Chet Baker Catherine

There may never be another Chet Baker, but on this particular night in Zagreb, poor Baker was not playing his best: His chops are weak, and his voice is strained and shallow. Still, these four duos, with longtime collaborator, guitarist Philip Catherine, have their rewards, such as the lengthy, substantial, and melodic solos by the guitarist. There is also the opportunity to hear Baker's piano playing at length. On piano, Chet Baker was even sparser than on trumpet, perhaps due to his weaker technique on the former. As with the trumpet, though, his choice of notes was always immaculate, and Baker fans will want this disc for the novelty of his piano playing. As far as his trumpet playing goes, there are much better examples of these tunes elsewhere, particularly of "My Foolish Heart" and "There'll Never Be Another You."

Picture of Heath (also known as Playboys was the best collaboration ever by two of the greatest jazz masters of all time: trumpeter Chet Baker and alto saxophonist Art Pepper. This set presents the complete album, along with, as a bonus, seven tracks from a previous session fronted by both stars.

Chet Baker’s Quartet with Russ Freeman was one of the best combos of its time. The May 9, 1954 concert at Ann Arbor took place at the city’s Masonic Temple, and was originally issued as Jazz at Ann Arbor. Presented here is the Ann Arbor concert in its entirety, along with, as a bonus, five quartet sides recorded by Chet in a Paris studio in 1955 during his first European tour, among them another version of the classic "Lover Man".

Chet Baker in New York features the trumpeter in the company of a strong New York unit including Johnny Griffin, Al Haig, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones. These tracks mark the only collaborative recordings by Baker and Griffin. A reading of “Soft Winds” that completes the sessions (originally released on the various artists album New Blue Horns), and a full date that was recorded in New York the following year (on which Baker plays four songs by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe) have been added as a bonus.

This music, originally issued in Italy as "Angel Eyes" and in the United States as "Chet Baker with Fifty Italian Strings", was recorded by the great Chet Baker in Milan, Italy, in 1959. It was his second European tour (the first one had taken place in 1955), and would lead to Baker’s imprisonment in Italy for drug charges. Baker is backed by a big band conducted by Len Mercer (the artistic name of the Milanese conductor Ezio Leoni) in a repertoire of well-known standards, among them a new reading of the classic “My Funny Valentine”. Tracks made by Chet in Italy during the same period for film soundtracks conducted by Piero Umiliani have been added as a bonus.

The show tune "My Funny Valentine" was composed by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for their 1937 musical Babes in Arms, where it was introduced by former child star Mitzi Green. It would become a popular jazz standard, appearing on over 1300 albums performed by over 600 artists. First recorded by Chet Baker in 1952, it soon became something like his theme song, omnipresent on his club and concert sets. This CD opens and closes with two of Chet’s numerous versions of the song, and also presents a selection of some of his best interpretations of well-known standards.

This music, originally issued in Italy as Chet Sextet & Quartet and in the USA as Chet Baker in Milan, was recorded by the great trumpeter/vocalist backed by a small group of Italian players in Milan, Italy, in 1959. A complete session - also recorded in Italy - presenting Baker mostly on vocals with an orchestra conducted by Ennio Morricone (celebrated for his soundtracks to the films of Sergio Leone), and two tracks recorded in Baden Baden, Germany, have been added as a bonus.

One of the best settings for trumpeter Chet Baker was when he was accompanied by a guitar-bass duo. On this excellent Criss Cross CD, Baker is joined by guitarist Philip Catherine and bassist Jean-Louis Rassinfosse on a variety of high-quality standards that include such songs as "If I Should Lose You," Horace Silver's "Doodlin'," "Conception" and "Love for Sale." A special treat is hearing the talented but forgotten Bob Zieff's "Sad Walk." This is one of Baker's better albums from his later period.

Baker always sounded at his best when performing in a trio with guitar and bass. Guitarist Philip Catherine and bassist Jean Louis Rassinfosse (both of whom had recorded with the trumpeter previously) are major assets to the subtle but swinging session. Each of the performances (Bob Zieff's "Sad Walk," Horace Silver's "Strollin'," "Love for Sale," "But Not for Me," and a 15-minute version of Richard Beirach's "Leaving") are extended versions but there are no rambling or wandering moments during this set of lyrical jazz.