Baker earned much attention and critical praise through the 1950s, particularly for albums featuring his vocals (Chet Baker Sings, It Could Happen to You). Jazz historian David Gelly described the promise of Baker's early career as "James Dean, Sinatra, and Bix, rolled into one." His well-publicized drug habit also drove his notoriety and fame, Baker was in and out of jail frequently before enjoying a career resurgence in the late 1970s and '80s.
Baker was born and raised in a musical household in Yale, Oklahoma; his father, Chesney Baker, Sr., was a professional guitar player, and his mother, Vera (née Moser) was a talented pianist who worked in a perfume factory. His maternal grandmother, Randi Moser, was Norwegian. Baker began his musical career singing in a church choir. His father introduced him to brass instruments with a trombone, which was replaced with a trumpet when the trombone proved too large.
Baker received some musical education at Glendale Junior High School, but left school at age 16 in 1946 to join the United States Army. He was posted to Berlin, where he joined the 298th Army band. After leaving the army in 1948, he studied theory and harmony at El Camino College in Los Angeles. He dropped out in his second year, however, re-enlisting in the army in 1950. Baker became a member of the Sixth Army Band at the Presidio in San Francisco, but was soon spending time in San Francisco jazz clubs such as Bop City and the Black Hawk. Baker once again obtained a discharge from the army to pursue a career as a professional musician.
Baker's earliest notable professional gigs were with saxophonist Vido Musso's band, and also with tenor saxophonist Stan Getz, though he earned much more renown in 1952 when he was chosen by Charlie Parker to play with him for a series of West Coast engagements.
In 1952, Baker joined the Gerry Mulligan Quartet, which was an instant phenomenon. Several things made the Mulligan/Baker group special, the most prominent being the interplay between Mulligan's baritone sax and Baker's trumpet. Rather than playing identical melody lines in unison like bebop giants Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, the two would complement each other's playing with contrapuntal touches, and it often seemed as if they had telepathy in anticipating what the other was going to play next. The Quartet's version of "My Funny Valentine", featuring a Baker solo, was a hit, and became a tune with which Baker was intimately associated.
The Quartet found success quickly, but lasted less than a year because of Mulligan's arrest and imprisonment on drug charges. Baker formed his own quartet with pianist and composer Russ Freeman in 1953, along with bassists Carson Smith, Joe Mondragon, and Jimmy Bond and drummers Shelly Manne, Larry Bunker, and Bob Neel. The Chet Baker Quartet found success with their live sets, and they released a number of popular albums between 1953 and 1956. In 1953 and 1954, Baker won the Down Beat and Metronome magazines' Readers Jazz Polls, beating the era's two top trumpeters, Miles Davis and Clifford Brown. Down Beat readers also voted Baker as the top jazz vocalist in 1954. In 1956, Pacific Jazz released Chet Baker Sings, a record that increased his profile but alienated traditional jazz fans; he would continue to sing throughout his career.
Due to Baker's chiseled features, he was approached by Hollywood studios, and he made his acting debut in the film Hell's Horizon, released in the fall of 1955. He declined an offer of a studio contract, preferring life on the road as a musician. Over the next few years, Baker fronted his own combos, including a 1955 quintet featuring Francy Boland, where Baker combined playing trumpet and singing. In 1956 Chet Baker completed an eight month tour of Europe, where he recorded Chet Baker In Europe.
He became an icon of the West Coast "cool school" of jazz, helped by his good looks and singing talent. Baker's 1956 recording, released for the first time in its entirety in 1989 as The Route, with Art Pepper, helped further the West Coast jazz sound and became a staple of cool jazz.
Baker began using heroin in the 1950s, resulting in an addiction that lasted the remainder of his life. At times, Baker pawned his instruments for money to maintain his drug habit. In the early 1960s, he served more than a year in prison in Italy on drug charges; he was later expelled from both West Germany and the United Kingdom for drug-related offenses. Baker was eventually deported from West Germany to the United States after running afoul of the law there a second time. He settled in Milpitas in northern California, where he played in San Jose and San Francisco between short jail terms served for prescription fraud.
In 1968, Baker was savagely beaten (allegedly while attempting to buy drugs) after a gig in The Trident restaurant in Sausalito, California sustaining severe cuts on the lips and broken front teeth, which ruined his embouchure. He stated in the film Let's Get Lost that an acquaintance attempted to rob him one night but backed off, only to return the next night with a group of several men who chased him. He entered a car and became surrounded. Instead of rescuing him, the people inside the car pushed him back out onto the street, where the chase by his attackers continued, and subsequently he was beaten to the point that his teeth, never in good condition to begin with, were knocked out, leaving him without the ability to play his horn. He took odd jobs, among them pumping gas. Meanwhile he was fitted for dentures and worked on his embouchure. Three months later he got a gig in New York City.
Between 1966 and 1974, Baker mostly played flugelhorn and recorded music that could mostly be classified as West Coast jazz.
After developing a new embouchure resulting from dentures, Baker returned to the straight-ahead jazz that began his career. He relocated to New York City and began performing and recording again, including with guitarist Jim Hall. Later in the 1970s, Baker returned to Europe, where he was assisted by his friend Diane Vavra, who took care of his personal needs and otherwise helped him during his recording and performance dates.
From 1978 until his death in 1988, Baker resided and played almost exclusively in Europe, returning to the USA roughly once a year for a few performances. This was Baker's most prolific era as a recording artist. However, as his extensive output is strewn across numerous, mostly small European labels, none of these recordings ever reached a wider audience, even though many of them were well received by critics, who maintain that the period was one of Baker's most mature and rewarding. Of particular importance are Baker's quartet featuring the pianist Phil Markowitz (1978–80) and his trio with guitarist Philip Catherine and bassist Jean-Louis Rassinfosse (1983–85).[citation needed] He also toured with saxophonist Stan Getz during this period.
In 1983, British singer Elvis Costello, a longtime fan of Baker, hired the trumpeter to play a solo on his song "Shipbuilding", from the album Punch the Clock. The song exposed Baker's music to a new audience. Later, Baker often featured Costello's song "Almost Blue" (inspired by Baker's version of "The Thrill Has Gone") in his concert sets, and recorded the song for Let's Get Lost, a documentary film about his life.
The video material recorded by Japanese television during Baker's 1987 tour in Japan showed a man whose face looked much older than he was, but his trumpet playing was alert, lively and inspired. Baker recorded the live album Chet Baker in Tokyo with his quartet featuring pianist Harold Danko, bassist Hein van de Geyn and drummer John Engels less than a year before his death, and it was released posthumously. Silent Night, a recording of Christmas music, was recorded with Christopher Mason in New Orleans in 1986 and released in 1987.
Baker's compositions included "Chetty's Lullaby", "Freeway", "Early Morning Mood", "Two a Day", "So Che Ti Perderò" ("I Know I Will Lose You"), "Il Mio Domani" ("My Tomorrow"), "Motivo Su Raggio Di Luna" ("Tune on a Moon Beam"), "The Route", "Skidadidlin'", "New Morning Blues", "Blue Gilles", "Dessert", and "Anticipated Blues".
At about 3:10 am on May 13, 1988, Baker was found dead on the Prins Hendrikkade, near the Zeedijk, the street below his second-story room of Hotel Prins Hendrik in Amsterdam, Netherlands, with serious wounds to his head. Heroin and cocaine were found in his hotel room, and an autopsy also found these drugs in his body. There was no evidence of a struggle, and the death was ruled an accident. A plaque outside the hotel memorializes him and the room he was staying in, No. 210, is named "The Chet Baker Room".
Baker is buried at the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
- Baker was photographed by William Claxton for his book Young Chet: The Young Chet Baker. An Academy Award-nominated 1988 documentary about Baker, Let's Get Lost, portrays him as a cultural icon of the 1950s, but juxtaposes this with his later image as a drug addict. The film, directed by fashion photographer Bruce Weber, was shot in black-and-white and includes a series of interviews with friends, family (including his three children by third wife Carol Baker), associates and women friends, interspersed with film from Baker's earlier life, and with interviews with Baker from his last years.
- Time after Time: The Chet Baker Project, written by playwright James O'Reilly, toured Canada in 2001 to much acclaim. The musical play Chet Baker – Speedball explores aspects of his life and music, and was premiered in London at the Oval House Theatre in February 2007, with further development of the script and performances leading to its revival at the 606 Club in the London Jazz Festival of November 2007.
- Baker was reportedly the inspiration for the character Chad Bixby, played by Robert Wagner in the 1960 film All the Fine Young Cannibals. Another film, to be titled Prince of Cool, about Baker's life, was cancelled as of January 2008.
- In 1991, singer/songwriter David Wilcox recorded the song "Chet Baker's Unsung Swan Song" on his album Home Again, speculating on what might have been Baker's last thoughts before falling to his death. The song was later covered by k.d. lang as "My Old Addiction" on her 1997 album Drag.
- The song "Chet Baker", which appears on the 2007 CD Wally Page and Johnny Mulhern: Live at the Annesley House, by Irish folk singer-songwriter Wally Page, describes the end of Baker's life in Amsterdam.
- Jeroen de Valk has written a biography of Baker which is available in several languages: Chet Baker: His Life and Music is the English translation.
Other biographies include James Gavin's Deep In A Dream—The Long Night of Chet Baker, and Matthew Ruddick's Funny Valentine. Baker's "lost memoirs" are available in the book As Though I Had Wings, which includes an introduction by Carol Baker.
- He is portrayed by Ethan Hawke in the 2015 film Born to Be Blue.
- The Australian electronica musician Nicholas James Murphy chose Chet Faker as his stage name, in order to pay homage to Chet Baker, who was a big influence for him.
Honors
In 1987 Chet Baker was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame.
In 1989 he was elected to Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame by that magazine's Critics Poll.
In 1991 he was inducted into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.
In 2005 Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry and the Oklahoma House of Representatives proclaimed July 2 as "Chet Baker Day".
In 2007 Mayor of the City of Tulsa, Kathy Taylor, proclaimed December 23 as "Chet Baker Day".
On October 10, 2015 Yale, Oklahoma held the inaugural Chet Baker Jazz Festival in Baker's honor.
Batter Up
Chet Baker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This is Mark, oh-Who-gives-a-fuck from '93 TV
This is my co-host, Bob Buttafuoco
(Hey hey guys) Yeah yeah yeah
We got a crowd that's in a frenzy Bob
Let's go down to the announcers for the start of the game
And now, please rise for the singing of our national anthem
I say the fish don't fry in the kitchen
Beans don't burn on the grill (that's right)
It took a whole lot of trying
Just to get up that hill
I said but now we're up in the big leagues
My dirty it's our turn at bat
And just as long as we living, it's Lunatics player
It ain't nothing wrong with that, batter up
I'm the first to swing
Home run with that give-me-what-you-got thing, hot wings
Fuck a dub, smoke an ounce, show me love
Hit the club, me and T-Luv holla what
I put my mack down, she throw a curve ball
She owed Milli smoked that herb and some Llly-bone
She tip-top 'em, Optimo
First base, god living like a worst race
First chase, throw yo' people and yo' kind
Second lesson, smoke that herb and clear yo' mind
It's about time, second base wisdom rhyme
Sitting strong, skipped third base and headed home
Third baseman just don't understand baby what the bong
What the fuck wrong, with this world today
With these girls today, diamonds and pearls the way
You wasn't fucking with me, leave, for the wrap that's in my seed
Now you stays on yo knees cause we's be in the big league
Cause we's be in the big league
I say the fish don't fry in the kitchen
Beans don't burn on the grill (that's right)
It took a whole lot of trying
Just to get up that hill
I said but now we're up in the big leagues
My dirty it's our turn at bat
And just as long as we living, it's Lunatics player
It ain't nothing wrong with that, batter up
Well you should see me now, I'm eating Wheaties now
I'm stealing second and third and looking home peeping greedy now
See me now, people call me speedy now
Known for running the quickest miles
hit and run in any town, any ground
Rules 'fore I hit it, split it, lick it and quit it
And hit it, lick it, did I say lick it, (yeah) fuck it, lick it
Ain't no shame in my game, that normal shit ain't my thing
If I think with my dick then put your mouth on my brain
I maintain through the atmosphere, what we got here
A sucker in fear, hear the roars and the cheers
From the crowd when I take the mile, let me show 'em how
Hit the ball on the ground and make 'em get down
I say the fish don't fry in the kitchen
Beans don't burn on the grill (that's right)
It took a whole lot of trying
Just to get up that hill
I said but now we're up in the big leagues
My dirty it's our turn at bat
And just as long as we living, it's Lunatics player
It ain't nothing wrong with that, batter up
Well this next young batter on deck
He's still in high school (yeah I heard that)
(It's a great day though)
A good high school out in U-City of St. Louis, Missouri
(I think his name's umm, who knows,
Murphey Lee or something)
I want my name not, not said but screamed
I went from fantasies to dreams, dreams to bigger things
I'm like Bennett I been in it since, ninety-three
You can tell cause my L angle 90 degrees
I'ma sixteen year-old school boy, platinum skills
Swear to tell the real, the whole real to make a mill'
I lie little but still, talk straight up like motto
I could tell you something now, you think twice about it tomorrow
I promise, I gets deeper than file cabinets when rapping
Money, money, money, money what's happening
I'm coming up like family members in basements, and I stay bent
Make a milli to play with, buy a building you can pay me
And the 'tic is who I came with
You know how we do, we do, we do, we do, we do, we do
I say the fish don't fry in the kitchen
Beans don't burn on the grill (that's right)
It took a whole lot of trying
Just to get up that hill
I said but now we're up in the big leagues
My dirty it's our turn at bat
And just as long as we living, it's Lunatics player
It ain't nothing wrong with that, batter up
The song Batter Up by the Luniz is a rap song with baseball analogies used throughout the lyrics. The song starts with an introduction by two TV hosts and the singing of the national anthem. The rest of the song is a showcase of different rap styles and lyrics that allude to baseball terms. The chorus repeats the phrase "It took a whole lot of trying just to get up that hill" that refers to the difficulty and hard work that comes with success. The lyrics mention different baseball techniques such as stealing bases, throwing curveballs, and hitting home runs. The song concludes with a verse by a high school rapper who talks about his aspirations and determination to make it in the music industry.
One interesting fact about the song is that it features the rapper Murphy Lee from the St. Lunatics group who later became a Grammy Award-winning artist. Another trivia is that the sample used in the song is from the Chet Baker song "My Funny Valentine." The song's bassline and melody have been used in several other songs, including Jay-Z's "Girls, Girls, Girls" and Ariana Grande's "Everyday." The song was a commercial success, reaching the top 10 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2001. It was also featured in the soundtrack of the movie “Mr. 3000” starring Bernie Mac. The song was nominated for the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards.
Chords (as performed by the Luniz):
Verse: Em7 – A7 – Em7 – A7
Chorus: Em7 – A7 – Dmaj7 – D7 – Gmaj7 – Em7 – A7
Line by Line Meaning
Welcome ladies and gentlemen
Introducing the show's hosts, Mark and Bob.
This is Mark, oh-Who-gives-a-fuck from '93 TV
Mark introduces himself sarcastically.
This is my co-host, Bob Buttafuoco (Hey hey guys) Yeah yeah yeah
Mark introduces Bob and they exchange greetings.
We got a crowd that's in a frenzy Bob
Mark acknowledges the enthusiastic audience.
Let's go down to the announcers for the start of the game
Mark suggests moving on to the game.
And now, please rise for the singing of our national anthem
Mark requests a moment of respect for the national anthem.
I say the fish don't fry in the kitchen
The author points out that certain things do not work as intended.
Beans don't burn on the grill (that's right)
The author reinforces the idea that things should work as they are intended.
It took a whole lot of trying
The author emphasizes the effort needed to succeed.
Just to get up that hill
The author uses a metaphor for achieving success.
I said but now we're up in the big leagues
The author celebrates achieving success.
My dirty it's our turn at bat
The author uses slang to imply that it's time for their team to take action.
And just as long as we living, it's Lunatics player
The author implies that as long as they are alive, they are still 'players' in life.
It ain't nothing wrong with that, batter up
The author encourages their team to keep their spirits up and prepare for action.
I'm the first to swing
The author claims to be the first to take action.
Home run with that give-me-what-you-got thing, hot wings
The author uses a metaphor to suggest that they will succeed with full force.
Fuck a dub, smoke an ounce, show me love
The author uses slang to express their desires.
Hit the club, me and T-Luv holla what
The author uses slang to imply that they are going to a club with a friend.
I put my mack down, she throw a curve ball
The author uses slang to suggest that they used their skills and the other person reacted unexpectedly.
She owed Milli smoked that herb and some Llly-bone
The author uses slang to imply that the woman they're with used drugs with them.
She tip-top 'em, Optimo
The author uses slang to imply that the woman they're with was impressive.
First base, god living like a worst race
The author uses a metaphor to imply that their current situation is a race.
First chase, throw yo' people and yo' kind
The author encourages supporting one's own community.
Second lesson, smoke that herb and clear yo' mind
The author suggests using marijuana to calm one's mind.
It's about time, second base wisdom rhyme
The author implies that they are gaining experience and skill.
Sitting strong, skipped third base and headed home
The author uses a metaphor to suggest that they skipped a step and achieved their goal.
Third baseman just don't understand baby what the bong
The author implies that some people are not open to marijuana use.
What the fuck wrong, with this world today
The author expresses frustration with the state of the world.
With these girls today, diamonds and pearls the way
The author implies that some people are too materialistic.
You wasn't fucking with me, leave, for the wrap that's in my seed
The author suggests that someone left them when they were poor and now that they're successful, they want to return.
Now you stays on yo knees cause we's be in the big league
The author suggests that the person who left them is now subservient because they're now successful.
Well you should see me now, I'm eating Wheaties now
The author implies that they are now successful.
I'm stealing second and third and looking home peeping greedy now
The author uses a metaphor to express their success.
See me now, people call me speedy now
The author celebrates his success and increased speed.
Known for running the quickest miles, hit and run in any town, any ground
The author uses a metaphor to suggest that they are successful in any situation.
Rules 'fore I hit it, split it, lick it and quit it
The author suggests that they have certain expectations in relationships.
And hit it, lick it, did I say lick it, (yeah) fuck it, lick it
The author uses innuendo to suggest sexual activity.
Ain't no shame in my game, that normal shit ain't my thing
The author suggests that they are confident in who they are.
If I think with my dick then put your mouth on my brain
The author uses a metaphor to imply that they prioritize sexual desires.
I maintain through the atmosphere, what we got here
The author suggests that they remain successful regardless of the situation.
A sucker in fear, hear the roars and the cheers
The author suggests that their success is intimidating to some.
From the crowd when I take the mile, let me show 'em how
The author implies that they want to demonstrate their success.
Hit the ball on the ground and make 'em get down
The author uses a metaphor to suggest that they will make others surrender.
Well this next young batter on deck
The author introduces the next person.
He's still in high school (yeah I heard that)
The author suggests that the person they're introducing is still young.
(It's a great day though) A good high school out in U-City of St. Louis, Missouri
The author compliments the school location.
(I think his name's umm, who knows, Murphey Lee or something)
The author suggests that they don't know the person they're introducing well.
I want my name not, not said but screamed
The author wants to be recognized for their achievements.
I went from fantasies to dreams, dreams to bigger things
The author suggests that their ambition has grown over time.
I'm like Bennett I been in it since, ninety-three
The author compares themselves to a successful individual and implies that they have been in their field for a while.
You can tell cause my L angle 90 degrees
The author uses slang to suggest that they are skilled.
I'ma sixteen year-old school boy, platinum skills
The author emphasizes their young age and skill.
Swear to tell the real, the whole real to make a mill'
The author suggests that they value honesty.
I lie little but still, talk straight up like motto
The author suggests that they are usually honest but may tell small lies.
I could tell you something now, you think twice about it tomorrow
The author implies that their words are worth remembering.
I promise, I gets deeper than file cabinets when rapping
The author suggests that their lyrics have a lot of depth.
Money, money, money, money what's happening
The author emphasizes the importance of money.
I'm coming up like family members in basements, and I stay bent
The author uses a metaphor to suggest that they are becoming more successful and stay humble.
Make a milli to play with, buy a building you can pay me
The author emphasizes that they are becoming successful and hope to invest their money.
And the 'tic is who I came with
The author suggests that they have a loyal crew.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RUSSELL FREEMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind