Search - Eight to the Bar :: Superhero Swinger Undercover

The best album from this Justice League of Swing!

Ryan Harvey | Los Angeles, CA USA | 03/09/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Eight to the Bar is one the longest surviving of all swing bands. Pianist Cynthia Lyon founded the band in the mid-70s, and they've been going strong ever since, through the lean and fat years. Not only have they been going strong, they're better now than ever. This, their most recent album, is the best yet. The line-up is superb, the musicians play perfectly together, and just about every track is a swing dancer's dream. Swing lovers, or people who just love jazz, blues, and R&B, who haven't discovered Eight to the Bar should start right here.The band (headquartered in Connecticut) plays a real variety of swing, with a strong focus on blues. Boogie woogie is a major part of their sound, but they can also play jazz and soul. Comedy is also a key part of the band's appeal: they have fun with their playing and many of their originals have a wicked sense of humor. Most of the band sings back-up vocals, creating a wonderful unified sound that recalls the Manhattan Transfer."Superhero Swinger Undercover" contains mostly originals written by various members of the band. The current line-up is Cynthia Lyon (piano), Collin Tilton (saxophone), Megan Keith (lead vocals), her brother David Keith (drums, percussion), Michael Corsini (bass), and Tommy Whalen (guitar). Most of the songs are written by Cynthia, Collin, Megan, and Tommy.Here is the wonderful variety of songs you'll find here:*"Superhero Swinger Undercover." The source of the awesome cover art! Megan Keith wrote and sings this fast-paced jump number guaranteed to exhaust most dancers. The lyrics are funny, and will speak to all those dancers, who (like me) seem to live ordinary lives during the day, but at night transform into oddly dressed swing machines! It's time to save the city with quality music!*"My Boogie Woogie Hand." Eight to the Bar often performs songs about the business of running a band. This lyric-heavy piece charts the history of the band itself. Cynthia sings it herself, explaining how the band was started by her left hand, "her boogie woogie hand." Obviously, there's some rockin' boogie woogie piano going on here as well.*"It's a Groove." One of the few covers, but it's one of the best performances on the album. This is a hot-stepping jump number with excellent back-up vocals. The Manhattan Transfer sound is very noticeable, and there's a great sax solo from Collin.*"Maybe Someday." The songs written by guitarist Tommy Whalen are always very hard-driving blues numbers. This is a great sassy vocal duet between Tommy and Megan very much like the classic song "You're the Boss." Lots of guitar here.*"Sugar High." Collin and Megan created this one, and it's the jazziest, smokiest piece on the album. It's the definition of `cool,' (but you sure can swing to it), and Collin's sax is some of his best work. Megan's vocal is silky and sexy.*"My Old Flame." No, this isn't the old standard, but an original soulful ballad from Cynthia. Her vocal is perfectly heartbreaking. There's a bit of a country feel here also.*"Reptile Man." A good example of the band's wacky, weird humor. Megan wrote and sings this Cajun and Latin-influenced love song about a woman who falls for a snake handler at the zoo. It's creepy and sexy at the same time. The poor girl in the song has some serious issues.*"The Shelf." Another comic number, this one written by Cynthia. She and Megan sing about a woman whose...uhm...attributes are extremely distracting. ("At the wedding no one pays attention to the bride and groom.")*"Troubles Drift Away." Another Tommy Whalen original, so it's pure hardcore blues. It's one of my favorites on the album, a slow tempo but very danceable number about sitting at the river to let your troubles drift away... Great organ and rhythm work on this one.*"Romeo." Cynthia wrote this number, which has the strongest soul inspiration of any piece on the album. The tight vocal work from the whole band help make this a fun one.*"Skeleton Key." My personal favorite piece, this original from Megan is an incredibly sexy and hypnotic blues dance number. Megan's voice is just a knock-out, and the beat is guaranteed to get a whole roomful of picky dancers swinging hard.*"I'm My Own Grandpaw." Ah, we had to have a `novelty' number in here somewhere. This is a cover of Ray Stevens's fast-vocal comedy song. Drummer David Keith sings the complex lyrics and plays the spoons, backed by only piano and bass. Not a dance song, but funny nonetheless, and you really get to hear how good a pianist Cynthia is.*"Set You Free." A live performance of Cynthia's original song. Appropriately enough for the band, the album ends on a song that combines everybody's talents and all the different styles they like to explore. Another of the highlights of the album.So if you haven't heard them yet, what are you waiting for! A band that's been around for more than 25 years is obviously a group that knows what its doing. And they've never done it better than on this album."