Jazz Articles

Various Artists: Swing This, Baby! III

by Todd R. Brown
December 1, 2000

Throughout the 20th Century, jazz musicians and fans have maintained that “swing is the thing,” but it takes more than matching zoot suits to make a tune really cook.

And while it’s admirable that a new generation of revved-up fans are reviving America’s pop music of the 30s and 40s, the neo-swing scene is, unfortunately, devoted as much to superficial schtick (in terms of lyrical content as well as fashion) as it is to the hot music of the WWII ...