Pianist
Ted Des Plantes
pays tribute to trumpeter
Henry "Red" Allen
on this well-conceived and consistently exciting set. Trumpeter
Chris Tyle
does an excellent job of emulating
Allen
, and the supporting cast includes a couple players from
Banu Gibson
's band (
Tom Fischer
on clarinet and tenor, and trombonist
David Sager
) plus clarinetist
Barry Wratten
, banjoist
John Gill
,
Tom Saunders
doubling on bass and tuba, and drummer
Hal Smith
. There are five vocals (four by
Tyle
and one from
Smith
), but these are brief and fit well into the music. The repertoire is particularly inspired -- all songs that
recorded during 1929-37, many of which are both hot and quite obscure. Among the highlights are
"Get Rhythm in Your Feet,"
"On Treasure Island,"
"I Wish I Were Twins,"
two versions of
"When My Dreamboat Comes Home,"
"Algiers Stomp,"
and the title cut. Highly recommended to trad jazz fans. ~ Scott Yanow