Although some quality bands came out of the retro-swing trend of the '90s, many of them were amateurish, and by the end of the decade, retro-swing had pretty much dried up. But that doesn't mean that's the last of jump blues, only that a bunch of young bands aren't coming along and emulating the
Cherry Poppin' Daddies,
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, or the
Squirrel Nut Zippers. Those who are in it for the long haul --
Dave Clark, for example -- are still plugging away. Born in 1955, the saxophonist/bandleader was playing jump blues long before the neo-swing trend took off and was still doing his thing after its popularity faded. Actually,
Clark shouldn't be compared to the neo-swing artists of the '90s because what he does is undeniably different; while the
Cherry Poppin' Daddies and similar artists played a blend of jump blues and early rock & roll (with a big dose of irony),
Switchin' in the Kitchen has a more authentically '40s-like sound. Assembled by Delmark in 2003, this 60-minute CD focuses on recordings that
Clark made with his Chicago-based
Blues Swingers band in 1991, 1992, and 1999. The material (some of which features the late singer/guitarist
Floyd McDaniel) is quite faithful to the spirit of classic jump blues, swing, and early, pre-doo wop R&B; if it wasn't for the clean digital sound quality, one could easily assume that these recordings were actually made back when Harry Truman was president.
Clark has since discontinued the
Blues Swingers and moved to Los Angeles. Thankfully he's still playing jump blues, and this CD is a solid and enjoyable -- if derivative -- document of his years in the Windy City.