Line-up

Headliner
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Last time in Albuquerque: 18 years ago

Venue

423 Central Avenue Northwest, 87102, Albuquerque, NM, US

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy biography

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy is an American contemporary swing revival and jazz band, formed by Scotty Morris in 1993, hailing from Ventura, California, U.S.

Band leader Scotty Morris formed Big Bad Voodoo Daddy after meeting blues guitar legend Albert Collin at a concert, and of whom signed his poster with ‘To Scotty, the big bad voodoo daddy’. Alongside Kurt Sodergren, Morris inspired by the swing of the ‘40s and ‘50s, the pair honed their skills playing in clubs and lounges throughout Ventura, California, and soon made a name for themselves amongst the kitschy cocktail scene.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy released two albums in the early ‘90s “Big Bad Voodoo Daddy” and “Watchu’ Want for Christmas?” before earning their break on the 1996 film soundtrack for “Swingers”. The film featured the singles “You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby), “I Wan’na Be Like You” and "Go-Daddy-O” as well as a onscreen cameo appearance from the group. The band subsequently signed with Capitol Records, who issued the group’s third full-length “American Deluxe” in 1998, followed by “This Beautiful Life” in 1999.

With the swing revival in full flow, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy made an appearance at the Super Bowl XXXIII, sold over three million records and been featured in over 60 films and TV shows.

In an attempt to expand their sound out of the dying swing market, the band released “Save My Soul” in 2003, which included jazz, funk and Cajun elements. In 2004, “Everything You Want for Christmas”, a live CD/DVD was released, followed four years later by the heavily jazz-induced “How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway”. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy continued in the jazz direction and released the album “Rattle Them Bones” in 2012, and subsequently their third Christmas collection of songs “It Feels Like Christmas Time” in 2013.

Live reviews

Everyone likes dancing, and swing music is definitely right up there with the best kind of music to boogie on down to. The eight piece swing revival band Big Bad Voodoo Daddy are just what you need to transport you right back to the 40s and gave the most incredible instrumental performance I’ve seen in a long time. Their Dixieland sound and three part vocal harmonies are authentic to swing music with the riffs and chords creating a sense of nostalgia.
They opened the show with an improvised overture as they all came out on stage which immediately demonstrated the incredible talent of every band member. It was brilliant how the brass and guitar players danced around the stage, sometimes choreographed, and managed to maintain note perfect performances. Even the piano player was occasionally standing up and having a dance whilst the music was playing!
When they played Go Daddy-O they made sure that every one in the auditorium was on their feet, and it wasn’t difficult because pretty much the whole room was up already! They played a fantastic version of the song, and as everyone was cheering for it at the end of the set, they played it as their encore as well which was awesome, as it was just so incredible!

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