America’s favorite contemporary little big band, the award-winning retro swing ensemble Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, is set to release a new album, entitled How Big Can You Get (Big Bad/Vanguard Records), on April 21, 2009. The 11-song CD is a tribute to Cab Calloway, the legendary big band leader and jazz singer, and was recorded in honor of what would have been Cab’s 100th Birthday.

How Big Can You Get is a career milestone for Big Bad Voodoo Daddy — and not only as an illuminating revival of Calloway’s often hilarious (and just as often pointed) songbook, in the most skilled and enthusiastic hands imaginable. It’s also a revelatory moment for the band, whose musicianship, fire and interpretive powers are at an all-time high.

Says bandleader Scotty Morris, “Making the album was one of our biggest musical moments. Delving into Cab’s music made us see the high level that his songs were written and arranged at, and why they’ve lasted. We went top-to-bottom live in the studio and chose the best takes for the album, because Cab’s originals were live performances and radio broadcasts. People got a glimpse of him when he stole the show in the Blues Brothers movie. We want people to know he was more than the King of Hi-De-Ho-we want to put a light on Cab’s legacy more fully.”

Produced by Morris and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, the record features several Calloway classics, including “Minnie the Moocher”, “The Ghost of Smokey Joe” and “The Jumpin’ Jive,” alongside some of his less obvious, yet just as powerful tunes, like “Reefer Man,” “Calloway Boogie” and “The Old Man of the Mountain” — all performed with the band’s usual enthusiastic approach and great interpretation.

The band also received support from Cab Calloway’s family throughout the project. Says Morris, “We felt like we were hugging an old friend when we made this album.”

Formed in Ventura, California in 1989, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy released two records independently before breaking nationally in the cult comedy film Swingers. They went on to release ten additional albums on various major labels before striking a deal to develop their own label, Big Bad Records, through legendary Vanguard. The group has sold more than 2 million albums, and several of their most popular songs, including “Mr. Pinstripe” and “You & Me & the Bottle Makes 3 Tonight,” have been featured in films and soundtracks worldwide.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy has also performed at the Billboard Music Awards, the White House, and during the halftimes of both the Super Bowl and the Orange Bowl. Their videos have been regularly featured on MTV and VH1, and they have appeared as musical guests on numerous television shows, including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live with Regis and Kelly and Late Night with Conan O’Brien. Since their humble beginnings, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy has outlasted the neo-swing movement and continues to deliver to its loyal and consistent fan base.

“How Big Can You Get,” the title track of the band’s latest release – now unbelievably poignant with lyrics that comment on corporate greed – is also the first single off the album. The group is shooting a new music video in Los Angeles this month, and will start a major tour in support of the new album beginning in April. For upcoming tour dates, visit www.bbvd.com.

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