In the winter of 2019, Baker’s Riverside catalogue was celebrated with the deluxe vinyl box set, The Legendary Riverside Albums. Now, these meticulously remastered recordings are available as individual albums.

Few musicians have embodied the romantic—and ultimately tragic—jazz figure as totally as Chesney “Chet” Baker (1929–88). Unschooled yet eloquent in his music, and a fast-liver who survived for nearly six decades, the Baker mystique has only reinforced one of the most haunting trumpet styles and ingenious approaches to jazz singing. 

Chet is an album by jazz trumpeter Chet Baker first released in 1959. The record is sometimes subtitled The Lyrical Trumpet of Chet Baker. Chet features performances by Baker with flautist Herbie Mann, saxophonist Pepper Adams, pianist Bill Evans, guitarist Kenny Burrell, bassist Paul Chambers, and either Connie Kay or Philly Joe Jones on drums. It was recorded in December 1958 and January 1959 and released on the Riverside label.

Though Baker was by the late 1950s known as much for his singing as his trumpet playing, this album is entirely instrumental. It contains 9 standard ballads played in the styles of Hard Bop to Cool Jazz. The album is entirely devoted to explorations of the ballad mood, it includes considerable variety.