Wounded Bird Records
1971
Pepper's Pow Wow
About This Album
The late saxophonist Jim Pepper remains an enigma for some, a profoundly original player for others, and criminally unknown by most, even those in the jazz listening community. Pepper, who passed away in 1992, was of Native American descent -- Kaw and Creek Indian. He and Larry Coryell were in a band together in 1968, the Free Spirits, who were fooling with jazz and rock before Miles Davis was; indeed, before Tony Williams Lifetime were. Pepper had been using Native American indigenous folk music in his own jazz compositions from the middle of the '60s when he was encouraged to do so by Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry. As of 2007, he has no recordings in print in the United States save for this reissue by Wounded Bird of his debut album as a leader. Signed to Atlantic by Herbie Mann, who is listed as executive producer of Pepper's Pow Wow, Pepper set about recording his best known composition, "Witchi-Tai-To," which has been recorded by Ralph Towner and Oregon, Jan Garbarek, Julian Priester, and many others. Assisting Pepper in the studio were, in addition to producer Daniel Weiss, Coryell, alternating bassists Chuck Rainey and Jerry Jemmott, pianist Tom Grant, Spider Rice or Billy Cobham on "drums," and flutist and then wife Ravie Pepper.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3,4,5,7 and 8)

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