Art Pepper

Arthur Edward Pepper, Jr. (September 1, 1925–June 15, 1982) was an American jazz alto saxophonist. He began his musical career in the 1940s playing with Benny Carter and Stan Kenton. In the 1950s Pepper became one of the leading lights of West coast jazz, along with Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Shelly Manne, and others.

Pepper was born in San Pedro, California. He became a heroin addict in the 1940s, and his career was interrupted by drug-related prison sentences in the 1950s and 1960s. In the late 1960s he spent time in Synanon, a drug rehabilitation group. After beginning methadone therapy in the mid-1970s, Pepper enjoyed a musical comeback and recorded a series of highly acclaimed albums. His autobiography Straight Life (1980), co-written with his third wife Laurie Pepper, is a unique exploration into the jazz world and drug and criminal subcultures of mid-twentieth century California.