Louis Prima’s shadow is a tough one to escape, but Lena Prima—daughter of Louis Prima and his last wife and singer, Gia Maione—seemed to be managing it on her last album, Starting Something, which aired her own considerable gifts as a singer and songwriter and featured some of the city’s best players as backup. Playing her regular Hotel Monteleone gig around that time, she managed to have it both ways, pleasing the crowds with the Louis songs and not losing them when she snuck in one of her own.

So it’s curious that her follow-up is a live album devoted almost entirely to her father’s repertoire. The good news is how well she works with it, and there’s nothing stale or tribute band–like in these arrangements; the band has three hot horn players who step out on a couple of instrumentals. Vocally she sounds like neither of her parents, but her warmth and swing are well in the family tradition. And she has a natural elegance that she holds on to, even when singing the goofy ravioli and meatball lyrics that her dad stuck into “You Rascal You” (part of the disc’s “Basin Street Medley”). She can do something as timeworn as “What a Wonderful World” without sounding like she’s going through the motions (and the version here has a nice moment where a fan howls after the “I love you” line, causing her to briefly crack up). Still, the best moments are the less obvious ones, whether it’s a Louis deep cut like “Scuba Diver” or a borrowed rocker like the Gary U.S. Bonds hit “New Orleans.” Best of all is “Frog Legs Man,” which I don’t believe the elder Prima ever did, where she and the band clearly savor the chance to get a bit raunchy.

One hopes she hasn’t abandoned the originals (there are none here), but as a live souvenir this will do nicely.