Art Pepper's career was a wild roller coaster, battling drug addiction as he was in and out of prison yet recording quite an extensive discography during his life. Since his death in 1982, there have been numerous reissues of his albums and appearances of unreleased sessions, yet few musicians have interpreted his compositions. Veteran Scandinavian alto saxophonist
Jens Søndergaard formed a quartet dedicated to interpreting
Pepper's songs, and within a few months took it to Jazzcup, a Copenhagen record shop/cafe, where a live performance was recorded. Joined by pianist Thomas Borno, bassist Marc Davis, and drummer Dennis Drud,
Søndergaard chose a mix of
Pepper's well known and obscure works for the set. The leader doesn't attempt to mimic the late saxophonist's style but offers a mainstream bop interpretation. Highlights include the hip blues "Junior Cat," the heartfelt interpretation of "Patricia," the warm ballad "Our Song" (featuring
Søndergaard on clarinet), and two Latin vehicles adding conga player Fleming Quist Moller, "Mambo Koyma" and "Mambo de La Pinta." ~ Ken Dryden