The original
Bay City Jazz Band lineup was only a footnote in the history of
Dixieland; formed in 1955, the outfit recorded two LPs for
Good Time Jazz (whose catalog is now owned by
Fantasy) before breaking up in 1957. But they were an enjoyable footnote, and tuba player
Mike Waldbridge (of
Salty Dogs fame) thought enough of their work to assemble a new
BCJB lineup 45 years after the original lineup's demise. In early 2002,
Waldbridge recruited two members of the old '50s band (trumpeter
Everett Farey and drummer
Lloyd Byassee) and united them with several
Dixieland veterans who had belonged to
the Salty Dogs at some point, including trumpeter
Bob Neighbor, banjo player
Jack Kuncl, pianist
John Cooper, and the late trombonist
Jim Snyder.
Waldbridge's new
BCJB lineup recorded
Alligator Crawl in July 2002 -- only five months before
Snyder's death from lymphoma -- and this CD contains the trombonist's final recorded performances. Because
Alligator Crawl only employs two members of
the BCJB's '50s lineup, some
Dixieland fans might wonder if perhaps this group should be using a different name. But, in fact,
Alligator Crawl is quite faithful to the spirit of the old
BCJB; '20s-minded performances of
Jelly Roll Morton's
"London Blues," Ma Rainey's
"See See Rider," and
Louis Armstrong's
"Potato Head Blues" definitely pick up where the original
BCJB left off in 1957. And who better to pay tribute to a '50s
Dixieland revival band than several players who had been with
the Salty Dogs over the years? After all,
the Salty Dogs and
the BCJB were kindred spirits in the '50s -- both were a throwback to Prohibition-era
jazz.
Alligator Crawl offers few surprises, but it's still a pleasing, if predictable, effort that die-hard
Dixieland enthusiasts will enjoy. ~ Alex Henderson
![O Brother, Where Art Thou? [Original Soundtrack]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0008817006925_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "O Brother, Where Art Thou? [Original Soundtrack]")
