Art Pepper - The Hollywood All-Star Sessions (2001) [5CD] CD-Rip

This five-CD box of studio material was originally released in Japan on the tiny Atlas label. Until now it has never been available in the United States. Impeccably recorded between 1979 and 1982, the year Art Pepper's horn was silenced – at least as a mortal – these sides were the brainchild of Yasuyuki Ishihara. His vision was for Pepper to lead a number of bands comprised of his old cohorts on the West Coast jazz scene for a West Coast "super session" series that would sell in Japan like hotcakes. There were only two problems: First, Pepper was under exclusive contract to Galaxy worldwide and could not appear as a leader on any other label. The second problem related to Pepper himself; he wanted to give Ishihara what he wanted but wasn't necessarily interested in returning to old ground, so he wanted a say in who was in these bands – since a new one had to be selected for every session. The solutions were fairly simple: Pepper would always appear as a sideman even though he was really the session leader, and he, his wife and manager Laurie Pepper (who should win a Grammy Award for her liner notes here), and Ishihara would come to consensus on the bands. Laurie Pepper points out that when Art was playing as a sideman, he could relax, just play, and have fun; technically, since he wasn't the leader here, he did just that. Her point is borne out in the recordings: Pepper is blowing his ass off in his usual lilting and lyrical style, full of knotty runs up the registers of the horn, light and easy but no less driven. His playing here is free of tension, yet contains without question the very passion that made him such a melodic improviser and individual stylist – the only member of his generation that didn't cop the style of Charlie Parker.



Tracks:



Disc 1
01. Just Friends (5:32)
02. Begin The Beguine (6:50)
03. For Art's Sake (4:55)
04. Funny Blues (7:03)
05. Angel Eyes (6:47)
06. P. Town (6:35)
07. Funny Blues (alternate) (7:31)
08. Angel Blues (alternate) (6:14)
09. Angel Wings (5:20)
10. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise (5:17)
11. You're Be So Nice To Come Home To (6:48)
12. Jack's Blues (5:09)

Disc 2
01. Broadway (6:11)
02. Historia De Un Amor (7:46)
03. Minority (6:20)
04. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To (alternate) (5:43)
05. Bradway (alternate) (4:22)
06. Strike Up The Band (5:09)
07. You Go To My Head (4:38)
08. I Surrender, Dear (7:39)
09. Y.I. Blues (6:10)
10. Night And Day (10:00)
11. Everything Happens To Me (6:00)



Disc 3
01. Out Of Nowhere (6:54)
02. Y.I. Blues (alternate) (4:47)
03. Scrapple From The Apple (6:40)
04. Wee (6:32)
05. Bernie's Tune (8:40)
06. How High The Moon (8:42)
07. Walkin' (5:56)
08. Groovin' High (6:07)
09. Groovin' High (alternate) (6:10)

Disc 4
01. Atlas Blues (9:34)
02. Lester Leaps In (11:25)
03. My Funny Valentine (5:35)
04. Imagination (5:57)
05. Just Friends (7:08)
06. These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You) (6:01)
07. Hollywood Jam Blues (7:24)
08. Lover, Come Back To Me (6:16)
09. Limehouse Blues (8:36)



Disc 5
01. I'm Getting Sentimental Over You (6:45)
02. I'm Getting Sentimental Over You (alternate) (10:26)
03. S'Wonderful (6:43)
04. Whims Of Chambers (6:57)
05. A Minor Blues In F (7:50)
06. High Jingo (4:24)
07. The Shadow Of Your Smile (5:38)
08. Anniversary Song (6:38)
09. Cherokee (4:44)
10. S'Wonderful (alternate) (6:15)
11. Whims of Chambers (alternate) (6:38)

Personnel:

Art Pepper - alto & tenor saxophones, clarinet
Sonny Stitt - alto & tenor saxophones
Lee Konitz - alto saxophone
Bob Cooper - tenor saxophone
Jack Sheldon - trumpet
Bill Watrous - trombone
Russ Freeman, Micho Leviev, Pete Jolly, Lou Levy, Mike Lang - piano
Bob Magnusson, Tony Dumas, Chuck Domanico, John Heard, Monty Budwig - bass
Carl Burnett, Roy McCurdy, Shelly Manne, John Dentz - drums