Chet Baker - "She Was Too Good To Me"

Here's Chet with both the vocal and a poignant trumpet solo. From a 1974 CTI album of the same name. As with so many CTI releases there's a fair amount of electronics, and a big, Easy Listening-ish chart-here by the usually-better-than-this Don Sebesky. Creed Taylor's CTI did much to revive jazz after its 60's doldrums, and his roster of artists was impressive: George Benson, Ron Carter, Hubert laws, Freddie Hubbard, and many more.


Not only did Creed Taylor do much to bring jazz back into public consciousness in the US-recall that many US-based artists-Maynard Ferguson, Phil Woods, for instance-had moved to Europe in the 60's, but this album brought Chet back as well. He'd been off the scene for several years-reportedly after being beaten up by "agents" of a drug dealer-and so this album must've been a pleasant surprise to many.


This song-originally "He was..."-dates back to 1930.  It's a bit of a departure for Rodgers and Hart, who usually went for sophisticated urbanity, not Irving Berlin-like directness and simplicity. Yet this is arguably their best work.


Back to Baker-Chet was an interesting case. There really aren't many like him in jazz-trumpet players whose style is muted, rather than brash. There are fifty Dizzy Gillespie types, with their bravura approach to the instrument, for every Chet Baker or Art Farmer or Bix Beiderbecke. Jazz trumpet playing was essentially invented by Louis Armstrong, and he gave us virtuosity, volume, high notes. Not Chet.