Self-Titled

CD Cover Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Coolsville Records

Review by Gary 'pigboy' Swartz


How much swing is too much of a good thing? This self-titled CD from Big Bad Voodoo Daddy is as good a choice as any to answer the question, because Big Bad Voodoo Daddy sure have the sound down, and the songwriting, too. All but one tune on this CD are originals, and the one cover is Cab Calloway's classic "Mini the Moocher." To stand up well in that kind of company says a lot, and the material here stands up well.

And it surely does swing with lots of rhythm, rich, full-bodied arrangements and lots of horn (trumpet, saxes and trombone) -- real tight and real smooth, with little riffs in the solos that remind one that, in that ancient, pre-electronic digital era, there were dinosaur cats playing around with sound distortion and all the stuff we take for granted today. Only they did it with vibrato, imagination and things like toilet plungers.

There's a really nifty bit on "Jump with My Baby Tonight," with a sax, trumpet and trombone blowing in counterpoint against each other, that must be killer live. In fact, live is probably a great way to get exposed to this band, and this kind of music, especially if you like to dance with a partner. Which brings me back to my opening sentence. A whole CD of this kind of music can be a bit overwhelming, no matter how well it's done. Mix in some atmosphere and I suspect the equation changes.

Then again, no one ever said you have to play a CD all the way through. Take a break while enjoying this one and check out the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy website at www.bbvd.com. The music may be retro, but these guys are right on the techno self-promotion edge.



First published in Drop-D Magazine on April 18, 1998

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