Drummer Hughes first gained attention with the Matthew Halsall band and is presently best known as a busy sideman and teacher. A self-confessed Max Roach fan, he has put together this accomplished sextet as a tribute to Blakey and booked a 32-date tour for them.

Having eschewed all the obvious choices, his selection of pieces to play takes in what we might call the later Blakey period. Given the playing prowess of the group, it’s no surprise that the ensembles reel off well. That said, there’s a slight sense of everyone trying hard and up on their toes solo-wise. Greater relaxation and finesse will come. Recorded well before the tour started, it will be interesting to compare the proposed live recording with this one, when everything’s bedded down and the group dynamic is more settled.

Watson’s ‘A Bitter Dose’ is the ideal starter, its loping swing launching the soloists, Barnes nicely louche on alto, Masser more fervent and Baranek, a new name to me, rhythmically strong and loquacious throughout. In the ballad medley, Barnes is eloquent on ‘Together Again’, Adams is at his best on the mellower ‘Easy Living’ and Masser is again mightily impressive, his solid, early Rollins sound beautifully caught on the peerless ‘Lover Man’. Freddie Hubbard’s ‘Crisis’ replicates the original in form and works especially well, Barnes on baritone, and Bobby Watson’s ‘A Wheel Within A Wheel’, always a standout when Blakey played it, is the album’s highlight. Catch them on tour if you can.