An appealing hard bop sound from bassist Goble, finding that right mix of buoyant activity and melodic warmth. His quartet goes out of their way to prove that the inclusion of the word "blues" in the title is anything but misleading. The up-tempo tunes are plenty fun, but it's when the quartet slows things down and really lets the melody patiently draw its breath is when the album really burns strong with emotion. That quartet, by the way, is rounded out by pianist Louis Heriveaux, drummer Dave Potter and tenor saxophonist Gregory Tardy, who really shines bright on this session.