[Dixielandjazz] Moments With The Greats

[Burt Wilson]

I, too, had a "musician's moment" with Wild Bill.

It was 1966 at Bill Bacin's NO Jazz Club of SoCal and Bill Davison was the
guest. I was picked to play with Bill along with my friends Roger Snell on
piano and the late Barry Durkee on banjo. You have to understand my mental
state at all of this. Even though I played trombone, Bill was my jazz hero.
When I formed my first band in 1949 I gave the trumpet player all the
Commodore Records and told him, "play like that." I even used to fanticize
playing alongside Bill at Condon's or some such place. So I was very exited
and very nervous.

When we began our first tune, I lost it. Did you ever get that feeling that
you just could not concentrate on what you were doing or playing? All of
these old emotions overtook me and I did a horrible job, especially on my
solo. My face turned red and flop sweat broke out on my forehead as the song
ended. I shrank back out of Bill's sight.

Then Bill went up to the microphone and announced the next tune as "Someday
Sweatshirt," as he was accusomted to doing. He backed into the line and
fingered the valves on his cornet and then walked up a few steps where he
could see me and barked, "And for christ's sake, play the right notes!"

I was mortified. But the shock of the whole thing straighted me out and
after my next solo I could hear Bill, "Ok, OK, now you're talkin'"

When I was doing the video of Anne, I of course told her that story and she
shook her head and said, "That's just Bill being Bill."

Another story was told to my by George Probert. It seems that on a gig in
LA, Bob McCraken was sick and George got the call. I think it was "Anne's
400 Club." George arrived and introduced himself as they had never met. He
then began to open his soprano sax case and the lid was only about a
quarter-inch up before Bill bellowed, "You're not going to play that f***ing
thing, are you!!

Just Bill being Bill.

Burt Wilson
Silver Dollar Jazz Band
If you want the video on Anne, go to www.paloriapress.com