One of jazz’s most lyrical trumpeters, Chet Baker, is given a reissue of his halcyon days at Riverside Records on this 5 album set that features him singing with and playing his horn at his richest state. He had already started the “California Cool” sound a few years earlier in the classic combo with Gerry Mulligan, and was now on his own as a leader. These albums from the late 50s find him mixing and matching with various artists, all at their most melodic.
The 1958 Sings: It Could Happen To You teams him with Kenny Drew/p, Sam Jones-George Morrow/b and Dannie Richmond/Philly Joe Jones/dr. Light swingers like “Do It The Hard Way” and “Old Devil Moon” are timeless gems and his vocals on “I’m Old Fashioned” and “Everything Happens to Me” essentially started the “vo-cool” style of singing. His followup Chet Baker In New York has him with the muscular team of Al Haig/p, Johnny Griffin/ts, Paul Chambers/b and Jones, with a smooth as silk “Polka Dots and Moonbeams” and gentle “Blue Thoughts” contrasting with the driving “Hotel 49” while “Solar” is as ultra hip as anything Miles Davis was doing at the time.
1959’s Chet is a bluesy and pastoral affair with Pepper Adams/bs, Bill Evans/p, Kenny Burrell/p and Herbie Mann/fl bringing rich tones to “September Song” and “It Never Entered My Mind.” The same year his final session for Riverside was with Shelly Manne/dr, Early May/b, Clifford Jarvis/dr, Evans and Mann has him swinging hard on “I Could Have Danced All Night” and gorgeous on “I’ve Grown Accustomed To Her Face.” The final album includes outtakes such as a bopping “Soft Winds” and a stretched out “Early Morning Mood” that shows that Baker was a jazzer at heart. If you’ve never encountered Baker, this will win you over.