When Morrin paid tribute to Chet...
Music and arts enthusiasts will get the significance of this photo. Morrin Cooper paying homage to one of his influences, the late-great Chet Baker, extraordinary trumpet player, jazz composer and vocal stylist of the US. No one sounds like Chet Baker. Morrin Cooper, too.
Morrin was of course our much-loved Mayor of Howick from 1974 to 1989 (retired undefeated after five terms), and many will know he’s been a professional musician, too, since the 1950s.
He tells of tours in the great days of live concert-hall shows, such as trumpeting in the band that backed The Platters in 1959.
The photo is of Morrin at the commemoration plaque of where Chet Baker died. It’s in Amsterdam, Netherlands. He passed out of a hotel window two storeys up. Morrin went to the room.
The picture of the two great trumpeters is in the Bill Mudgway Studio at East FM, where Morrin Cooper has the highly-recommended Howick-Citing Jazz Show on Sundays at 11am and Mondays at 2pm. The show would be in its 13th year.
Howick-Citing was also the title of Morrin’s magic jazz group back in the day. He’s also a past-president and life member of the Auckland branch of the NZ Musicians Union, ex-chairman-manager of the Tauranga Big Band, and chair of the Dame Malvina Major Foundation in Auckland.
Readers may have noticed, too, that our Morrin has popped up in a bank ad on television recently. “Hello, matey”, he says.
The other photo here is of Morrin with another amazing New Zealand trumpet player, multi-instrumentalist, and composer Finn Scholes, after Finn's gig with Carnivorous Plant Society at Uxbridge Arts and Culture in Howick in recent years.
East FM is proudly the official broadcaster for Howick 175 – www.howick175.co.nz.... This year is the 175th anniversary of the Howick Owairoa area being known as Howick.
East FM is East Auckland’s dedicated community-powered public service radio station, broadcasting on local frequencies 88.1FM and 107.1FM, at www.eastfm.nz... and on app iHeart Radio.
Wikipedia says of Chet Baker:
Chesney Henry “Chet” Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He’s known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool".
Baker earned much attention and critical praise through the 1950s, particularly for albums featuring his vocals: Chet Baker Sings (1954) and It Could Happen to You (1958). Jazz historian Dave Gelly described the promise of Baker's early career as "James Dean, Sinatra, and Bix, rolled into one".
🧩😏 Riddle me this, Neighbours…
I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Do you think you know the answer?
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Scam Alert: Bank cold calls
ASB is warning customers about reports of cold calls from scammers claiming to be from ASB. These scammers are trying to obtain personal information, including usernames, dates of birth, and verification codes sent to your mobile phone.
🛡️ The "Caller Check" Test
If you get a call from someone claiming to be from ASB and you’re unsure, just ask them for a Caller Check. You will then be able to verify the call through the app.
Remember, banks will:
❌ Never ask for your banking passwords, PINs, or verification codes
❌ Never need to know your full credit card number – especially the CVC
❌ Never ask you to download software or remotely access your device
❌ Never ask you to purchase gift cards or transfer funds.
If you have received a phone call and think your account has been compromised, call ASB on 0800 ASB FRAUD (0800 272 372), or visit your local branch.
Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
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