Singer Ruth Young has been an elusive but unforgettable presence on the international jazz scene since the 1970s. Her cool, husky, touchingly fragile sound is tied to a fierce intellect and sense of humor; legendary film critic Pauline Kael called her "lively, witty and tough" in The New Yorker, while the star fashion photographer Bruce Weber is one of her greatest fans. A New York native, Young was born into show-business royalty courtesy of her father, Max E. Youngstein, who was then Vice President of United Artists Pictures. Youngstein also founded the important United Artists record label. Ruth grew up in Manhattan and Beverly Hills amid such family friends as Marilyn Monroe, Warren Beatty, and Jane Russell. But the vocalists in her parents' record collection affected her more profoundly; LPs by Anita O'Day, Peggy Lee, Julie London, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and other great vocalists awakened in her the desire to sing.

Then, in her early twenties, she met the fabled trumpeter and singer Chet Baker, and the course of her life changed forever. Starting in 1973, Young shared a tumultuous ten years with the troubled and self-destructive jazz star. They appeared together all over the world at top festivals and clubs and on TV; two of their duets are preserved on the 1977 album The Incredible Chet Baker Plays and Sings, made in Milan. Their musical and personal relationship was immortalized in the award-winning 1989 documentary about Baker, Let's Get Lost, created by Bruce Weber. That controversial film gained an instant cult following, thanks much in part to Young's charismatic presence.

Not until 2005, however, did she release her debut CD: This Is Always, a Baker tribute. That recording helped trigger a new phase of activity and demand in Young's career, leading to performances in her beloved Italy and other countries throughout Europe, as well as the United States. In 2009, a large audience discovered (or rediscovered) Young when Let's Get Lost was broadcast extensively on the Sundance Channel and released on DVD for the first time. Her fans would surely have echoed the message Baker sent her by mail after their parting: "You're a great, great lady, Ruth. Keep singing."