Who's that whispering in the trees? Why it's the swingin' sounds of the Cherry Poppin' Daddies! Established in 1989, their mix of swing, rock, and ska, is like no other group out there. They have had three recordings before their latest release, Zoot Suit Riot. Zoot Suit Riot: The Swingin' Hits, is a compilation of all of their swing favorites from their previous three CD's plus four brand new songs. The song Zoot Suit Riot is the most recognized song of the 14 tracks on their CD. Everybody's heard it a million times.
I saw this group perform at the House of Blues in Orlando, Fl. on November 20th. They were great!!! The show that they put on is just like a flashy Vegas act. Steve is practically a one-man show! He doesn't stop dancing and singing up on the stage. He really knew how to play the crowd! They performed about 20 tunes. They did old, recent, and brand new songs.
After the show I went outside and waited by the stage door. While I waited for Steve to come out, I talked to Tim (the drummer of CPD) for about 20 minutes. He was very kind. Then, Dana (the trumpet player of CPD) came out and he said that he liked the suit that I was wearing. Finally around 1:00 a.m., Steve came out. He was so nice to me. We talked about various things for about 10 minutes. I asked him if he had horn charts that I could get copies of for the swing band that I was going to start up. He said that if I remind him later, he will make copies of them and send them to me. What a guy!!!
I saw CPD again on August 8th, 1999. Great show once again! They had to play to a much bigger audience this time. They performed at the 102.3FM Mix Fest at the Coral Sky Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, FL. They were the headlining group of the day. They played after such groups as Better Than Ezra and Meredith Brooks. CPD made the crowds get up and dance like there was no tomorrow.
I got a chance to meet up with the group again. I caught Tim in the crowd and asked for autographs from the band. I also asked if I could talk to Steve. After the show I got to talk to him. He is just as nice as I remembered. Once again we discussed horn charts and hopefully I will get some of them in the near future. Also, he told me that they are now in the studio recording a new album. It is due out in the Spring or hopefully in the Winter. You heard it here first folks!!!
Check out the Cherry Poppin' Daddies Official Website at www.daddies.com, or click on their logo at the top of this page.
