The Return Of Art Pepper on Jazz:West (JWLP-10)

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Art Pepper on Jazz:West, a nice addition to any collection.

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This is a true gem. One of the best of the Art Pepper albums. A smooth, laid back west coast jazz album with lots of nice tunes. If you dig Art Pepper and his superb, cool approach to jazz, this is a must. The album bolsters a superb line-up with Pepper on alto sax, Jack Sheldon, whom I dig a lot, on trumpet, the wonderful Russ Freeman on piano, Leroy Vinnegar on the double bass and the superb Shelley Manne on drums. The very best of West coast jazz musicians, don't you agree? All the tunes are great, creating a nice mood and sound together, when you listen through the whole album. Almost all of them are Pepper originals. The favorite is perhaps "Minority".

This is of course an original 1st pressing. It's quite desirable among collectors I believe. I'm happy to own a copy. These early Art Pepper albums are quite hard to get hold of. So if you find a copy, in almost any shape, try and get it. I have been on the hunt for the Pepper albums on Jazz:West, Tampa, Intro and so on for quite a long time and I've managed to find some of them and I'm very happy about that. They very seldom surface. Art Pepper is one of my absolute favorites, so I will try and get them all.

Summer vacation is almost here, looking forward to that. I have some nice newcomers coming after that. So stay tuned for those. I will continue to post nice stuff that I have in the collection in the mean time. Cheers and have a nice rest of the weekend!

RESULTS: Which one of these 20 top rarities would you like to own and cherish in your collection the most?

Ok, so the results are in. The most coveted jazz album, of the 20 top rarities I selected for my readers to choose from, is: Tina Brooks "True Blue" (BLP 4041). In second place came Sonny Rollins "Saxophone Colossus" (PRLP 7079) and in third place came Tommy Flanagan "Overseas" (PRLP 7134). I own the Rollins album but not the other two. I only have the three original Metronome EP's by Flanagan, so I can enjoy the music, but I will try and get the Prestige release. The Tina Brooks album is great, and that is high on my want list as well. For me, the one on the list of 20 will have to be Lee Morgan Indeed! (BLP 1538). Thanks for voting!

Art Pepper Meets The Rhythm Section on Contemporary C3532

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One of my favorite albums, a masterpiece.

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Art Pepper is special to me. I adore his playing and the early albums he made. This one is one of the best, if not THE best. Perhaps the best jazz album of all time, for me. Recorded in 1957. All tunes are equally superb. The sound is wonderful, perhaps the best sounding record I have. The mix is stunning. The details are great, with the drums especially sweet. The cover art is pure bliss. The picture is supposedly taken between Ewing Street and Fargo Street in Los Angeles where Art lived at the time. William Claxton took the photo of Art in a small grove of trees that bordered Fargo Street. The photos he took would be selected for use for the front cover of this album and the cover art of The Return Of Art Pepper on Jazz:West 10 as well.

The group assembled for this album is of course superb, with Art joined by Miles Davis rhythm section consisting of Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on double bass and Philly Joe Jones on the drums. Couldn't ask for more, right? All four musicians are on top of their game on this album, although Pepper, I guess was not feeling 100%. Great performance and a milestone in Art Pepper's career.

The copy I have has a superb vinyl and the cover, while a tiny bit worn is still in great shape. The cover is the 1st art cover with the blue heading and the pink line around the tunes on the back slick. It also has the frame on the bottom of the front. I'm really happy with my copy and it should be on the shelf of every jazz vinyl collector.

We'll see if I could get my hands on a new piece before the summer vacation. If so, I'll put it up here on the site first thing. It's a piece I've been wanting a nice copy of for quite a while. Exciting.

Stay tuned for more jazz vinyl candy...

Lee Konitz in Harvard Square on Storyville LP 323

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A nice 10" Konitz from 1954.

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I have a few 10" LP's. I love the format. Feels so genuine to put on an old ten-incher. This one is "Lee Konitz in Harvard Square" on Storyville from 1954. A great little gem. I love the image of Konitz without the glasses on the back slick. Superb front cover art as well. It's in quite good nick, some light surface noise and tics and clicks, but fully acceptable and enjoyable. I guess these old Storyville 10" LP's have more or less surface noise even if they are as new. These smaller labels usually are quite unreliable in terms of noise or not, even if the albums are in good condition. And if you can't stand a 1950's LP with some noise you're practicing the wrong hobby, right? It's part of the charm and the old timey feel and soul. God, I love vinyl.

The music on this baby is very nice. Mellow and relaxing even in the up-tempo parts. I really dig Konitz playing, it's so flowing and effortless. Very lyrical player. I have not explored Konitz at all really. I have this one and that's it. I really need to look up some more nice stuff by him. I'm very excited to what I might find.

The personnel on this are: Lee Konitz on alto, Ronnie Ball on piano, Peter Ind on bass and Jeff Morton on the drums. Favorite tune is, without a doubt, "No Splice". A great number with a superb theme. The other tunes are good too, they feel quite short and to the point. It feels like this album is a great way to get into Lee Konitz. At least to me. I'm ready for more.

Quick update on the new arrivals front: I have some really, really nice pieces coming up after the summer. I've secured one wonderful LP and two more are in line after that. High-end stuff. Maybe I will be able to squeeze one in before the summer, we'll see. In the mean time I will put up more LP's from my collection.

Are you ready for more superb albums/collectibles from the golden era of jazz? Stay tuned...