Tom Saunders & The Wild Bill Davison Legacy - Call Of The Wild (2006)

Although often overlooked because he lives in the Midwest, Tom Saunders has long been one of the finest cornetists in trad jazz. On this particular CD, he leads the Wild Bill Davison Legacy Band, most of whom had performed in the past with the late Davison: trombonist Bill Allred, clarinetist Chuck Hedges, tenor saxophonist Rick Fay, pianist Johnny Varro, bassist Paul Keller, and drummer Warren Sauer. While Saunders does not really sound that much like Davison, his own exciting style is solid, good-humored, and complementary to the music that Davison played. Such top-notch Dixieland standards as "At the Jazz Band Ball," "Beale Street Blues," "You're Lucky to Me," and "I Never Knew" all have their exciting moments. Dixieland fans should have little difficulty enjoying this music. ~Scott Yanow