Manne’s group was recorded live by Lester Koenig’s Contemporary label during their three-day stay at San Francisco’s Black Hawk club, the results then issued over four albums, these later reduced to a pair of CDs and subsequently re-released as single CDs on Original Jazz Classics. It’s EJC’s proud boast that this new reissue now collects the complete Black Hawk output as a 4CD package and very welcome it is. The recorded sound is fine, each man clearly heard and on form, the atmosphere just right. Inevitably, a number of pieces from the band’s then repertoire re-appear over the various sets but that’s no problem for the playing, both individually and collectively, is continuously rewarding. Put simply, this is superior, straightahead bebop. Manne is at his best, combining with Budwig, swinging hard and always zestful. Our man Feldman, then still making his way on the Californian scene, does well, covering for the absent Russ Freeman then away on a six-week European tour. His playing shows the influence of both Red Garland and Bill Evans but is animated and coherent, buoyed up on Budwig’s superb basslines. Gordon (who died from burns sustained in a house fire in 1966) is fluent and properly boppish, relatively tentative at times but holding his own capably. For his part, Kamuca, another who died young, tears into the up-tempo tracks, like ‘Poinciana’ and ‘Our Delight ’in Prez-ian fashion, the energy and flow of ideas immediately attractive, but can throttle down engagingly on ballads as well. The band’s coherence and general disposition is similar to that of contemporary groups run by Art Blakey or Horace Silver, the concentration, via long but never tedious solos, on pieces like Benny Golson’s attractive ‘Step Lightly’ quite perfect. No longuers. Thoughtful, yes, but lively too.