Energetic Daddies swing into Everett
Published 7:06 pm Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Twisted ankles. Strained muscles. Even a broken finger.
Steve Perry’s suffered all that and more during the past 20 years as frontman for the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies.
“The way we are — it’s a slippery stage and you move around a lot,” he said. “You can get hurt.”
Perry, 46, and his seven-man band will bring a frenetic performance to the historic Everett Theatre on May 28. The high energy swing revivalists from Portland are touring the Northwest, hitting out-of-the-way stops such as Anacortes and Astoria, Ore.
Perry formed the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies in the late 1980s, right before the grunge rock explosion. He was drawn to swing in part because no one else was playing it.
“All my friends ended up in alternative bands — what indie rock is today,” he said. “The whole idea was, ‘What can I do that’s different?’”
His group went from bucking trends to setting them in 1997, when “Zoot Suit Riot” exploded. That horn blast of a track became a crossover hit, helping the band sell more than 2 million copies of the titular album.
The song was credited with helping start the swing revival. At the time, though, it seemed like a bit of a curse, framing the group as a one-hit wonder.
“It used to feel like a really limiting thing,” Perry said.
In time, Perry’s perspective changed. The group continues to record to this day — largely because of that old hit single.
“It’s a blessing for sure,” Perry said. “We wouldn’t still be happening without the song. There would be no way.”
The group plans to focus on swing music during the Everett stop, but also may play a little ska and some of the flamenco-inspired music from its most recent album, “Susquehanna.”
“It’s more fun for us if we mix it up a little bit,” Perry said.
Andy Rathbun: 425-339-3455; arathbun@heraldnet.com.
Cherry Poppin’ Daddies
8 p.m. May 28, Historic Everett Theatre, 2911 Colby Ave., Everett.
Tickets are $25; 425-258-6766 or www.everetttheatre.org.
