Gérard Gustin isn't very well known by American jazz fans. The French jazz pianist is best known for accompanying Chet Baker on the second Chet Baker Quartet album for the French Barclay album while Baker was in Paris in October of 1955. Now Fresh Sound records has combined that album with Trio Gérard Gustin for Barclay in 1956, on a remastered release.
Gustin wasn't as well known as many other French 1950s jazz pianists such as Martial Solal, René Urtreger, Antoine Hervé, Eddy Louiss and Henri Renaud, but that was largely due to his brief jazz career.
A student at the Nice Conservatory after World War II, Gustin fell in love with jazz after hearing records by Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Bud Powell. By 1949 and '50, he was gigging on the French Riviera. He went into the French Army in the early 1950s.
Stationed in Marseilles for 18 months, he performed in clubs nightly and became friendly with many French jazz musicians in the city. Throughout the early 1950s Gustin went where there was work in France. In March 1955, he settled in Paris, where he worked and met Chet Baker, who asked him to record with him on his second 12-inch Barclay LP.
The following year, Eddy Barclay decided to record Gustin with his trio on a 10-inch LP. The group featured Sacha Distel on guitar and Gilbert Gassin on bass. Nearly two years passed before the album was released, in the fall of 1957. By then, jazz was no longer a career path for Gustin. Instead, he leaned into French pop by playing piano for three years in Aimé Barelli's orchestra, which accompanied many marquee U.S. pop singers on tour in Paris.
From 1963 to 1971, Gustin collaborated with Sacha Distel, who by then had put down his guitar for a successful singing and hosting career. Gustin accompanied Distel on tours and was the musical director of Distel's weekly television program, Le Sacha Show. He also composed upward of 450 French songs.
Chet Baker Quartet featured Chet Baker (tp), Gérard Gustin (p), Jimmy Bond (b) and Bert Dahlander (d). The tracks are:
- Autumn in New York
- Lover Man
- There's a Small Hotel
- These Foolish Things
- I’ll Remember April
- Summertime
- You Go to My Head
- Tenderly
The Trio Gérard Gustin album featured Gérard Gustin (p), Sacha Distel (g) and Gilbert Gassin (b). Note the originals by Gustin and his Horace Silver influence. The tracks are:
- Y'a qu'ça de Vraie (Gérard Gustin)
- Equation (Gérard Gustin)
- For You, for Me, for Evermore (George Gershwin)
- “Greek” Gone Crazy (Gérard Gustin)
- Lookin' for A Boy (George Gershwin)
- Romano's Dilemma (Gérard Gustin)
- Autumn Nocturne (Joseph Myrow)
- Somebody Loves Me (George Gershwin)
Gustin had an interesting way of opening many songs on his trio album with a classical baroque approach before springing into swing. He also had a nice touch with Baker.
Gérard Gustin died in May 1994.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find Gérard Gustin With His Trio and the Chet Baker Quartet 1955-'56 (Fresh Sound) here.
If you buy, don't forget to use your code for the 8% JazzWax discount (JAZZWAX_DISCOUNT).
JazzWax tracks: Here's I'll Remember April from Chet Baker Quartet...
Here's Tenderly from the same album...
Here's Autumn Nocturne from Trio Gérard Gustin...
And here's Somebody Loves Me from the same album...
