Free Music to Remember April by: Art & Warne

Art Pepper, Warne Marsh (photo, Mark Weber)

Maybe April, 2013 is a month you don't want to remember, but this tune is one I think you'll want to hear. On April 20, 1975 Art accepted an afternoon gig at an L.A. club called "The Foxy Lady." That hoot of appreciation at the end is my voice, so I must have been there. I can't remember it. Also in the band, my notes say, is Carol Kaye on electric bass. I don't know who the electric keyboardist is and I have no guess as to who the drummer is.

[ This just in!: The band includes Mike Lang on electric piano, John Morrell on guitar, Tommy Vig on drums, and though he's missing on this track, Buddy Collette on flute and clarinet. The concert was produced by Dan McKenna.]

The track starts out a bit noisy and confused but promptly at the 15-second mark it jumps right into the groove and never leaves it.

Pay nothing.  Most of the music I post here is really truly free. Just enter zero in the amount box.  But if you can, please donate -- and help Widow's Taste issue new recordings (and restock the old ones).

FREE MUSIC: Art Pepper, Jack Sheldon

During the late ‘70s, while Art was working on his last comeback, Jack Sheldon offered him a regular weekend gig at a club in Monterey, right up the coast. The other regular band members were Dolo Coker and Blue Mitchell. I don’t remember who the drummer was or even if there was a drummer. Dolo played keyboard and Jack mostly sang, told jokes, played electronic organ from time to time. No trumpet. He was working in a TV sitcom at the time and said the trumpet deformed his lip. In the photo you can see Jack singing his own composition, “Fuck You Very Much,” with Blue and Art joining in on the chorus.

A few years later Art’s career was in the ascendant, and he was making a bunch of one-offs as-a-sideman-only for a Japanese label: Yupiteru, later Atlas records. Art was permitted to choose the tunes he wanted to play and which musicians he would play them with. For one of these sessions he chose Jack, and Art begged him to sing “Historia del un Amor” as he had done, regularly, in Monterey. Art loved the way Jack sang. Me, too. (He sang “You Don’t Know Me” better than anyone except, of course, Ray Charles.) Unfortunately, the Japanese did not want to include Jack’s singing. But they didn’t erase it. Here it is. Jack’s voice, Art’s sax, and just a teeny bit of Jack’s trumpet. Forgive the audio quality. Got it from a very old cassette. (Also, Milcho Leviev, p; Tony Dumas, b; Carl Burnett, d.)

Download the tune for free.  Simply enter a zero in the "amount" box.  Or you can donate to the cause (so Laurie can release more albums).

1995 Interview: Laurie by Terry Gross, Fresh Air

MUSIC: February Freebie: Just a few hoops to jump thru to get it

Pay nothing, zero, zilch, just put a zero in the "amount" box.  (Or, if you want to keep those Unreleased Art CDs coming from Widow's Taste, support the label by donating any amount at all.)

CLICK HERE

 Click below the photo to get to the music: previously unreleased, absolutely gorgeous 

and just a smidge incomplete.

 Live.  Patricia.

There's something new happening.  I've finally completed my memoir of my life with Art and I'm looking for an actual book publisher, but my favorite plan is to publish it as an ebook with a zillion photos, music tracks, Art's voice actually describing some events, documents, etc.

So meanwhile, I'm accumulating photos, etc. and putting them up on a separate site.  You can explore them, and you can also hear AND download free music from that site.

The freebie this month is yet another terrific (unfortunately incomplete) performance.  But I wouldn't be giving it away if it was releasable!

This time it's the intro & opening melody statement that's missing, but all the rest (about 15 minutes' worth of music) is here and it's beautiful.  The tune is Art's Patricia recorded in Okayama Japan on November 14, 1981 with George Cables, David Williams, and Carl Burnett.  The audio quality is not great, because Wayne Peet has not worked his magic on this one, but you can download it as flac or aiff or any other format and keep it and play it and so on.

MUSIC: January Freebie PLUS...

Bonuses Galore:  First the freebie (from Disc One of The Art History Project) "Tickle Toe."
It's free (just enter a zero in the "amount" box) but donate if you can— to support continuing releases from Widow's Taste

The Art History Project, a three disc set (31 tracks of music), will be out-of-stock for the foreseeable future (I can't afford to re-stock it), but it will still be available for only $14 as a high quality (flac, wav, aiff, etc.) download from Bandcamp complete with all artwork AND with a downloadable pdf of the originally included 20-page booklet filled with photos and info.

This album ought to be considered the Cliff Notes to your Art (Pepper) history course, spanning his entire fraught, sweet, wild, angry, rocking, swinging, soulful, tender career 1952-1982.

See below for another taste of this album, a music video of "Mr. Dom" (on disc 2 of this set).

Click Here for More Album Details


Play and/or DOWNLOAD Tickle Toe: (and stream any of the other 30 tracks at will)



Check out Video/Art

Donors, Keep Your Eyes Peeled!

Yes, all the downloads are free, and I'm glad more and more people are listening to the music, and I do understand that many people can't (or don't want to) deal with paypal. But for those who've gone to the trouble of donating to Widow's Taste Records in response to the freebies, there will be a special gift for you at the very very end of this year to say thanks for your generosity. Meanwhile, greetings of the season and to all a good night!

FREE MUSIC: (Jazz) History is Made in NY

Art with Buffet alto sax, 1975

A couple of weeks before Art's famous 1977 Vanguard performance and recording session with George Cables, George Mraz, and Elvin Jones, Art played at the Vanguard in June with Onaje Allen Gumbs, Gene Perla, and Joe LaBarbara.  It was this event that inspired John Snyder (who sponsored this trip, Art's first East Coast Tour) to inspire Les Koenig of Contemporary Records to record the subsequent date set up by John and Les in July.

A fan sent me two discs of a live recording he made on the first night of the earlier date.  I have no idea who sent them.  If you are he/she and are following this blog, please get in touch so I can say thank you.  (and do you have any more?)

Meanwhile, even though Wayne Peet, who does my editing and mastering, is a miracle worker, there's no hope for fixing the sound on these tracks which are musically soooooo sweet.  Art was so happy and excited to be in New York at the Village Vanguard, and this, though an unfamiliar band, is such a swinging one.  So here's one track. They are ALL great, and I may post the rest of them singly or as a downloadable album.  Though I was tempted to post one of the sad-and-beautiful ballads they played, I figure, since it's the Christmas season, let's be merry-since the alternative is to be suicidal.

This is the first track played on the first night of the gig.
The audio quality gets better as the track continues.
It's yours to download and keep.  It's free.

Just enter zero in the payment box (though you can always donate)

Very Cool: The Art Pepper Legacy Quartet in Italy

George Cables, Bob Magnusson, Carl Burnett.  Gaspare Pasini on alto, playing Blues for Blanche, Ophelia, The Trip, Valse Triste, My Friend John, Patricia.  And a piece written especially for Art by Phil Woods, "Au Revoir M. Poivre" (last piece on this very very very long stream.)

Great hearing the charts again, especially by Art's band, and Pasini does well!

MUSIC FREE: My Excuse is...

...that this is one of my top ten favorites of Art's live performances (you can hear me shrieking at the end). The track has been released before, but I won't go into details for all kinds of reasons. It's free. I love you guys. Look for something brand new in December. Promise.

Just Enter zero in the price box.  Of course, you can always donate to the cause.



 Meanwhile...

(If you'll  look over to your right, you'll see a poll entitled: For 2013 release.  I had to close the poll after 14 votes since blogger doesn't seem to have a way for me to view results of ongoing voting!!!!)

    I'm installing another (3rd party) poll (below).  If you've voted before, no need to do it again. I've got your responses now.
    I'm thinking of releasing a DVD which will include some Art Pepper live performances.  The audio quality might not be as good as some of my better releases (Croydon, Stuttgart, Ronnie's) but I'll get Wayne Peet to do the best he can with it, and you'll get to see a great live performance of at least ten tunes.
     Also, it's going to be more expensive than the usual release.  I still haven't reckoned up the costs of manufacture and distribution.  So I don't know whether it'll be worth it to any of us to do it.  It's bound to cost AT LEAST half again what I've been charging.
     So What I'd like to know is how much do you want to SEE previously unreleased and mostly unseen Art Pepper LIVE.

Please vote while I do all my research.

L.

Just Wow! French version of Art's Las Cuevas de Mario