Search - Chet Baker :: In Paris: Barclay Sessions 1955-56

Baker at his best!

Kirk Alex | 10/06/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Got this CD about a week ago and have not been able to stop playing it since. Just a terrific album. "Cool Jazz." Here it is. I like the fact he keeps it mellow and unhurried, unlike some musicians, who think they have to keep hitting the high note in order to prove something--but then Chet Baker was known for his understated, smooth style. I love the music here. A real winner."

50s West Coast hits Paris, France

Kirk Alex | 07/24/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was put on to this record by Hans Peters, a Detroit audiophile who recommended it highly. I was not misled. This CD exemplifies the cool West Coast scene but in a European context. There are shades of Curthis Counce's trumpet player Jack Sheldon as the tracks bring back those memories of the Barclay Sessions. One of the best periods of Baker's recording career, highly recommended."

The pinnacle of early Chet

rash67 | USA | 06/19/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Chet Baker recorded enough stuff to fill 4 CD's in his Barclay sessions. This was among his best work with a lack of vocals. Chet's trumpet playing was much improved (and his teeth were still intact).This CD is a "best-of" culled from those sessions. There is a BIG difference in mood in the CD, The upbeat songs are peppy but the ballads are quite sad even for Chet. After the recording of the first CD's worth of stuff, his piano player Dick Twardzik, one of the best who ever accompanied Chet, died. And this seemed to deepen the melancholy of the ballads (see Alone Together, or Tenderly).But all of this is well worth having. This (or, prehaps, his work with Gerry Mulligan) is Chet at the pinnacle of his early career, before his bad habits over took him. The sound is an improvement over the originals."