To mix things up a bit, I will review the songs in order of the album they first appeared on...
Dr Bones, Master and Slave, Drunk Daddy, No Mercy For Swine, Cherry Poppin' Daddies Strut and Shake Your Lovemaker are all from their debut album, Ferociously Stoned. Let's start with Master and Slave, which is relatively experimental due to the unusual beat and quite chaotic horn lines. I find the ending a bit drawn out, but the inclusion of the hammond organ works a treat. The lyrics are similar in theme to Drunk Daddy and just as brilliantly evocative. My highlight of the song is this phrase:
But I can still see the stars
Through these red, white and blue prison bars.
Drunk Daddy is a brilliant rock-swing mini-opera. The faster parts have a wonderful driving energy and the chorus is perfectly suited. The song has many changes in tempo, and handles them very well to create an experience that ebbs and flows nicely. Like Mr White Keys the climax is epic- an explosion of the whole band's energy, with the piano adding yet another dimension. Also, a particular highlight is the brilliantly intricate instrumental section. It's a bit strange to be bouncing around to a song about child abuse- but somehow this song pulls it off. The music is great and the story is very well told.
A quick interlude to discuss audio quality. Objectively, it's probably fine... buuuuut... personally I'm not a fan of the plasticky horn sound in some songs, the random smattering of instruments across the sound-stage (a personal bugbear is when the drum kit is split across your ears) and the very prominent snare.
Similar to Brown Derby Jump, the song No Mercy for Swine is a simple song with an infectious beat. Like many songs on this compilation, it's fantastic that the vocals take an extended break to allow the highly talented horn section to shine. Cherry Poppin' Daddy Strut is an amusing vaudeville ditty, although the lyrics are very wrong!
Dr Bones features a very cheesy ska/swing beat- I love it! While the vocals are a bit nasally, they do match the song. Yet another example of great lyrics and a top notch instrumental sections. Shake Your Lovemaker is an R-rated Minnie the Moocher, so of course it is brilliant! Some minor quibbles are that the cymbals
and snare are too prominent and the chorus gets a bit old towards the end. But the sleazy vaudeville style works a treat, and the lyrics paint the picture wonderfully:
The blonde bombshell, destroying men
Her blue eyes are smoking like opium den.
But she giggles, and blows you a kiss
Then she'll whisper sweet nothings like a serpent's hiss
Moving onto songs from the album Rapid City Muscle Car, first up is Ding-Dong Daddy of the D-Car Line. In isolation it's a good song, but here I feel it's a poor cousin to Mr
Bones, perhaps due to being not cheesy enough! As an aside, I find the structure, topic and style all remind me of The Louisville Sluggers' Masterplan.
The start of Mister White Keys leaves me cold. Each section is good in isolation, but together the song is too stop-start and eclectic. Thankfully, eventually it settles down... and then...
wow! The climax is brilliant, with the whole band absolutely slamming it out.
If Come
Back to Me were a song by Royal Crown Revue song, I'd probably be praising it
as a solid swing tune. But for a Cherry Poppin' Daddies song, I expect more tongue-in-cheek. Pink Elephant is also a bit hit and miss; it features wonderful storytelling for this tale of a broken life, but personally I find the song a bit stop-start.
Here Comes the Snake is the only song from the album Kids on the Street. Thank goodness it wasn't overlooked, because this song is so over-the-top sleazy it's fantastic. An example of the hilariously sleazy lyrics is "I'm here to eat your apple to the core". This debauchery is perfectly accompanied by crash'n'bang rhythm section and swirling horns. Soooo dirty!
Now for the "new stuff". I have mixed feelings about the song Zoot Suit Riot. On one hand it's a simple pop-swing song which I've heard a million times. It's also a lot less "dirty" than the rest of the album (which lead to shocked reactions from many prudes as they started getting deeper into this album!). On the other hand, it is very energetic and catchy.
Like Indigo Swing's "Violent Love" song, the lyrics of When I Change Your Mind are a great twist on the usually saccarine swing genre. Also, the tuba is a great novelty.
Just by coincidence, my favourite song of the album is last to be reviewed here. Brown Derby Jump has a brilliantly infectious swing dance beat and fantastic sharp breaks. Musically it is quite simple, but there's nothing wrong with that. All the elements come together perfectly. The lyrics are wonderful storytelling to poetically tell the tale of a sordid situation. I could quote the whole song, but here's just one example:
I've come a long way and now I'm me,
The darkest river that meets the sea.
And all those lights on the harbour seem
To be spark-e-ling in bittersweet.
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