Art Pepper had had a brilliant career as a jazz soloist and band leader until the mid-1950s when he started using heroin. After that, incarcerations and treatments in prisons and hospitals, kept him off the stages and out of the studios. He was only able to record sporadically until he got (relatively) sober in Synanon in 1972, and married Laurie—me. Then, in the last ten years of his life, he composed, recorded, and toured more ambitiously than ever before, focused on securing his place among the true jazz greats—where he knew he belonged.”
Producer Snyder had long wished to record Pepper, and to that end,
booked him into a week at the Village Vanguard in New York. But the sax
man was under contract to Contemporary Records, whose head Les Koenig
opted to record the stint himself. Pepper, however, remained committed
to recording for Snyder, the result of which was four albums recorded in
1979 and released in the ensuing years.
The
four albums comprising The Complete Artists House Recordings feature
Pepper’s takes on numerous jazz standards including “Stardust,”
“Straight No Chaser,” “A Night in Tunisia,” “Body and Soul,” “You Go to
My Head,” and “Desafinado.” All albums have all been remastered and
expanded for this release, while an additional 11 session takes appear
on a bonus album. In total, 19 bonus tracks are spread across the set,
some of which have appeared on compilations and some of which appear for
the first time.
“Art Pepper had had a
brilliant career as a jazz soloist and band leader until the mid-1950s
when he started using heroin,” writes Pepper’s widow, Laurie Pepper, in
the box set’s liner notes. “After that, incarcerations and treatments in
prisons and hospitals kept him off the stages and out of the studios.
He was only able to record sporadically until he got (relatively) sober
in Synanon in 1972, and married — me. Then, in the last ten years of his
life, he composed, recorded, and toured more ambitiously than ever
before, focused on securing his place among the true jazz greats — where
he knew he belonged.” Laurie Pepper has also furnished Omnivore with
rare photographs of the sessions for inclusion in this collection.
As
for the title Promise Kept, Laurie Pepper recalls, “John and Art both
kept their promises. John brought Art into the wider world; he put him
on the road. Just as he said he would, he brought him to New York and to
the Village Vanguard, got his picture in the papers, got him on the
radio. From Art, John got his dearest wish. He made these 32
recordings.”
02. Blues for Blanche (6:48)
03. So in Love (11:32)
04. Diane (12:18)
05. Stardust (10:34)
06. Yesterdays (take 2) (8:13)
07. Landscape (9:28)
08. Straight, No Chaser (take 4) (8:08)
02. Anthropology (take 2) (6:37)
03. Desafinado (take 2) (8:05)
04. Donna Lee (5:59)
05. You Go to My Head (6:03)
06. Blues for Blanche (alternate a) (7:31)
07. Desafinado (take 1) (11:26)
08. Anthropology (take 1) (5:54)
09. Donna Lee (alternate b) (6:12)
10. Blues for Blanche (alternate b) (8:16)
11. You Go to My Head (alternate a) (4:22)
02. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be) (5:44)
03. Straight, No Chaser (take 2) (5:59)
04. Duo Blues (7:54)
05. My Friend John (9:43)
06. Johnny's Blues (5:17)
07. A Night in Tunisia (take 1) (8:48)
08. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be) (clarinet) (3:14)
09. Straight, No Chaser (take 1) (6:16)
10. My Friend John (alternate b) (7:23)
02. Tin Tin Deo (11:06)
03. Stardust (alternate a) (8:44)
04. In a Mellow Tone (take 2) (8:37)
05. Art's Sweet Blues (3:54)
06. But Beautiful (take 1) (3:21)
07. You Go to My Head (alternate b) (2:56)
08. Yesterdays (take 3) (7:06)
09. Stardust (alternate b) (12:13)
10. In a Mellow Tone (take 1) (10:06)
02. Yesterdays (take 1) (7:38)
03. My Friend John (take 1 - long false start) (5:35)
04. My Friend John (take 2 - false start) (2:00)
05. Blues for Blanche (alternate d) (6:04)
06. Stardust (long false start) (4:18)
07. Donna Lee (alternate b) (7:30)
08. But Beautiful (take 2) (3:51)
09. A Night in Tunisia (take 3) (9:35)
10. Blues for Blanche (alternate e) (6:47)
11. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be) (alternate sax take) (5:22)
