Zoot Suits and Poppin' Daddies -
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After the grunge and alternative rock assault of the early part of the decade, no one could have predicted that for a very short time retro-influenced swing bands would steal chart thunder and ignite their own tiny subculture all across the country. |
Pop culture is a cyclical beast, and the more cynical scenesters out
there are definitely familiar with the feeling of everything old being new
again. Such was the case in the 1990s with the resurgence of swing music,
that goodtime jazz style that dominated the American popular conscious
between 1935 and the end of World War II.
Slick
cats in zoot suits and fedoras would take to the stage with stand-up basses
and slicked back hair and get dance floors jumping. Not only that, but
movies like "Swing Kids" would glamorize the original swing era to the point
where even that 90's icon "Clueless" featured a character with a heavy dollop of swing-influenced
personal style.
The new, 90s-style swing music borrowed liberally from a number of other
genres, helping to give it a crossover appeal that quickly swelled listener
ranks. The rapid rhythms of ska were often mined to help give swing the
quick tempo that dancers were looking for, while rockabilly provided the
rough-
edged guitar that allowed certain swing bands to enjoy a rebellious
edge. Of the latter, the most prominent were the
Brian Setzer Orchestra, who dominated the scene with successes "Jump
Jive an' Wail" and "Sleepwalk"
(oddly enough, a surf tune).
"Jump Jive an' Wail" (the
original Louis Prima version) and swing dancing
even made it into one of the most memorable
Gap commercials of the mid-90s.
Of the bands who stayed pure to swing's musical ethos, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, the Royal Crown Revue and the Squirrel Nut Zippers emerged as front runners. These four groups bought into the genre's entire image, portraying themselves as transplanted 40's survivors who played infectious tracks that awkwardly shared chart space with the harder edged sounds of the day. Interestingly, each of these bands had been formed in the late 80's or early 90's and had struggled for almost a decade before finding a major audience. Their songs, such as "Zoot Suit Riot" (Cherry Poppin' Daddies) "Hell" (Squirrel Nut Zippers), "You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)" (Big Bad Voodoo Daddy) and "Hey Pachuco" (Royal Crown Revue) stand out as some of the defining recordings of swing's brief revival in the 90s.
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| Big Bad Voodoo Daddy | Cherry Poppin' Daddies | Royal Crown Revue | Squirrel Nut Zippers |
Want to learn how to swing dance? Try these "Let's Dance Swing" lessons by John Hill. You'll be swingin' in no time!
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