STICK-UP! by BOBBY HUTCHERSON

Vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson had a profound influence over the sound of Blue Note Records in the 1960s, with his distinctive vibes elevating a wide range of all-time classics from Grant Green Idle Moments to Eric Dolphy Out To Lunch. His fifth Blue Note session as a leader, 1966’s album Stick-Up! found Hutcherson in the company of a new band line-up with Joe Henderson on tenor saxophone, McCoy Tyner on piano, Herbie Lewis on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. The versatile quintet covers a vast expanse of post-bop territory on this excellent six-song set which opens with a spirited romp through Ornette Coleman’s “Una Muy Bonita.” Five Hutcherson originals follow including the hard driving “8/4 Beat,” the dreamy ballad “Summer Nights,” and the expansive “Verse.”