Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy is a contemporary swing revival band from Southern California. Their notable singles include "Go Daddy-O", "You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)", and "Mr. Pinstripe Suit". The band played at the Super Bowl XXXIII half-time show in 1999.

The band was originally formed in Ventura, California, in 1989 by leader Scotty Morris. The band was named Big Bad Voodoo Daddy after Scotty Morris met blues guitar legend Albert Collins at one of the latter's concerts. "He signed my poster 'To Scotty, the big bad voodoo daddy'," Morris explains. "I thought it was the coolest name I ever heard on one of the coolest musical nights I ever had. So when it came time to name this band, I didn't really have a choice. I felt like it was handed down to me."

He and Kurt Sodergren are the two original members, with the rest of the band joining later. The band has concentrated on the swing of the 1940s and 1950s, playing clubs and lounges in their early years.

Early career: 1989–1996
After playing in punk and alternative rock bands during the 1980s, including False Confession, part of the Oxnard, California Nardcore scene, Scotty Morris founded Big Bad Voodoo Daddy with Kurt Sodergren. The band launched two CDs, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Watchu' Want for Christmas? under their own label (Big Bad Records) before getting their big break when their songs "You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)", "I Wan'na Be Like You" and "Go Daddy-O" were featured in the soundtrack of the 1996 comedy-drama Swingers.

Commercial success: 1997–2004
From there, they were signed by Capitol Records. With Capitol, the band released Americana Deluxe, This Beautiful Life, and Save My Soul. The band has continued their tours, performances and album releases. The band had appeared at the 1999 Super Bowl half-time show and the 2006 Capital One Bowl, and also served as the house band for ESPN's ESPY Awards for a few years. The band created a version of the opening theme for the sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, which was used for the 1999–2000 season.

Live performances and return: 2005–present
Over the last few years, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy has played numerous Pops programs of American symphony orchestras, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. They created a new song for the movie The Wild, and recorded a song for Disney's Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation Special. BBVD also performed on the hit television show Dancing with the Stars, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to promote their album How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway, a collection of their renditions of Cab Calloway songs in April 2009. They also have been performing at EPCOT for the annual Food and Wine Festival since 2008.

Band members

 * Scotty Morris (lead vocals and guitar)
 * Kurt Sodergren (drums and percussion)
 * Dirk Shumaker (double bass and vocals)
 * Andy Rowley (baritone saxophone and vocals)
 * Glen Marhevka (trumpet)
 * Karl Hunter (saxophones and clarinet)
 * Joshua Levy (piano, arranger)
 * Andrew Lamoure (triangle)

Touring members

 * Tony Bonsera (trumpet)
 * Alex "Crazy Legs" Henderson (trombone)

Discography

 * Studio albums
 * Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (1994)
 * Watchu' Want for Christmas? (1997)
 * Americana Deluxe (1998)
 * This Beautiful Life (1999)
 * Save My Soul (2003)
 * Everything You Want for Christmas (2004)
 * How Big Can You Get?: The Music of Cab Calloway (2009)
 * Rattle Them Bones (2012)


 * Live and compilations
 * Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Live (2004) CD + DVD set


 * Singles
 * You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby) CD Single (Interscope Records 1999)

Filmography

 * Big Bad Voodoo Daddy appeared as themselves in Night of the Living Doo, a special farcical episode of Scooby-Doo.
 * Big Bad Voodoo Daddy appeared as themselves in the 1996 film 'Swingers', in which they played a set (including "You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)") at a club that the characters visit.