STAMBAUGH AUDITORIUM Dukes of Dixieland bring fun to town

The show was relaxed and laid back, yet the music was first class.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- All that was missing at the Dukes of Dixieland's fun performance at Stambaugh Auditorium on Friday were the clink of ice in drink glasses, the smell of food and laughter.
If you closed your eyes as the Dukes played, you might easily have imagined yourself in a New Orleans nightspot or aboard the dinner cruise on the Steamboat Natchez.
The six-member Dukes, consisting of the traditional Dixieland group -- drums, bass fiddle, piano, clarinet, trumpet and slide trombone -- regaled an appreciative Monday Night Musical Club audience with about two hours of Dixieland music from the late 1800s to the 1930s.
Their song list included many long-time favorites such as & quot;Muskrat Ramble, & quot; & quot;A Closer Walk With Thee, & quot; the first jazz song ever recorded, "Original Dixieland One Step," and the band's signature number, & quot;Basin Street Blues. & quot; They ended the show with their most requested number, "When the Saints go Marchin' In."
The show was relaxed and laid back, yet the music was first class.
Responsive audience
Despite the relatively sterile environment of a concert, there was a lot of toe tappin' and head noddin' going on, and spontaneous applause after individual riffs.
The leader of the Dukes is Richard Taylor on drums, who has played with Muddy Waters and Al Hirt. Taylor's duet version of "Big Noise from Winnetka" with bass player Everett Link was one of the highlights of the show, with Taylor using his drum sticks on both his drums and Link's stand-up fiddle. Link was also featured in an old gospel song, "Just a Little While to Stay Here."
The band members took turns showing their considerable skills in long solos.
Earl Bonie on clarinet drew prolonged applause after his version of "Petite Fleur." Bonie has played with the Bill Clifford Orchestra in New Orleans and the Army Band in Germany.
Scott Obenschain stood out on piano in several numbers, including the 1927 tune "Honky Tonk Train Blues" and "Black Bottom Stomp." He began studying classical piano at the age of 4 but was eventually won over to the New Orleans style.
Trombonist Ben Smith, who started playing music in the streets of New Orleans at the age of 9, was featured playing in "Muskrat Ramble" and showed off his considerable vocal skill and style in "St. James Infirmary Blues."
Mike Fulton on trumpet, who began his musical career playing on several cruise ships, added a solid brass sound to the Dukes' mix and made the high notes positively squeal during his frequent riffs.
alcorn@vindy.com