© -
Steven A. Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.
“In 1953, upon the success of
his best-selling recording of "My Funny Valentine" with the Gerry
Mulligan Quartet, Chet Baker became an instant star. He began winning polls
here and abroad with rhythmic regularity for five .years. His
"Valentine" solo was soft and lyrical. Lyricism seemed to be Baker's
stock in trade, although he was capable of playing crackling bop lines of great
intricacy and inventiveness.
And he sang. He sang with..
.well, let Rex Reed describe it... "an innocent sweetness that made girls
fall right out of their saddle oxfords." Before he had time to digest the
fact of his sudden celebrity as a trumpet soloist, Chet found himself winning
polls as a vocalist. In one, he was tied with Nat Cole. From obscurity to
status among the jazz public as a more popular trumpet player than Louis
Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis, and as a singer the equal of Nat
King Cole. All in the space of slightly more than a year.”
- Doug Ramsey
Was there ever a
more photogenic Jazz musician than Chet Baker?
Despite the
ravages of time accelerated by an unhealthy lifestyle [or maybe because of it?], Chet seemed to maintain
a welcoming presence in front of the camera.
In some cases,
this may have more the result of the skills of the photographer than Chet
photographable qualities.
Musically, one thing is
certain, Doug Ramsey is right when he states that … “Lyricism seemed to be
Baker's stock in trade.”
You can judge both
his lyricism and his camera-friendly qualities for yourself by sampling the
following video in which Chet sings and plays “With a Song In My Heart.” [Click
on the “X” to close-out the ads when they appear on the video].
