Omnivore Records continues to deliver previously inaccessible sessions from Art Pepper’s halcyon days of the early 80s. Due to contractual reasons, Pepper recorded these albums under the title of a featured guest along with his regular band, but here we get, literally, the record straight.
Volume 5 has West Coast Cool trumpeter/vocalist Jack Sheldon sitting in with Pepper and his working team of Milcho Leviev/p, Tony Dumas/b and Carl Burnett/dr. Sheldon sings on a fun filled “Historia De Un Amore” and delivers a hiply melodic bop solo to “Softly As In A Morning Sunrise” while glowing like a sunset in Malibu on “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To.” Pepper is fun filled on the free flowing “Jack’s Blues” and swerves around sharp corners like Mario Andretti on “Broadway.” A bebopper’s delight. Was it really this easy back then?
Volume 6 has Pepper with studio studs Shelly Manne/dr, Bob Cooper/ts, Bill Watrous/tb, Pete Jolly/p and Monty Budwig/b. The horns have some fun with polyphonics bookending a snappy “Just Friends” while Cooper coos on the tenor for a glowing “ These Foolish Things.” Jolly is buoyant on “Hollywood Jam Blues” before Pepper leaps in with some down and dirty gut grabbing improvisation. Cooper and Pepper sizzle on “Lover Come Back To Me.” Manne for his part is a master of taste and subtlety, having fun with Jolly on “Limehouse Blues” and creating a nice groove for Watrous on “Just Friends.” Classy toe tapping.