This band finds its roots in the imagination of Steve Perry, lead singer and composer of its songs. He and bass player Dan Schmid had the idea to form a band that could mix swing music with the energy of funk rock. They then found a saxophone player from a soul band who happened to know a trumpet player and a couple of horn players. Perry got the rhythm section together, and the band began practicing in a basement, where you could say they were discovered. Someone who overheard them suggested that they do a gig, but the group was not yet the Cherry Poppin' Daddies that they are today, for they had no name. Perhaps one of the most interesting things about the band is its name, which Perry blames on "a friend." They were looking for something sexy, fun and "New Orleansy" to name their band, and the unnamed friend suggested that they call themselves the Cherry Poppin' Daddies. According to Perry, they all had a good laugh about it, realized they had no better ideas, and christened their band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies.

This band of eight, ranging in age from 23 to 35, finds it moderately difficult to deal with being so large, as is to be expected. Perry cites band member turnover as one of the main problems. They played 270 gigs last year, and that is a lot of time away from friends and family for band members. "You play a lot," says Perry, and because there is always someone quitting, the band is always going over old songs with "the new guy." This makes it difficult to get new songs together, and the band has to work twice as hard.

There are a whole host of musical influences that have gotten the band's sound to where it is today. When asked why he chose swing music, Perry claims he had fallen for the romance of it. Ye,t there are punk rock, ska, glitter rock and other early eighties band influences among what seems to be an endless list. Duke Ellington and Fletcher Henderson are also listed as some of Perry's musical influences. When he was contemplating a genre of music, Perry wanted a version of punk rock that emphasized a way of thinking as an individual. "I admire people who think for themselves," he emphatically told me. Yet be careful when trying to classify this band, for it seems they would like to remain unclassifiable, and considering the variety one finds among their musical influences, this should not be a difficult task for them to achieve. About half the band's only musical schooling is that of the punk bands in which they have previously played. The other half is schooled musicians, and as Perry candidly says, "They know what key we're in." Apparently the rest do not often know the answer to this ever present musical mystery.

Although this band swings with the best of them, their lyrics would probably leave the masters of late '30s swing blushing. Perry refers to himself as a buckethead whenever it comes to thinking up the lyrics for Cherry Poppin' Daddies songs. He opens his mind to whatever flies through, and it seems there is no exception to that rule. They are all "ridiculous" little stories to him, some serious and others not, some reality based, others not. And when Perry talks about throwing back a bottle of beer in "Zoot Suit Riot," he is probably visualizing a Heineken. He says this beer is probably one of his favorites because it is not a sweet beer, and he made it very clear that he is not a man with a sweet tooth (unlike the rest of the band).

Cherry Poppin' Daddies have tried to stay away from the bar scene. They feel that since they are trying to appeal to all ages, with an emphasis on the younger generation, playing the bars shuts out part of their target audience. It really seems they put an effort into not alienating any part of their listening audience. But not only have they done the smaller gig thing, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies have also done touring. Perry says that the band becomes friends with anyone they tour with, a list including Reel Big Fish and Less Than Jake. However, the band has a special place in its heart for the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Their tour with the Bosstones came at a particularly low point in the band's journey, and Perry says that members of the Bosstones played cheerleaders, helping them through an otherwise pretty rough time. The Clemson show will be the second time a tour has brought the band to our great state.

The band is presently working on a new album that Perry expects to be ready in the fall. But do not expect it to be like the last CD, which was a compilation of the best swing on three previous CDs released under independent labels. Now this next bit of information that Steve Perry shared with me is going to take a little reader participation. Imagine this story as it was told to me by a Tiger staff member. The Cherry Poppin' Daddies are on a plane that crashes in an especially remote area of a treacherous mountain range. There is little chance of rescue anytime soon, and one of the band members must be eaten for the survival of the others. Hey, they've got eight, they can spare one. According to Perry, there is a definite consensus about who would be eaten. However, this is privileged information, for this person is "sense of humor impaired" and would not find this story amusing.

So as you are strolling around our recently beautified campus today, wander by the amphitheater at 7 p.m. and pay the Cherry Poppin' Daddies a visit. They will be playing as a closing to the Campus Sweep effort and it would be a shame to miss it.