At the June 3 Mill Point Park Cherry Poppin' Daddies show in Hampton, I was able to sneak into the Daddies tour bus for a half-hour interview with lead singer, Steve Perry. Pery and the rest of the swinging Daddies were just as down to earth and energetic as their music is. While Perry was steaming his "zoot suit" for the show, he shared his ideas about not only his music, but the modern rock scene across the nation.

College students all across the nation can't stand still when the beats start hitting. It's not our grandparents' music anymore: it's ours. It's swing, and it's back.

Swing isn't about the Generation X angst most modern music capitalizes on. Swing is about having dancing until you fall from exhaustion. You don't have to have on your coolest threads or be a "big bad voodoo daddy" - but it helps.

People of all ages and walks of life exploded as the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, a group on the verge of mass popularization, came on stage. They were cool hepcats all decked out in their best speak-easy suits and dancing shoes.

Everyone was swinging, or at least their best rendition of it, and it's doubtful any of them ever had "swing lessons." Even though America has put swinging on the back burner, she can still cut up a rug.

"There's a type of innocence, swagger and brazenness about swing," said Daddies front man, Steve Perry. "American music is the only kind that has that."

The Daddies seem to be on a mission to remind America of that innocence.

Perry hypnotized the crowd with his mercurial energy and crystal clear vocals. The jet-black haired front man flirted with every fan in sight, giving a frenetic show. For over an hour and a half, the Daddies took over Hampton, and no one was resisting.

The Daddies had come a long way from the 1989 band that began in Eugene, Ore. Just as popularity and audiences increases, so must the shows. But Perry doesn't seem to mind at all.

"We really haven't changed the show that much," said Perry about playing larger venues. "Sometimes at bigger shows, you don't get to do sound checks. In a big band like ours, if you can't hear what each other are doing, you can't do it. But, on a bigger stage I'm more relaxed and have room to dance."

While the rest of the media are trying to categorize the Daddies music as the resurgence of swing, they just keep on struting their stuff.

"We're trying to do contemporary punk meets swing," said Perry. "And lots of energy!"

Perry feels the Daddies music is a "correction to the punk rock attitude."

"The idea behind punk rock," began Perry, "was a statement of brutal truth."

According to Perry, the majority of newer rock seems to be obsessed with utter sadness and "navel gazing," but don't expect that at a Daddies show!

It's that energy that is getting the Daddies noticed. But Perry is guick to remind you that just because the song "Zoot Suit Riot" is in mass rotation, this swing-ska hybrid wasn't born overnight.

"It's been happening really big on the West Coast," began Perry. "There has been a scene there since the early nineties."

Just because their roots are out west, doesn't mean the Daddies concentrate on where they know they'll be accepted.

"We actually try to avoid places like that," said Perry. "A bar is a bar, and we aren't into bars. We want to try to bring it to the kids. It's great to have such a response to this different (musical) palate."

When it comes to musical differences, the Daddies could almost be the poster band. Even though the average age of a Cherry Poppin' Daddy is mid-twenties, there is a thirteen year age difference between Perry and Dustin Lanker on keyboards. For most bands, this could cause dissention. But the Daddies make it work.

"It's really good to have such an age mix," said the 34 year old Perry. "The younger guys don't bring any 'baggage' with them. But it does upset the learning curve a little."

There are other times when no matter how hard Perry tries, he just can't get the other Daddies on the same page. These minor musical disagreements can't keep the Daddies from swinging the crowd. Whether you're an old school West Coast swinger or a Hampton Roads newbie, there is no denying the energy and pure fun of the Daddies.

"Don't let anyone put their nose in the air," said Perry to the newer swing listeners, "just because they can do a rock step."