Hank Mobley/Al Cohn/John Coltrane/Zoot Sims: Tenor Conclave (180g, bonus track) [JAZZ WAX]

Why you'll love it

Four tenor saxophonists, one session: Hank Mobley, Al Cohn, John Coltrane and Zoot Sims in 1956, backed by Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Art Taylor. This 180g pressing adds "Polka Dots And Moonbeams" as a bonus track.

This edition

• 180g vinyl
• Bonus track "Polka Dots And Moonbeams"
• Five tracks across two sides

About the album

Prestige liked to throw its players together and see what happened, and Tenor Conclave is one of the more glorious results. In 1956 the label put four tenor saxophonists in a room with the Miles Davis rhythm section (Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, Art Taylor on drums) and let them trade choruses on Mobley's "Tenor Conclave" and "Bob's Boys", "Just You, Just Me" and a fifteen-minute "How Deep Is The Ocean".

Each player has his own voice: Mobley round and warm, Cohn and Sims light and swinging, and Coltrane, then still a few years from fame, already pushing at the edges. When Prestige reissued it in 1962 they made his name bigger on the cover, which tells you how quickly things moved. It's a friendly contest with no losers. Four tenors on one record would usually be called a crowd; here it's called a very good afternoon.

Tracklist

Listen

Out September 18, 2026 on Jazz Wax (cat# JWR4650), a reissue of the 1957 album.