Search - Wild Bill Davison :: This Is Jazz

Great Wild Bill Collection

John C. Graham | toronto, ontario Canada | 06/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You should get this one. It's got a nice cast of characters that play the tunes the way they were meant to be played...with plenty of drive and hot solos, never straying far from the melody. It's a collection of performances from the 1947 This Is Jazz radio show. Wild Bill is, of course, on every tune. Edmond Hall and Albert Nicholas share the clarinet chair, Jimmy Archey plays trombone, Danny Barker strums guitar, Ralph Sutton is on the piano, Pops Foster on bass, and Baby Dodds is heard drumming. All of these guys were marvellous musicians who had played these tunes thousands of times in as many cities on as many nights with and without enthusiasm. Often there were times when alcohol provided the necessary kick in the pants for some of these guys to deliver. Wild Bill was a notoriously heavy drinker. It never seemed to negatively affect his playing. Rather, it became part of the mystique that surrounded him. The bubble gum chewing, profanity uttering, whiskey drinking, son of a gun would rip into chorus after chorus of slurred, side of the mouth improvisation that was at once as beautiful as it was rough edged and boisterous, usually at full speed and without concern for anything in his path. He was truly the stuff of legends. This collection captures him at his peak when he was settled, for a time, in New York where the weekly shows were performed live on air before a small audience of fans. It's a great selection of tunes with lots of solo space for Bill and the others. The sound quality is nice, clear, and detailed. Do yourself a favour and get this one. Put it in the player. Pour yourself a drink. Crank up the volume. Sit back, relax, and enjoy one of the most remarkable cornet players in the history of JAZZ."