"Autumn in New York" (Take 1) is the first of two versions of Vernon Duke's evocative standard captured on Chet Baker's 1979 album The Touch of Your Lips. Set at a relaxed medium tempo of 114 bpm in F with a 32-bar ABA'C form, the performance unfolds with the conversational ease of three master musicians thinking together in real time. Guitarist Doug Raney takes the first solo chorus, his clean-toned electric guitar weaving thoughtful lines through Duke's sophisticated harmonies. Bassist Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen follows with a chorus that transforms the bass into a lead instrument, his melodic inventions flowing with the naturalness of speech. Baker closes with two trumpet choruses that capture the song's autumnal melancholy with devastating simplicity, his pared-down phrasing leaving space for every note to resonate. The decision to record two takes of this song suggests its special significance to the group, and this first version has a searching, exploratory quality that distinguishes it from the slightly more polished second take. The trio's collective interpretation evokes the bittersweet romance of the lyric without a single word being sung.
