Playing by Heart (1998 Film)
In a 1996 review of the indie filmCaught, movie critic Rex Reed paid the ultimate compliment to trumpeter Chris Botti, (who wrote the score and whose horn graced the soundtrack), comparing the young upstart's smoky style to that of a youngChet Baker. Botti has since gone on to great success in smooth jazz by combining a laid-back demeanor with attitude-filled grooves and picture-perfect melodies. Enter legendary composer John Barry--whose resume runs fromBorn FreetoDances with Wolvesand, more jazzily,Body Heat. He loved director Willard Carroll's idea of lacing the soundtrack toPlaying by Heartwith a handful of 1956 Baker-quartet originals. Botti was an obvious choice when Barry chose to extend that vibe into the orchestral score, and the haunting album cover--featuring a pensive Barry between Botti and a young Baker, both holding their horns, over a black background--perfectly epitomizes the passing of the generational torch. The opening tune, "Remembering Chet," captures the essence of the whole album; Botti's balmy trumpet wafts over Lee Musiker's elegant piano meditation as the orchestra breezes in and out of the background. There's not a whole lot of rhythmic variation as the tracks progress, but Barry wisely mixes in a few other colorful elements throughout, most notably Daniel Higgins' romantic alto (trading riffs with Botti on the title theme) and Tommy Morgan's lonesome harmonica on "A Place Inside Alive and Well." The classic smooth, delicately bittersweet tones of Baker (on "Tenderly," "You Go to My Head" and "These Foolish Things" are interspersed between the Botti tunes, creating a contrast between the two horns. Arranged this way, it's almost like listening to a one-of-a-kind lesson between a legendary mentor and a student primed to carry on his legacy.-- Jonathan Widran