Who says that studying the classics can't be fun? Certainly not Scott Hamilton, whose new release Across The Tracks explores tunes written by hallowed names like Duke Ellington and sounds like this saxophonist and his friends enjoyed great fun along their way.

Hamilton often accompanies Rosemary Clooney through the American Songbook so he knows Jazz classics, and his tenor style distills the relaxed yet strong approach to swing from predecessors Ben Webster and Zoot Sims, straight-up blues riffing that might still be mainstream Jazz if not for the bop revolution. Sonny Stitt's "Deuces Wild" opens and establishes the prototype with its round of blue solos between Hamilton, Gene Ludwig on organ and Roomful of Blues guitar ace Duke Robilard.

Robilard and Hamilton actually shared a blues bill way back in '69 (each in different bands), and you can't cut a guitar solo much tastier than Robilard's slice in Duke Ellington's solid groove "Cop Out." "Sweet Slumber" couldn't be more sweet or dreamy, with each solo drifting cloudlike into the next and Hamilton turning in his definitive ballad performance. The leader's "Something for Red" cooks up a little hotter, his tenor honking and shouting almost like soulman King Curtis.

Across The Tracks is also Hamilton's first release recorded by another jazz classic, Rudy Van Gelder, who captures the best of both worlds. It feels like a jam session, but sounds studio perfect.

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