Art Pepper

I want to play so bad....

I was given a gift. I was given a gift in a lot of ways. I was given a gift of being able to endure things, to accept certain things, to be able to accept punishment for things that I did wrong against society, the things that society feels are wrong. And I was able to go to prison. I never informed on anyone. As for music, anything I’ve done has been something that I’ve done “off the top.” I’ve never studied, never practiced. I’m one of those people. I knew it was there. All I had to do was reach for it. Just do it.

- Art Pepper

The first time I saw Art Pepper’s name was on the cover of this album. It was around 1989, and I bought it at Logos Books & Record in Santa Cruz.

At the time, I had never heard of him - but how can you pass up on that cover! As I glanced at the names below Art Pepper’s, I noticed Russ Freeman and Larry Bunker - names I knew from earlier Chet Baker records on the Pacific Jazz label, like this one from 1953:

Art Pepper was a great musician who paid a heavy price for his art. The price he paid is well documented, and I do not intend to cover those details (you can read all about them in his terrific autobiography Straight Life).

This week on that Big River called Jazz I want to focus on his music - the art rather than the Art, so to speak. In particular, I want to focus on the period known as his comeback.

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Art Pepper’s comeback started in the summer of 1975 and ended suddenly with his death in 1982. During that short time, he recorded several high-quality albums for primarily the Contemporary and Galaxy labels as well as a folk song and a movie soundtrack.

Art Pepper’s comeback was official on August 9, 1975, when he recorded Living Legend on Les Koenig’s Contemporary label:

Recorded after 15 years of prison time and fighting his drug addiction, this was his first album as a leader since his three 1960 Contemporary albums Gettin’ Together, Smack Up, and Intensity. Here is Pepper’s stunning composition Lost Life:

He is joined on this album by some old friends, Hampton Hawes on piano, Charlie Haden on bass, and Shelly Manne on drums. I find much of the music from Pepper’s comeback years better than much of his earlier records. During his time away from recording, I think he had incorporated into his playing some of the 1960s avant-garde and it seems deeper and more adventurous.

For example, in the summer of 1976, through an association with his old friend Marty Paich, he recorded a strange, but wonderful song with the late pop star Melanie for her Atlantic record Photograph:

He plays alto sax on her composition I’m So Blue:

Also in 1976, Pepper recorded The Trip, which is I think one of his all-time best albums:

The Summer Knows is a beautiful tune by Michael Legrand and shows the depth and quality of his artistry during his early comeback years.

With the opportunity to tour in Japan and then for his first time playing at the Village Vanguard in New York City, 1977 is perhaps the highlight of his comeback.

Although his music was very popular in Japan, it was very difficult for an artist with Art Pepper’s troubled past to be invited there. However, Cal Tjader had a lot to do with making that tour a reality. Although Tjader had invited Pepper along on the tour, he was not even sure if he would be let in the country.

In a letter to friends Pepper wrote: “Even Les Koenig, who owns my record company, had his doubts about me getting into the country. So you can imagine the pressure we felt before my first appearance on stage. To make those feelings worse was the fact that the promoter didn’t know I would even be admitted into the country until I actually got through customs…. So no advertising was done on me. Everything, stories, tickets, programs, ads, marquees, etc. had only Cal Tjader Sextet on them.”

Art Pepper did get into the country and was naturally a huge success. Tokyo Debut is a live album from that 1977 Japan tour. It was recorded by TBS Radio and originally released in 1990 as First Live in Japan on the Japanese Polydor label. It was later re-released in 1995 on the Galaxy label:

His reception in Japan was just what he needed to give him the confidence to appear in the belly of the beast - the famed Village Vanguard in Greenwich Village.

The Vanguard sessions were recorded July 28, 29, and 30, 1977 for the Contemporary label and released on three separate albums. Here’s the first:

During these sessions, Pepper is featured with a strong and sympathetic rhythm section of pianist George Cables, bassist George Mraz, and drummer Elvin Jones. After these successful Vanguard sessions, Art Pepper returned to California and was tapped by Hollywood film composer Jerry Fielding for a movie soundtrack.

I have no idea how Art Pepper ended up on the soundtrack to Clint Eastwood’s 1978 The Gauntlet - I’ll bet the jazz fan Eastwood probably had something to do with it….

Here is Art Pepper featured in The Pickup, a classic in that Hollywood jazz soundtrack vein:

Also in 1978, Pepper signed a big contract with the Galaxy label. His first album with that label, recorded in December of 1978, was Art Pepper Today - another of my favorite Art Pepper albums.

From that album, here is a wonderful version of his composition Patricia, with Stanley Cowell on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Roy Haynes on drums.

This is such a wonderful song. He wrote it for his daughter, and you can feel the love in there for sure.

And here’s one more for the road. Art Pepper's final recording session was Goin’ Home. Recorded for the Galaxy label in May 1982, this album is a duet with the wonderful pianist George Cables, who did a lot to help the comeback of Frank Morgan, another great alto player. On Antonin Dvorák’s song Goin’ Home, Art Pepper plays his seldom-heard clarinet and is in surprisingly strong form, considering that he only had a month left to live. This song tells us all we need to know about Art Pepper - beautiful.

Sadly, on June 15, 1982, Art Pepper died from a stroke. He was year 56 years old and still at the peak of his creativity - listen and watch him here shortly before his death, playing Mambo Koyama live in Paris - required watching.

The picture of Art Pepper walking up the long, steep hill with his alto in his arms is my favorite picture of him. It defines Art Pepper to me - his long and difficult journey to find his artistic legacy while confronted with human weakness. It also reminds me of the last line in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” And so beat on.

And so, next week on that Big River called Jazz, we too beat on and dig our paddles into the music of another of my favorite alto players Jackie McLean.

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Also, find my playlist on Spotify: From Fred Astaire to Sun Ra.

Feel free to contact me at any time to talk shop. I welcome and encourage that.

Until then, keep on walking….