Jazz singer-trumpeter Jeremy Davenport lives in New Orleans, but he's still very much in touch with his University City roots. And that includes his days at Brittany Woods Middle School.

Leading a quintet at Jazz at the Bistro this weekend, Davenport will share the bandstand with a couple of old classmates: pianist Peter Martin, who has worked with artists from singer Dianne Reeves to saxophonist Joshua Redman, and bassist Chris Thomas.

"Our first time playing jazz together was in seventh grade," says Davenport, 41. "Peter and I were doing a study hour, and we grabbed Chris out of class somehow."

Alto saxophonist Aaron Fletcher and drummer Troy Davis will complete the quintet.

The Bistro gig has become a Thanksgiving weekend tradition for Davenport, who usually combines singing with trumpet playing — in much the same manner as Louis Armstrong and Chet Baker — but makes room for the occasional instrumental.

"I didn't start singing in public until I was 19 or 20, and then I really embraced it," Davenport says.

It's natural that so many trumpeters have also been singers because "the trumpet mimics the human voice."

The performances are likely to highlight the New Orleans-style showmanship that fans have come to expect from Davenport, and include material from his most recent album, "We'll Dance 'Til Dawn" (2009). The disc features such favorites as "There's a Small Hotel," "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" and "Come Rain or Come Shine."

Davenport and Martin have a connection beyond jazz: their fathers were members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Roger Davenport played trombone, and William Martin played viola.

"Pete's one of my oldest and closest friends," Davenport says.

Last year, the trumpeter appeared in Martin's music series at the Sheldon Concert Hall, in a show that included Thomas on bass.

One of the things St. Louis and New Orleans have in common, Davenport says, is that both are "river towns, and that lends itself to a certain flavor."

Quite a few New Orleans musicians have turned up on "Treme," the well-regarded HBO drama from writer-producer David Simon ("The Wire").

Davenport says he almost became part of the mix but for creative reasons had to "pull the plug" on his involvement.

"It would have been fun to be on the show," he says. "So I hope it does happen."

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Jeremy Davenport

When 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday • Where Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Boulevard • How much $35 • More info 314-534-1111 or metrotix.com; 314-289-4030 or jazzstl.org