My Funny Valentine

iTunes Review

Chet Baker recorded these amorous songs for Pacific Jazz between 1952 and 1954, and the enthusiastic reception set the stage for 1956's Chet Baker Sings, which wowed the music world and alienated stalwart jazz enthusiasts. At the time of My Funny Valentine's release, most of Chet Baker's fans and critics were already aware of his trumpeting prowess in a West Coast cool jazz setting, but this was the first album that truly unveiled the man's silky inflections, which sound remarkably congruent to his trumpet playing. In its unwavering clarity, his androgynous voice avoids any vibrato with a straight and charming delivery that balances aloofness with emotion. He turned the opening title track — a cover of the Rodgers and Hart show tune — into a jazz standard and though the song is not his own, "My Funny Valentine" remains the one Baker is best known for. "Let's Get Lost" provides a perfect example of the uncanny chemistry between Baker's trumpet and Russ Freeman's piano playing. (The song's moniker was also appropriated to title Bruce Weber's outstanding 1988 Chet Baker documentary.) Baker's smooth take on "Like Someone In Love" is another standout track.