Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

Direct from Los Angeles, America’s favorite award winning “little big band” Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (BBVD) bring their distinct brand of retro swing to the Markham Theatre stage  at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 18, 2012.  The Voodoo Daddy repertoire draws deeply from the swing music of the ’30s and ’40s with vigor, from Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington and Count Basie to Benny Goodman, The Dorsey Brothers and Chick Webb, this music don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’s irresistible live show and aggressive, musically perceptive approach has proven them over time to be the singular standout among the numerous bands that launched the Nineties swing revival. They swing like the greats with a tight rhythm section, fierce and blaring horns, galloping guitar, raucous vocals and the biggest, baddest sound around. Don’t miss Big Bad Voodoo Daddy live at the Markham Theatre on Wednesday, April 18, 2012 at 8:00 p.m.

 

Since their arrival on the music scene in 1993, BBVD’s originals rocketed the group into its first phase of stardom, when “You & Me and the Bottle Makes Three (Tonight)” and “Go Daddy-O” were featured in the 1996 indie film landmark Swingers. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, named famously after an autograph by blues legend Albert Collins, sold more than two million copies of the albums Americana Deluxe and This Beautiful Life, while the band’s music has been featured in more than one hundred movies, theatrical trailers, and television shows. Their irresistible live show and aggressive, musically perceptive approach has helped them forge a massively successful fusion of classic American sounds from jazz, swing, Dixieland and big-band music, building their own songbook of original dance tunes.

They’ve performed to sold out crowds at the Hollywood Bowl, Walt Disney Hall, Lincoln Center, Chastain Park and Constitution Hall, to name a few, and have appeared as special guests with the great symphony and pops orchestras of the nation. The band’s career milestones have included appearances in the Super Bowl half-time show, writing theme music for ESPN and network television, and performing for three American presidents. They have appeared numerous times on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O’Brian and Live with Regis & Kelly, and wrote, performed and recorded the current theme song for the Carson Daly show after appearing multiple times as the show’s house band.

To date, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy has released eight studio albums, most recently “How Big Can You Get? A Tribute to Cab Calloway,” in 2009. The seven-man group is comprised of Scotty Morris, lead vocals and guitar; Kurt Sodergren, percussion; Dirk Shumaker, double bass and vocals; Andy Rowley, baritone saxophone and vocals; Glen Marhevka, trumpet; Karl Hunter, saxophones and clarinet; and Joshua Levy, piano and arranger.