Wild Bill's best recordings
Don McNair | Merritt Island, FL USA | 11/17/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Those of you who are true fans of Wild Bill Davison will already know that "Pretty Wild" and "With Strings Attached" represent some of his very best work. Those of you who are just discovering him should not discount these records because the are not "true" dixieland and have a string orchestra backing. The power of Wild Bill's music and his ability to soar with his coronet solos is extraordinary. Only one other album even comes close - and that's "Jam Session from Coast to Coast" where he solos with Eddie Condon's band. Unfortunately that album has not been released on CD - at least not yet."
The Long Wait Is Over!
Steve Emerine | Tucson, AZ United States | 10/17/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Counting all the albums he recorded during his trips to Europe, Australia and elsewhere, Wild Bill Davison shows up on 1,500 or so records between 1924 and his death in 1989. But the two albums that many Wild Bill fans have been waiting for are his two efforts with strings conducted by Percy Faith and Deane Kincaide for Columbia in 1956-57. Finally, Arbors records, with permission from Sony, has combined the two on a technically excellent CD that comes with a 32-page illustrated booklet. These are the albums that many jazz fans remember Davison for. During the rest of his career, he toiled for Jazzology, Fat Cat and dozens of lesser-known labels that issued some wonderful Wild Bill sessions. But they never had the advantage of the Columbia marketing forces and didn't sell as well as "Wild" and "Strings." For those of us whose LPs of Bill with strings have long since become worn and scratchy, it's great to finally have them available in one CD."
5-Star Remastered to 0-Star TRASH--thanks, Arbors' CLOWNS
Mike DiMartino | Rochester, NY | 10/22/2007
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Well, here it is 2007, and I've just read this page's glowing reviews from 2000 written by people with wax build up in their ears; or maybe they've never heard the original LPs, or maybe never really LISTENED. LISTEN to me, please. I'm so glad I didn't give in to spending $36 from the Amazon joker who is selling one that's covered in sticky library sticker tape.
I thought I lucked out when I bought this new-sealed for $7. But what horrible remastering! You clowns at Arbors added stereo reverb to this 1956 mono Columbia recording and you muddled the high frequencies to attempt to hide the original tape hiss, thereby choking off all of the breathy sounds of what originally was a gorgeous, miked up close, definative Wild Bill cornet masterwork. The original recording had such startling detail--you could even faintly hear the mechanical clicketing of Bill's King cornet valves. But all of this beauty is gone on this CD--killed by Arbors' irresponsible "digital enhancement" tampering. Makes me laugh--at the end of each tune, you can hear the muddling effect being switched off, and the tape hiss reappears during the fading reverb. What a joke...and a disgrace to Will Bill's legacy. And yes, it was a long wait; anticipation turns to disgust. Oh, well, I think I can do a better remastering job using those scratchy old LPs and my $10 software.
Arbors: go to hell in a handbasket, you bunch of lames."
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1