''Susquehanna'' is the fifth studio album by the

Cherry Poppin' Daddies The Cherry Poppin' Daddies are an American swing and ska band established in Eugene, Oregon, in 1989. Formed by singer-songwriter Steve Perry and bassist Dan Schmid, the band has experienced numerous personnel changes over the course of its 30 ...

, released by Space Age Bachelor Pad Records in February 2008 and reissued by

Rock Ridge Music Rock Ridge Music is an independent record label and artist management company based in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 2004, it has signed, managed, and/or promoted artists including Reel Big Fish, Sister Hazel, Rachel Platten, Matthew Perryman ...

in September 2009. ''Susquehanna'' marked the band's return to recording after nearly a decade following their hiatus in 2000 and sporadic touring throughout 2002–2006. The album follows the eclectic format of previous records, with

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

-influences in addition to the band's usual swing,

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

, and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

Overview

''Susquehanna'' is influenced by

and

Caribbean music Caribbean music genres are very diverse. They are each synthesis of African, European, Arab, Asian, and Indigenous influences, largely created by descendants of African slaves (see Afro-Caribbean music), along with contributions from other commun ...

, incorporating

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and ...

("Roseanne"), soca ("Tom the Lion"),

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

("Breathe"),

Latin rock Latin rock is a term to describe a subgenre blending traditional sounds and elements of Latin American and Hispanic Caribbean folk with rock music. However, it is widely used in the English-language media to refer any kind of rock music featurin ...

("Bust Out"), and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

("Blood Orange Sun") with swing, ska, and

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

. While the majority of the album is original, a notable exception is a re-recording of "Hi and Lo", a

ska punk Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music together. (sometimes spelled skacore) is a subgenre of ska punk that mixes ska with hardcore punk. Early ska punk mixed both 2 tone and ska with hardc ...

song written by Daddies frontman

Steve Perry Stephen Ray Perry (born January 22, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer of the rock band Journey during their most commercially successful periods from 1977 to 1987, and again from 1995 to 1998. He also wrote/co ...

for The Mighty Mighty Bosstones in the mid-1990s, ending up as part of the Daddies' own repertoire and becoming a staple of their live shows. Perry explained that the album's tropical slant was due to his prediction that one day "American pop will owe a huge debt to

world In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

sensibilities...these I wanted to explore and potentially boil down to some fundamental building blocks that might lead toward a new, more international style". Stylistically, Perry claimed that he based the structure of ''Susquehanna'' on James Joyce's ''

Ulysses Ulysses is one form of the Roman name for Odysseus, a hero in ancient Greek literature. Ulysses may also refer to: People * Ulysses (given name), including a list of people with this name Places in the United States * Ulysses, Kansas * Ulysse ...

'' in that each of the songs were written in a different style and genre but the album was thematically coherent. He elaborated that he drew inspiration from

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

's 1965 film '' Pierrot le fou'' in that "songs are a means to an end. Genres reflect off each other". "It's like a little movie, doing what I always do with genres, which is to use them kind of like paint. I use various genres and grind them against each other. I like to put a flamenco song next to a song that's a glam rock song next to a song that's a swing song, so that the flavor changes." Like most of the Daddies' previous albums, ''Susquehanna'' is written as a loose

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

. Described by Perry as a portrait of "various relationships in decay", each song deals with memories, all written in the format of an abstract narrative following a character in the aftermath of a broken relationship. Perry has summarized ''Susquehanna'' as being about "losses and continuing on. It's about love, doubt and fatigue...and ultimately about gratitude".Perry, Steve. ''The Official CPD Website''. 2008.
/ref>

Production history

News of a new Daddies studio album first surfaced in mid-2006 during a radio interview with Steve Perry. He confirmed that a new album was in the process of being written and would cover some new territory for the band, drawing on Latin, tropical and reggae sounds, though it would contain a few swing tracks as well.Maxim, Bryce (Apr. 8, 2006)
Interview with Steve Perry (audio)
WMLB AM 1160, ''Backstage Atlanta''. Most of this new material was debuted during the band's 2006 US tour. On February 9, 2007, the band released a collection of demo songs available for purchase: the reggae-tinged "Blood Orange Sun", the Latin-inspired "Bust Out", and the flamenco ballad "Roseanne". According to a blog on the band's official MySpace page, recording began on the 25th of June. By September 5, the record was finally tracked but not fully mixed, and given the title ''Susquehanna'', after the

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

near where Perry grew up (up until then, the album went under a number of working titles, including ''Truth & Consequences'' and ''The Good Things''). Perry confirmed that there were 12 tracks on the album, and that they were "...all part of the same story..... does that make it a

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

or just a bunch of stuff that happened?"Perry, Steve (Sep. 5, 2007)
Official Website Update
Daddies.com ''Susquehanna'' was released via digital download through the Daddies' website on February 19, 2008, before being made available in a limited CD pressing on June 10, 2008. Both formats of the album were available to purchase exclusively through the band's website until their signing to independent label

in 2009, when ''Susquehanna'' was re-issued and given national distribution on September 29, 2009, in conjuncture with the Daddies' ska compilation '' Skaboy JFK''.

Response

Critical reception of ''Susquehanna'' ranged from mixed to positive. While its low-profile release went mostly unnoticed by major media outlets, various internet publications were polarized over the album's multi-genre format, either praising the band for their musical experimentation or criticizing them as inconsistent. AbsolutePunk.net awarded the album an 86% rating, stating "there are only good things to say about the Cherry Poppin' Daddies new album", calling it "full of fun and surprisingly entertaining".Frances, Susan
'Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Susquehanna'
AbsolutePunk.net October 1, 2008. '' Metro Spirit'' delivered most of the praise on Perry's "secret weapon" voice, adding "being backed by a blistering horn section and hotshit guitar player certainly doesn’t hurt either".

Blogcritics Blogcritics is a blog network and online magazine of news and opinion. The site was founded in 2002 by Eric Olsen and Phillip Winn. Blogcritics features more than 100 original articles every week, and maintains an archive of all its published con ...

also gave the album a positive review, describing it as "pleasurable listening", and in a later re-reviewing of the re-release, lauded the album's narrative concept and lyrical interconnectedness as an "amazing undertaking". On the opposite end of the critical spectrum,

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave ''Susquehanna'' a rating of 3.5/5, claiming that it lacked "oomph or punch" and the band ultimately "leave the listener with little pop".MacNeil, Jason. allmusic (( Susquehanna > Overview ))

.com. Retrieved September 8, 2010. ''

Reax Music Magazine ''Reax Music Magazine'' is a Tampa-based music and art magazine first published by Joel Cook in 2006. ''Reaxs distribution reaches nearly twenty markets throughout the state of Florida, including Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Miami, a ...

'' noted that the only tunes the reviewer felt succeeded were the ones that stuck to the band's original swing formula,Shaw, George
'Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Susquehanna'
www.reaxmusic.com. April 7, 2008. while

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

called Perry's songwriting attempts at being multi-genre "jumbled", "smug" and "flat-out overstuffed", though praising "Hi and Lo" as being "absolutely extraordinary".Sawdey, Evan
The Cherry Poppin' Daddies - 'Susquehanna'
www.popmatters.com. June 10, 2008 In a 2009 re-review by a separate author, the album was given a score of 8/10, citing the blend of genres as "the truest overall representation of the band" and the Daddies' "best work so far".Loar, Christel
'Music Review: Cherry Poppin' Daddies'
www.popmatters.com. November 17, 2009.

Track listing

Previous availability

*A previous studio version of "Hi and Lo" appeared on ''Vacationing in Palm Springs'' (1997), a split 7-inch with

Reel Big Fish Reel Big Fish is an American ska punk band from Orange County, California. The band gained mainstream recognition in the mid-to-late 1990s during the third wave of ska with the release of the gold-certified album ''Turn the Radio Off''. Soon af ...

Personnel

; Cherry Poppin' Daddies *

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

Dana Heitman Dana Conrad Heitman (born January 18, 1966) is an American musician, known for his work as the trumpeter for the Eugene, Oregon ska-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, of which he has been a member since the band's formation. Biography Heit ...

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

Dan Schmid Daniel Joseph Schmid (born November 22, 1962) is an American musician, known for his work as the bassist and co-founder of the ska-swing music, swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies. Schmid was also part of the rock duo the Visible Men, and has w ...

- bass * Jason Moss -

*Sean Flannery -

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

and

bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

s *

Dustin Lanker Dustin Ross Lanker (born October 7, 1976) is an American keyboardist, known for his work as a member of the ska- swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies and the ska punk band the Mad Caddies, as well as the singer-songwriter for the rock trio The ...

- keyboards, vocals *Tim Donahue -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

*Joe Manis -

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...

and bari saxophones ; Additional musicians *Billy Barnett - guitar, bass *Jaime Woods -

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

*Rose Woods - castanets, wood floor flamenco *Ishi Woods -

cajón A cajón (; "box", "crate" or "drawer") is a box-shaped percussion instrument originally from Peru, played by slapping the front or rear faces (generally thin plywood) with the hands, fingers, or sometimes implements such as brushes, mallets, ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

*Ricardo Cardenas - guitar *Tim Clark - trumpet *Glenn Bonny -

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

*Glenn Griffith - trombone *Lydia Van Dreel -

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

*Dale Bradley -

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

*Kristin Halay -

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

; Production *Mastered by Brad Blackwood at Euphonic Mastering,

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

*Recorded and mixed by Billy Barnett at Gung Ho Studios in Eugene,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Susquehanna (Album) Cherry Poppin' Daddies albums 2008 albums 2009 albums Concept albums Rock Ridge Music albums Worldbeat albums