Concert key: D minor
Style: Medium swing
Purchase MP3 AMAZON
Purchase iTunes album only 
Recording Information: Recorded on September 14, 1960, and first released on "Meet You At The Jazz Corner Of The World, Vol.2" / Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers (Blue Note BLP 4055)
- Trumpet - Lee Morgan
- Tenor Sax - Wayne Shorter
- Piano - Bobby Timmons
- Bass - Jymie Merritt
- Drums - Art Blakey
Description: Hank Mobley's composition starts with the bass playing a one-measure repeating figure accompanied by Art Blakey on mallets. The piano then picks up the figure with the bass. Our audio excerpt starts with the horns playing the melody over this vamping bass line figure. You'll notice the figure continues for three measures under the horn melody, then the piano and bass walk down two measures of diatonic "changes" before reappearing with the opening bass figure in the eighth measure of the A section. Then the A section melody repeats. You'll notice from our audio excerpt that Blakey switches to sticks for the bridge with one of his classic press rolls. The last two measures of the bridge have a 2-feel, allowing Art to switch back to mallets for the last eight measures of this 32-bar AABA form. In the last measure of the melody Blakey again switches to sticks with a press roll. The bass walks the entire solo section. After the solos it's Dal Capo (back to the top), with Blakey switching back to mallets and a repeat of the whole melody. The bass figure is also used for the ending. An interesting and dramatic composition.
Historical Notes: This is from a live Jazz Messengers recording at the famous NYC jazz club Birdland, with Lee Morgan on trumpet and Wayne Shorter on tenor sax.
Hank Mobley's last recording as a Jazz Messenger was also done live at Birdland, in the previous year (April 15, 1959). That engagement yielded two albums that were titled "Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers At The Jazz Corner Of The World, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2."
Art Blakey loved Hank's writing. Hank continued to contribute to the Messengers' recorded repertoire after leaving the band. In 1960, Blakey recorded as a sideman on Hank's two classic leader sessions, "Soul Station" and "Roll Call"". High Modes was recorded between those two classic Mobley dates.
