- The Commodore Master Takes · 1946
- Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree (feat. Bob D'Impperio, Barney Mallon, Danny D'Impperio & Will Alger) · 1973
- Jazz Giants · 1968
- Live 1955 Miami Beach · 1999
- Wild Bill in New Orleans · 1975
- The Best of Big Band Jazz, Vol. 4 · 2010
- Live 1955 Miami Beach · 1999
- Coalition (feat. Campbell Burnap, Dave Bailey, Keith Donald & John Peters) · 1999
- Just a Gig (feat. "Slide" Harris, Tom Gwaltney, John Eaton, Tom Martin, Van Perry & Johnson "Fat Cat" McRee) · 1990
- Wild Bill in New Orleans · 1975
- Wild Bill Davison: Plays the Greatest of the Greats! · 1958
- Embraceable You · 2023
Singles & EPs
Live Albums
Compilations
About Wild Bill Davison
One of the great Dixieland trumpeters, Wild Bill Davison had a colorful and emotional style that ranged from sarcasm to sentimentality with plenty of growls and shakes. His unexpected placement of high notes was a highlight of his solos and his strong personality put him far ahead of the competition. In the 1920s, he played with the Ohio Lucky Seven, the Chubb-Steinberg Orchestra (with whom he made his recording debut), the Seattle Harmony Kings, and Benny Meroff. After he was involved in a fatal car accident that ended the life of Frankie Teschemacher in 1932 (his auto was blindsided by a taxi), Davison spent the remainder of the 1930s in exile in Milwaukee. By 1941, he was in New York and in 1943 made some brilliant recordings for Commodore (including a classic version of "That's a Plenty") that solidified his reputation. After a period in the Army, Davison became a fixture with Eddie Condon's bands starting in 1945, playing nightly at Condon's. In the 1950s, he was quite effective on a pair of albums with string orchestras, but most of his career was spent fronting Dixieland bands either as a leader or with Condon. Wild Bill toured Europe often from the 1960s, recorded constantly, had a colorful life filled with remarkable episodes, and was active up until his death. A very detailed 1996 biography (The Wildest One by Hal Willard) has many hilarious anecdotes and shows just how unique a life Wild Bill Davison had. ~ Scott Yanow
- HOMETOWN
- Defiance, OH, United States
- BORN
- 5 January 1906
- GENRE
- Jazz