Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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The commercialization of alternative music in the '90s resulted in many strange one-hit wonders, but few were quite as unpredictable as Squirrel Nut Zippers. During a time when hipsters were obsessed with swing music in its relation to Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin's Rat Pack, the Zippers were fascinated with big-band swing and Harlem, creating a tongue-in-cheek salute to '20s and '30s jazz. For younger listeners familiar with the style but not the content of classic hot jazz, the band was good fun, but purists found the group's vaguely campy sense of humor and amateurish technique off-putting. This debate would never have even been a matter of consideration if "Hell," an incessantly catchy single from their 1997 album Hot, hadn't been able to sneak through loosened alternative airplay to become a novelty hit. "Hell" became a crossover hit on the strength of a bizarrely theatrical vehicle, and Squirrel Nut Zippers quickly became one of the hottest alternative bands of the first half of the year.

Jim Mathus (vocals, guitar, trombone) and Katharine Whalen (vocals, banjo) formed Squirrel Nut Zippers in 1993 after leaving Chapel Hill, NC, for the nearby small town of Efland. As soon as they settled in Efland, the couple renovated a farmhouse, where they pursued various arts and crafts, and eventually the band fell into shape as Mathus and Whalen met local citizens like Don Raleigh (bass) and Ken Mosher (guitar, saxophone, vocals) who shared an interest in hot jazz. Before long, Chris Phillips (drums, percussion), Tom Maxwell (vocals, guitar, baritone saxophone, clarinet), and Je Widenhouse (trumpet) were added to the band, which was now named after an old-fashioned candy bar, Squirrel Nut Zippers. The group soon made its live debut in Chapel Hill and within a few months had developed a large fan base throughout the South.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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By the end of 1994, Squirrel Nut Zippers had signed with Mammoth Records, and they released their debut album, The Inevitable, in the spring of 1995. The album didn't make much of an impact, but the group continued to tour. Their second album, Hot, was released in January of 1997. Soon after its release, "Hell" became a hit on such influential radio stations as Los Angeles' KROQ, and MTV soon made the video into a buzz clip. By the spring, "Hell" and Hot had become hits, as the single was a staple on modern rock stations. Although the Zippers were now successful, they received mixed reviews, with many critics claiming that they were mocking hot jazz, not paying tribute. Nevertheless, the album went gold, and a second single, "Put a Lid on It," was released in the summer. Perennial Favorites followed in 1998, as did Christmas Caravan. Two years later, the band released Bedlam Ballroom, showcasing a cut by late bandmate Stacy Guess. Squirrel Nut Zippers went on an extended hiatus in the early part of the decade and eventually reconvened in 2008 for the live concert album Lost at Sea, which saw release a year later.

Squirrel Nut Zippers MySpace page
Squirrel Nut Zippers at Wikipedia

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - The Inevitable (1995)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 257 MB | Full Scans | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 78 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 35:12 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # MR 0105-2

all music.com says: The members of the band mostly just call it jazz, or "hot music," or, when they're feeling naughty, "race music" – a term that dates back to the1920s and '30s, when major record labels released jump blues and hot jazz singles under special subsidiary imprints with names like Okeh and Sepiatone. It's music that doesn't really have a name anymore, yet everyone recognizes it and loves it. This wasn't the album that made the Squirrel Nut Zippers a household name (that honor goes to Hot, the follow-up), but it sure could have if given the chance. An instrumental with the pitch-perfect title of "Lugubrious Whing Whang," cover versions of "You're Drivin' Me Crazy" and "I've Found a New Baby," originals like "Lover's Lane," and the absolutely hair-raising "La Grippe" – these are not just labors of love by dewy-eyed nostalgists. The SNZs have taken this music and appropriated it entirely, without a trace of irony or condescension. The result is magnificent.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Hot (1996)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 255 MB | Full Scans | DATA | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 88 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 38:40 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # MR 0137-2

all music.com says: The members of the band mostly just call it jazz, or "hot music," or, when they're feeling naughty, "race music" – a term that dates back to the1920s and '30s, when major record labels released jump blues and hot jazz singles under special subsidiary imprints with names like Okeh and Sepiatone. It's music that doesn't really have a name anymore, yet everyone recognizes it and loves it. This wasn't the album that made the Squirrel Nut Zippers a household name (that honor goes to Hot, the follow-up), but it sure could have if given the chance. An instrumental with the pitch-perfect title of "Lugubrious Whing Whang," cover versions of "You're Drivin' Me Crazy" and "I've Found a New Baby," originals like "Lover's Lane," and the absolutely hair-raising "La Grippe" – these are not just labors of love by dewy-eyed nostalgists. The SNZs have taken this music and appropriated it entirely, without a trace of irony or condescension. The result is magnificent.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Sold Out (1997)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 202 MB | Scans | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 73 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 33:49 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # MR 0177-2

all music.com says: After "Hell" made Squirrel Nut Zippers' second album, Hot, into a platinum success, the group rush-released the limited-edition Sold Out EP. Comprised of live cuts, outtakes, and rarities, the EP is a boon to dedicated fans, especially because of "Pallin' With Al," a duet with Fats Waller's pianist. Tracks like that prove that the Squirrel Nut Zippers aren't simply kitschy – they actually have affection for the music.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Perennial Favorites (1998)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 259 MB | Full Scans | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 89 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 38:43 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # 980169-2

all music.com says: Although it had been simmering for a little while, the neo-swing boom had its breakthrough hit in early 1997 with the Squirrel Nut Zippers' "Hell." Instead of fading away, the movement simply gained momentum, virtually guaranteeing a large audience for the group's summer 1998 follow-up album, Perennial Favorites. The title is a sly joke, since the group are revivalists who happen to be part of a fad, but they do prove to be more substantial than many of their peers with this record. Part of the reason they stand apart from the rest of the neo-swing crowd is that they don't forget that there was a bit of menace in the days of hot jazz – it wasn't a naive, swinging party, there was some genuine hedonism as well. Since the Zippers are revivalists, they can only hint at the subtext that informed swing and hot jazz, but that's considerably more than their glitzy peers do. They also have a knack for a solid hook, and they deliver it all with panache and loose-limbed glee. The band may lack the chops that would make this enticing to jazzbos, but they are developing their own style, and they also have songwriting skills. "The Ghost of Stephen Foster," in particular, is a tour de force, encapsulating SNZ's gift for hooks, their subversive sense of humor, and their hidden dark side. Moments like that prove that the Squirrel Nut Zippers are more than a one-hit wonder.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Christmas Caravan (1998)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 220 MB | Full Scans | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 77 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 34:16 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # 980192-2

all music.com says: Since they were riding high on the strength of Hot, the Squirrel Nut Zippers convinced Mammoth to release a holiday album, Christmas Caravan, just months after they delivered Perennial Favorites, their follow-up to Hot. It was an unconventional move, but the Zippers were never about convention, and, appropriately, Christmas Caravan isn't a conventional holiday record. Relying heavily on original material, the crew has created the Christmas equivalent of one of their studio releases – an album that revives swing and hot jazz, tweaking it a little bit with ironic humor yet remaining reverential of the music's heritage. If anything, they take fewer liberties on Christmas Caravan than before – there aren't as many jokes and the music sounds surprisingly restrained at places. Still, the Zippers know how to have a good time, and that's exactly what Christmas Caravan does, thanks to their enthusiastic performances, strong songwriting and sharp covers ("Winter Weather," "Sleigh Ride").

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Bedlam Balroom (2000)
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 243 MB | Full Scans | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 88 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 38:18 minutes | Label: Mammoth Records Inc. / Cat. # MR 65502-2

all music.com says: Despite undergoing massive lineup changes, among which were vocalist and guitar player Tom Maxwell going solo, the death of original trumpet blower Stacy Guess, and the birth of a daughter to bandleaders Jim Mathus and Katherine Whalen in May 2000, the Squirrel Nut Zippers persevered through all of it to release a wonderful, progressive (for them) album. Granted, the hot jazz and Dixieland tunes that the band is known for are still present, but the first thing one hears upon listening to this album is a synthesizer and a Spanish guitar. And how about some '70s funk and soul? Funky is the surprising quality of this work, which is why the album stands out among the group's past efforts. Perennial Favorites had some good performances, but seemed more of a mere continuation of what was laid down on Hot. Here, New Orleans-type funky grooves mix with a Spanish guitar on consecutive tracks, and the juxtaposition reminds the listener of just how magnificent and inspired the Squirrel Nut Zippers can be when they try to grow. Perhaps those who were a part of the neo-swing "revival" of the mid- to late-'90s won't be so receptive to this album, but to anyone who enjoys spirited old-timey music (spanning a range of times), Bedlam Ballroom is a damn hoot.

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Squirrel Nut Zippers: 7 CDs collection (1995-2009) RE-UP

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Squirrel Nut Zippers - Lost At Sea (2009) [Live]
EAC-FLAC Image with CUE & LOG - 454 MB | Web Scans included | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps - 145 MB
Swing Revival / Neoswing | 63:19 minutes | Label: Southern Broadcast / Cat. # SB-01

all music.com says: Recorded in 2008 at The Southpaw in Brooklyn, NY, Lost at Sea features the retro-swing and Southern roots music ensemble Squirrel Nut Zippers performing live. Featuring the full-band including longtime leaders guitarists/vocalists Jimbo Mathus and Katharine Whalen, Lost at Sea finds the Zippers running through a bevy of the band's classic cuts as well as some newer material. In that sense, the album is a nice document of where the band was when they helped launch the retro-swing revival of the '90s, as well as an update of where the band is now. To these ends, you get thoroughly romping versions of "Good Enough for Grandad" off 1995's Inevitable, "Memphis Exorcism" and "Hell" off 1997's Hot, and "Ghost of Stephen Foster" off 1998's Perennial Favorites. This is a seriously enjoyable, high-energy roots show that should appeal to longtime Squirrel Nut Zippers fans as well as anybody in the mood for humorously witty and fingersnapping blues and jazz.