Living Legend

Art Pepper | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 1, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Ojc
• ASIN: B000000YMO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #116,628 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Ophelia

2. Here's That Rainy Day

3. What Laurie Likes

4. Mr. Yohe

5. Lost Life

6. Samba Mom Mom [Original Take]

7. Samba Mom Mom [Alternate Take][*]

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still alive !, September 8, 2000

By 

Ozzie (Brugge, Flanders) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Living Legend (Audio CD)

Living Legend. A perfectly chosen title for this 1975 recording of Art Pepper, for a legend he most certainly was, though some would have doubted that he was even alive at the time. Years spent in various prisons (San Quentin the most notorious among them) and at Synanon trying to get his life back in order had kept him well away from the limelight. His last albums as a leader were released way back in 1960, and Art Pepper seemed to have vanished off the bandstand for good, due to his "personal problems", as drug-problems were usually referred to in those days. Record producer Lester Koenig, who had been Pepper's staunchest supporter and backer throughout the 1950's, brought Pepper's career back to life by having him record a comeback album for his 'Contemporary' label. Backed by a brilliant rhythm section of Hampton Hawes (piano), Charlie Haden (bass) and Shelly Manne (drums), Art Pepper's alto is the true star of this brilliant album. The emotion he puts into tunes like "Here's that rainy day", "Ophelia" and especially the unforgettable "Lost Life" is unique and heart-wrenching in all its beauty. Having squandered so many years behind bars and inside the Synanon institute, Pepper played as if every note could be his last, and he gave his all to convey his emotions through his horn while he still had the chance. The track "Lost Life" must rank among one of the most beautiful, most personal and most unforgettable of all jazz-recordings. However much he made a mess of his personal life (read his painfully honest autobiography "Straight Life"), in his music Pepper seemed determined to put all the beauty and love he had so sorely lacked during most of his childhood and during his drug-related lock-ups. The rhythm section almost seem afraid to interfere in what was so obviously a cry straight from the heart, so they carefully choose every accompanying note, leaving the scene clear for Pepper's alto to tell its sad, but beautiful story of a life that had been wasted, were it not for Pepper's exquisite taste and uniquely enchanting sound, which temporarily managed to chase away his demons, as if nothing had ever happened.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a great comeback album!, June 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Living Legend (Audio CD)

This was his first album after many years in prison. He sounds strong and anxious to get started. A powerhouse rhythm section adds to the enjoyment. "Lost Life" will break your heart.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lutherans Swing!, October 24, 2002

By 

Samuel Chell (Kenosha,, WI United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Living Legend (Audio CD)

The previous reviewer says it all about this album--its surprising combination of competence and freshness despite the alto saxophonist's hiatus removing him not only from the recording studio but from playing altogether (though between San Quentin and Synanon, Art did briefly try to "catch on" by playing Coltrane-inspired tenor saxophone at Shelly's Manne Hole). It's especially good to get the album back after losing my LP version 15 years ago. Originally, it was an "impulse purchase" on my part, motivated by the cover photo of Art wearing a cut-off shirt with a "Texas Lutheran" insignia (a college campus I've visited). On this album Pepper re-traces Martin Luther's own "Lost Soul" and its journey, as portrayed by British playwright John Osborne in "Luther," from the valley of the shadow of death to the salvation awaiting the one whose faith is strong. (Besides the Lord, his supportive wife Laurie deserves equal credit for Art's remarkable resurgence during the last 6-8 years of his life.) I have no idea why Art was wearing a Texas Lutheran shirt, but it's details like this that, like an adventurous and playful jazz solo, can yield surprising results.