STRAIGHT LIFE: The story of Art Pepper by Art and Laurie Pepper
Near the end of life, I may get a little morphine. Maybe I'll understand what the hubbub is about.
I believe Keith Richard(s) deserves the Art Pepper Award for Extreme Excess Consumption. Keith still has a long way to go to meet Art’s level of taste.
When I started this book, I was thinking how nice it would be to have lunch with Art Pepper, talk music and Jazz esp. By the end of the book, I wouldn't want this guy in my county. A fascinating man with, as they say, God-given talent becomes a street level heroin addict and all that life style contains - jail, 3 trips to San Quentin, crazy girlfriends (more later) - and a 3 yr. stay at Synanon, some consider a cult but he learned from it. Not enough to stop being a drug addict.
Pepper dictated onto tape and Laurie transcribed and edited. I'm reminded of the review of The Autobiography of Errol Flynn, "If a quarter of this is true, it's been quite a life."
He joins the ranks of biographies I have read of accomplished people when I put the book down say to myself, "I don't like this guy." Diego Rivera, Phil Ochs and Shel Silverstein, meet Art Pepper.
I'm not all that familiar with Pepper's musical works and I look forward to listening to his album with the rhythm section Miles Davis used quite a bit - Paul Chambers (b), Red Garland (p) and Philly Joe Jones (d). He claims he did the session strung out after months of not playing and a saxophone with a rotted mouthpiece. It was critically acclaimed, one among many of his recorded.
Pepper was consistently ranked #2 alto saxophone player by downbeat Magazine, second to Charlie Parker. He didn't sound like Bird, everyone else seemed to. Pepper was unique. At 17 he was in Benny Carter's band and at 18 was lead alto in Stan Kenton's band for many years on the road. He was respected by his fellow musicians - the highest class of jazz musicians in the world - and that in itself says a lot about his talent. He also worked very hard at his craft always jamming or working in a small combo. He arranged and composed and collaborated in orchestras, TV and movie soundtracks, commercial work. Drugged up or not, he worked with the best in the business. Until, of course, heroin addiction takes its course...
His early life was painful to read. I'm no Sigmund Freud, but I bet it has much to do with his addictions and his beautiful music. A tramp steamer IWW sailor father and a 15 yr. old mother who tried every way to kill the child while in the womb, born sickly, raised as a child by an unloving paternal grandmother on a desert farm in Southern California. With his alcoholic mother he moved around often. He started clarinet lessons at 9 and in high school was jamming on Central Ave in LA with Dexter Gordon, Zoot Sims, Lester and Lee Young and many greats of the 'West Coast Sound' in the jazz world. He was accepted as their equal. He was that good.
A stint in the Army with a 17 yr. old pregnant wife at home, he toured Europe, mostly England in an Army band cheering up injured troops. Without the music, another unhappy Army experience. He admits to raping a girl there and getting the clap, a disturbing read. His discharge was delayed 3 months treating it. How's that for a Welcome Home, Honey!!
Fellas, I would not follow Art Pepper's Relationship Guide. By all witnesses, Art was a good looking, overly sensitive guy. He never had a problem attracting women. As he got older, the quality of the women precipitously declined. He sure seemed hard to love by my reading, but a couple gals stuck with him, drug mates of course.
When men are around the campfire swapping lies and one man begins to tell his history with Crazy Girlfriend, all quiets down. The younger men that haven't experienced it quite yet and who are looking for the warning signs, and the older ones who know have a face like they have seen a UFO. They know what a Crazy Girlfriend is and have survived to talk about it. Listening is like revisiting the abduction. Crazy Girlfriends and the crazy shit they do is underreported. No one had crazier girlfriends than Art Pepper. Men, beware, read but don't go to the Ugly Place.
At 27, at his first sniff he admits at that point his life was over. Not too soon after he was carrying an outfit - spike, spoon. eye dropper - in a leather case by his heart. Maintaining, dealing a little, he continued to build his career. One too many slip ups and he was nabbed by the LA Narcotics Squad. The Jazz scene was targeted for drug use and trafficking in the 50's and he was low hanging fruit. It made headlines along with many other musicians at that time. A stint in LA County and rehab in New Mexico, he returned as the 'all cleaned up jazz musician' spokesman. He lied through his teeth like every heroin addict does with every breath. Busted again onto San Quentin, again, again, 6 years total. One of his friends in the book says, "I think Art likes prison."
In prison he was respected as a dope fiend who didn't rat anyone out. In the Warden's Jazz Band there was Frank Morgan and other jazz greats. Can you believe Art worked in the payroll office of the prison? He had good penmanship and learned accounting skills, which he used later in life. He liked the job. Prison stories just can't be doubted, even coming from a heroin addict, and there are many. You don't want to go there. In those time frames of SQ, it seems he was there with Merle Haggard. No mention in the book.
The first thing he did getting out of any custody was find a fix and another crazy girlfriend. They seemed to be waiting at the prison gates for him because it never took long to find. Get loaded was their life. Performed and recorded, sometimes.
At 44, dumped on his mothers' front porch with his few belongings and nobody, nothing, just a mess. She's born-again redeemed now and returns to kick his ass down the road one more time. She didn't want him then and she didn't want him now. The last CrazyG comes back and dumps him at Synanon.
I was interested in this book because I wanted to read about Synanon. It's a large compound of ancient buildings and dorms with its own beach in LA. They run a program like Maoist critic/self-critic group awareness technique, where your cohorts verbally rip you up and down only to love-bomb you later. It took Art almost a year of residence before he saw any benefit of releasing anger and rage, which seems to be a main point in Synanon. Any physical violence expels you from the program, but you can say whatever you want at 'the Games'. Unwanted by his mother (twice), unloved by his grandmother, a mostly absent (but loving) father, maybe 8 years incarcerated mostly hard time in the hardest prison, a life of a dope fiend. Once he learned how to play the Games, I bet he had a little rage to release.
He found love again through courtship and a rebuilt heart. He resided there three years, left and the first thing he did was find a fix with ex-Synanon members. Another bout of craziness with cocaine and anything else. Methadone kept him straighter. In the 70's he has his comeback tour. Joins the Buddy Rich Orchestra. They loved him in Japan. A horn maker makes him their signature sponsor, he teaches seminars to college bands, featured at Newport Jazz Festival. Art Pepper's music is a hit. Art Pepper himself, I don't know.
He died of a stroke in 1982.
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