Pepper Park Adams III was the unlikely name of the King of the Power Baritone Sax. He wielded his heavy instrument with remarkable agility and evangelistic fervor. His joyful playing complemented the suave ministrations of the great Mulligan by displaying a rawer, brawnier, and bluesier feel. Ultimately he did as much as his more famous counterpart in the Fifties and Sixties to demonstrate that the baritone had just as much potential as a solo instrument as the tenor and the alto.

But even in his lifetime, which ended too early in 1986, he was strangely ignored. Take the case of a 1957 John Coltrane album called Dakar; it's actually a leaderless Prestige Records blowing session centered around the unusual three-horn front line of tenorman Coltrane plus baritonists Adams and Cecil Payne. It was issued under Coltrane's name because of his well-deserved fame, but it is Pepper's show, and a wonderful one at that. This small and much-overlooked gem of hard bop is full of throaty and gregarious Adams solos, set off wonderfully by Trane's quicksilver and mercurial tenor and the hard-driving lyricism of pianist Mal Waldron. As fine as he is, Payne is somewhat overshadowed in this company. And Adams is right up to the challenges Coltrane presents, despite the dissimilarity in their fortunes.

Adams' passionate attack may also be why he played so well with longtime Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones, who occupies the drum chair on two of the baritonist's most formidable recordings as a leader: 10 to 4 at the 5 Spot and Encounter!. These dramatic albums are not stylistic milestones or ground-breaking experiments, but they are two of the solidest, most straightforward, and most confident examples ever recorded of the style of jazz that has come to be known, for better or worse, as "mainstream."

And such are his monuments. He was a working musician who recorded in a variety of contexts. He was an excellent performer in an age when excellent performers were taken for granted or ignored. He made a great deal of great music, and for that portion of it that was recorded, we can all be grateful.

"Pepper Adams is, in current jazz jargon, 'a very tough man.' 'Tough,' in this usage, is both an accurate description of his playing and a reference to the fact that he is mighty tough competition for just about any horn man." --Orrin Keepnews

"We called him 'The Knife' because when he'd get up to blow, his playing had almost a slashing effect on the rest of us. He'd slash, chop, and before he was through, cut everybody down to size." --Mel Lewis

Familiar with Pepper Adams's work? We welcome your comments.