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Art Pepper: Presents “West Coast Sessions” Volumes 5 & 6
By
Jack Sheldon
trumpet1931 - 2019

Shelly Manne
drums1920 - 1984

Omnivore Records
2017
Of the six volumes making up this set of Art Pepper recordings, this one with trumpeter/vocalist/all-around-character

Jack Sheldon
trumpet1931 - 2019
What the producers at Atlas Records wanted was some bona fide 1950s' West Coast jazz. It is a bit disingenuous to call these recording bona fide as many were recorded 20 and 30 year later. That said, Pepper's collaboration with Jack Sheldon comes closest to achieving the unrealistic goal. These are bright and talkative performances, easily played and obviously enjoyed by the participants. The repertoire is right out of Pepper's '50s band book: "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" and "The Way You Look Tonight" being staples. Several of the songs were reprised from the pair's previous recording on The Return of Art Pepper ("Broadway," "Angel Wings," "Minority"), which also included Shelly Manne. Sheldon is in very fine form, even singing in the original on "Historia de us Amor." These performances are real treats.

Omnivore Records
2017
The

Shelly Manne
drums1920 - 1984

Pete Jolly
piano1932 - 2004

Bob Cooper
saxophone1925 - 1993

Bill Watrous
trombone1939 - 2018
Relaxed. This is what Pepper was being the ostensible, yet unnamed, leader of these sessions. He did not feel the leadership pressure for the recordings and was more relaxed than on name recordings. Here Pepper plays with great mirth and gentle release. These are not the near-tortured performances captured on The Complete Village Vanguard Sessions (Contemporary, 1977/1995). Here, Pepper is in complete command, comfortable with his sidemen, making some of the best music of his career. This is a fitting way to end an acclaimed series.
Critic's Note: Anno Domini 2017, marks the 100th Anniversary of recorded jazz, deftly noted by the release of the shellac "Dixieland Jass Band One-Step (A)/Livery Stable Blues (B)," Victor 18255, recorded February 26, 1917 and released March 7, 1917. For perspective, my father was 18 months old and my mother was yet to be born for two years. Yes, it all remains that close. It is also the twentieth anniversary of me writing for All About Jazz. The first recording I reviewed for the magazine was Art Pepper's San Francisco Samba (Contemporary, 1997), published December 1, 1997. I am using this present review as part of a series noting my twentieth anniversary with the magazine and paying special tribute to my fellow writers at All About Jazz, Publisher Michael Ricci, and groovy people like Terri Hinte and Laurie Pepper, who I would otherwise have never met.
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