Though some information has this as a 1943 session, that can't be true, as Shorty Rogers and Art Pepper were with Stan Kenton from 1947-1952. These sides likely were cut in 1950-1951. Pepper was in great form at this time musically, but was on the verge of being dragged down by his heroin addiction. Of the 20 tracks, writing claims for Rogers are on 15 of them, so that's worth the budget price. The sound reproduction is pretty good, but one has to remember that this is, more accurately, a Kenton date, with Rogers and Pepper under his employ. Fans will probably want to get, or already have, these complete sessions issued on the Classics label.
© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo