This box with 10 CDs is a real goody for those with a taste for jazz. It comprises altogether 17 original LPs made by the legendary trumpeter who could also sing with great feeling. Chet Baker’s fans reckon him among creators of a trumpet playing style that was more restrained, lyrical and distinguished by a typical coolness inspired by Miles Davis. At the age of ten he was given a slide trombone by his father that he exchanged for a trumpet, to be like his idol Harry James. In a very short time Baker taught himself to play simple swing tunes and showed he was also a talented improviser. He became well-known as a trumpeter in Gerry Mulligan’s quartet. He was co-writer alongside Mulligan of the popular hit single “My funny Valentine”. Parallel to his popularity however, grew also his addiction to drugs and he had to endure a two-year stretch in jail. After making it through a long and difficult period he played better than ever before and made his best records, in 1978 in Europe, for several different labels. A further high point was a successful tour in Japan. But despite success the life of this brilliant musician ended tragically. In 1988 he fell from the window of a hotel room in Amsterdam. It still remains unclear whether it was an accident that happened under the influence of drugs, or a case of suicide.
