Straight No Filter

This album, first released in 1985, gathers tracks from four different recording sessions from between 1963 and 1966. The most recent material opens the disc, and pianist McCoy Tyner and trumpeter Lee Morgan are instantly recognizable. Later, Barry Harris, Andrew Hill, and Herbie Hancock all take their turn at the piano, with Freddie Hubbard and Donald Byrd (and Morgan again) partnering with Mobley up front. The drums, courtesy of Billy Higgins half the time and Philly Joe Jones the other half, swing and groove hard. Ultimately, this album shows that solid tunes (all of which Mobley wrote) and well-chosen collaborators are as important to great jazz as spotlight-hogging solos.