Squirrel Nut Zippers
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| Squirrel Nut Zippers | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin |  Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States |
| Genre(s) | Swing revival |
| Years active | 1993-2001 2006-present |
| Label(s) | Mammoth |
| Website | Official Site |
| Members | |
| James "Jimbo" Mathus Katharine Whalen Chris Phillips Stu Cole Je Widenhouse Will Dawson |
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| Former members | |
| Tom Maxwell Ken Mosher Don Raleigh Stacy Guess Robert Griffin Dave Wright Tim Smith Reese Gray Andrew Bird |
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The Squirrel Nut Zippers are a band formed in 1993 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina by James "Jimbo" Mathus (vocals and guitar), Katharine Whalen (vocals, banjo, and ukulele), Chris Phillips on drums, Don Raleigh on bass and sideman Ken Mosher.
While the band's eclectic fusion of Delta blues, gypsy jazz, 1930s-era swing, klezmer, and other styles made them hard to categorize, their quirky music found a niche in the late 1990s. After several years off, the original band members took to the stage again in 2007, playing select dates around the United States. Additional performances are scheduled in 2008.
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[edit] History
[edit] 1990s
The band was founded by Jim "Jimbo" Mathus, formerly of Metalflake Mother and Johnny Vomit & The Dry Heaves, and his then-wife Katharine Whalen in Carrboro, North Carolina along with Chris Phillips, Don Raleigh and Ken Mosher. The group made its debut in Chapel Hill a few months later. Stacy Guess (formerly of Pressure Boys) joined shortly after. The band's name comes from the Squirrel Brand's Nut Zippers, a peanut and caramel candy for sale since the mid-20s.[1]
The band was initially lumped into the "lounge" movement, along with Combustible Edison, and credited as part of the brief swing music revival of the 1990s. The Zippers incorporated a broad range of music, ranging from Harlem Hot Music, Cab Calloway, Johnny Ace, Delta Blues, Raymond Scott, Fats Waller, Django Reinhardt, Tom Waits, and klezmer. The song "Hell", a single,[1] that peaked at number 13, was a calypso knock off that helped push the band into the heart of the neo swing movement.
Songs from the band's first album, The Inevitable (1995) were played on US National Public Radio. Their second album, Hot (1996) was certified platinum (1,000,000 unit shipped) in the Fall of 1997. The "Hot" album was one of the first ECDs - an "enhanced" audio CD containing an interactive presentation created by filmmaker Clay Walker. Perennial Favorites (1998) also received critical acclaim. Also released in 1998 was Christmas Caravan, a Christmas-themed album. The band recorded Bedlam Ballroom in 1999 after touring the previous records extensively.
The band performed at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, on Prairie Home Companion, President Clinton's second inaugural ball, Comedy Central's Viva Variety, and major television shows: The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, Conan O'Brien and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve in 1998. The band toured with Neil Young in 1997. The band performed in a segment on Sesame Street in 2001. The band had recorded a version of "Under The Sea" which was going to be included on the DVD release of The Little Mermaid, but Disney decided against it. Disney had purchased Mammoth Records just months prior to this recording. The song was eventually released on the band's greatest hits CD.
[edit] 2000s
Although many criticized the show Contact for its lack of original music, it was also widely acclaimed and won the 2000 Tony Award for Best Musical. Movies that have licensed Zippers' songs include Monkeybone, Dead Man on Campus, Flirting with Disaster, Fido, Blast from the Past and the animated feature film Happily N'Ever After licensed the Bedlam Ballroom song "Baby Wants a Diamond Ring".
Katharine Whalen has released two solo albums.[1] Jim Mathus toured with Buddy Guy before forming his band Knockdown Society.[2] Je Widenhouse and Reese Gray are recording and touring with Firecracker Jazz Band.[3] Chris Phillips 2 years playing with the Dickies, as well as playing with William Reid from the Jesus and Mary Chain. His current side band The Lamps includes members of the Bangles and The Connells. He also is the composer for the Comedy Central television show "Lil' Bush", and other contemporary films. Jimbo Mathis owns and operates a recording studio outside of Memphis, TN, where he has worked on albums with artists from Elvis Costello to the Hives.
[edit] Reunion
In early 2007, the band's official website and MySpace blog announced new tour dates, with a lineup consisting of founder Jimbo Mathus (guitar, vocals), Katharine Whalen (vocals, banjo, percussion, ukulele), Chris Phillips (drums), Je Widenhouse (trumpet), Stuart Cole (bass), and Will Dawson (piano/guitar/saxophone). With the proclamation "Ladies and Gentlemen... They're Back", the band performed concert dates throughout the United States and Canada in spring and summer of 2007.
[edit] Members
- James "Jimbo" Mathus — vocals, guitar, slide guitar, tenor banjo, trombone, piano
- Katharine Whalen — vocals, banjo, ukulele
- Stuart Cole — bass
- Chris Phillips — percussion, contraption kit, drums
- Je Widenhouse — trumpet, cornet
- Will Dawson — saxophone
[edit] Former members
- Ken Mosher — guitar, saxophone, vocals
- Tom Maxwell — vocals, guitar, saxophone, gong
- Don Raleigh — bass, gong
- Stacy Guess — trumpet
- David Wright — trombone
- Reese Grey — piano
- Tim Smith — alto saxophone
- Andrew Bird — violin (Honorary member)
Stacy Guess was forced out two weeks prior to the recording of Hot, in September 1995. He died of a heroin overdose on March 11, 1998.[2] Je Widenhouse (formerly of the Sex Police) joined the band in 1995.
Don Raleigh departed in the middle of the Perennial Favorites sessions in November 1996. He was replaced by Stuart Cole. In July 1999, singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Tom Maxwell left the band. In October 1999, songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Ken Mosher also quit. In 1999, Reese Gray (piano), Tim Smith (alto saxophone) and David Wright (trombone) joined the band.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- The Inevitable (1995)
- Hot (1996)
- Sold Out (1997)
- Roasted Right (EP, 1997)
- Perennial Favorites (1998)
- Christmas Caravan (1998)
- Bedlam Ballroom (2000)
- The Best of Squirrel Nut Zippers as Chronicled by Shorty Brown (2002)
[edit] Singles
- Hell (1996)
- Put a Lid on It (1997)
- Suits Are Picking Up the Bill (1998)
[edit] References
- ^ a b Yanow, Scott (2000). Swing. San Francisco, California: Miller Freeman Books, 478-479. ISBN 0-87930-600-9.
- ^ Stacy Guess bio. Answers.com. Retrieved October 16, 2007.
- Milkowski, Bill (2001). Swing It: An Annotated History of Jive, Bob Nikard, ed., and Alison Hagge, ed., New York, New York: Billboard Books, 251-254. ISBN 0-8230-7671-7.
