Chet Baker & Paul Bley: Diane (1985, SteepleChase)

This Album is an unusual collaboration for both musicians, Chet Baker & Paul Bley. “DIANE” is a set of slow, langorous ballads and one jazz original (Sonny Rollins’s “Pent-Up House”). Baker lends his wispy vocals to only “You Go To My Head,” but his trumpet sings satisfyingly throughout. Despite his well-known drug dependence, Baker continued to make good-to-great albums till the end of his life, and “DIANE” is no exception. But the revelation here is Paul Bley who studiously avoided recording jazz standards for nearly his whole career. Here, his stately tone and rich chordal work make an excellent foil for Baker’s nocturnal perambulations. A late-stage triumph for the two veterans.

Personnel:

Chet Baker: (Trumpet)
Paul Bley:  (Piano)

Track List:

1. If I Should Lose You
2. You Go to My Head
3. How Deep Is the Ocean?
4. Pent-Up House
5. Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye
6. Diane
7. Skidadidlin’
 8. Little Girl Blue

Original Release Date: February 27, 1985
Label: Steeplechase

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