, Leapin' and Lopin'). And though a blowing session, the ensembles are tight, yet featuring a cohesive flow between group and solo sections.
This one belongs right alongside Soul Station, Workout, Another Workout, Roll Call and Mobley's other most frequently played recordings, though it's a shame that the Japanese seem to be the only ones thus far to have recognized its merits.

Exact Audio Copy V0.99 prebeta 4 from 23. January 2008
EAC extraction logfile from 30. July 2008, 8:56
Hank Mobley / Hank Mobley
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Read mode               : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache      : Yes
Make use of C2 pointers : No
Read offset correction                      : 6
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out          : No
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Delete leading and trailing silent blocks   : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations       : Yes
Used interface                              : Installed external ASPI interface
Used output format              : User Defined Encoder
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Quality                         : High
Add ID3 tag                     : No
Command line compressor         : C:\Program Files\Exact Audio Copy\flac.exe
Additional command line options : -V -8 -T "artist=%a" -T "title=%t" -T "album=%g" -T "date=%y" -T "tracknumber=%n" -T "genre=%m" %s
TOC of the extracted CD
     Track |   Start  |  Length  | Start sector | End sector
    ---------------------------------------------------------
        1  |  0:00.00 |  6:56.71 |         0    |    31270
        2  |  6:56.71 |  5:30.27 |     31271    |    56047
        3  | 12:27.23 |  5:57.60 |     56048    |    82882
        4  | 18:25.08 |  8:07.74 |     82883    |   119481
        5  | 26:33.07 |  8:12.21 |    119482    |   156402
Range status and errors
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     Filename D:\WinRar\Hank Mobley - Hank Mobley (1957 JBN)[FLAC Full Scans]\Hank Mobley - Hank Mobley.wav
     Peak level 99.8 %
     Range quality 99.9 %
     Test CRC 168636C6
     Copy CRC 168636C6
     Copy OK
No errors occurred
AccurateRip summary
Track  1  not present in database
Track  2  not present in database
Track  3  not present in database
Track  4  not present in database
Track  5  not present in database
None of the tracks are present in the AccurateRip database
End of status report

auCDtect: CD records authenticity detector, version 0.8.2
Copyright (c) 2004 Oleg Berngardt. All rights reserved.
Copyright (c) 2004 Alexander Djourik. All rights reserved.
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Processing file: [Hank Mobley - Hank Mobley.wav]
Detected average hi-boundary frequency: 1.945186e+004 Hz
Detected average lo-boundary frequency: 1.442663e+004 Hz
Detected average hi-cut frequency: 1.930358e+004 Hz
Detected average lo-cut frequency: 8.662626e+003 Hz
Maximum probablis boundary frequency: 2.189100e+004 Hz
Coefficient of nonlinearity of a phase: 4.162359e-003
First order smothness: 3.959129e-001
Second order smothness: 5.369863e-001
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This track looks like CDDA with probability 99%