Art Pepper
Artworks

Despite his worth among modern jazz musicians Art Pepper – alto sax and more rarely clarinet – is not very well known today. His period of activity spans the three decades between the late forties' be-bop and the advent of jazz-fusion, and this 1979 ARTWORKS bears witness to the last of his countless "returns" after a stay in prison for heroin-related issues. The material is actually part of a series of recordings for the Artists House label, by his producer friend John Snyder, making up four records (in addition to this: "So In Love"; "Stardust" and "New York Album") later resumed and released by Galaxy a few years later.

A long introduction to get to the heart of this album that gives us six excellently crafted tracks (five standards and one original - «Blues For Blanche» - here in an alternate take version) for an Art Pepper truly in a state of grace. The exceptionality of the trio accompanying him (his favorite pianist George Cables along with two rhythm giants like Charlie Haden on double bass and Billy Higgins on drums) provides a solid launching base for the lyrical flights of his saxophone. Interesting is the unusual variation of a very agile clarinet for the execution of «Anthropology», a sharp and dizzying classic bringing us back to early bop, here presented without the pianist. The bop aesthetic obviously also brings us to the Parkerian «Donna Lee», performed in regular formation and with Pepper on alto, while «Desafinado» smells – needless to say – of bossa nova but also of an elegant routine, just like this version of «Blues For Blanche».

Sweet to conclude: the two performances of Art Pepper on solo sax without accompaniment. An extraordinary «Body And Soul» which is the opening piece here and then «You Go To My Head» are two solitary creations, filled – in my opinion – with an exceptional poetic feeling: truly two anthology pieces that fear no comparison with the most celebrated solo performers of contemporary jazz.

In conclusion, “Artworks” is an album that would not look out of place in any record collection. However, the CD version I see now offered (on Amazon) contains almost as many bonus tracks as the originals, but they are all alternative duplicates which honestly do not seem essential to me. Therefore, for those who want to delve deeper into Art Pepper, it is worth listening to them in streaming and perhaps spending a few bucks to buy the two albums that have already been reviewed (quite well) here on the DB: one "Today" from 1978, just before these sessions, and the other "Art Pepper Meets The Rhythm Section" from 1957, which is probably his masterpiece.

Enjoy Art Pepper everyone!