Brian Setzer Orchestra

Who'd have thought that former rockabilly bad boy Brian Setzer's fondest dream was to lead a swinging big band? Born in April 10, 1959 at Massapequa, Long Island, New York, Setzer emerged an American guitarist, singer and songwriter.Brian recently moved from Southern California to Minneapolis, Minnesota, with his wife Julie (former singer with the Dustbunnies), whom he originally met as a back-up singer for the Brian Setzer Orchestra in 2000. They were married in California in 2005.

In the 1980s, Setzer grouped a rockabilly band, Stray Cats, which caught America's attention after 1982 album Built for Speed, comprising of the two Top Ten hits, "Rock This Town" (#9) and "Stray Cat Strut" (#3), along with the follow-up 1983 album Rant 'N Rave, with the two successful singles "(She's) Sexy + 17" (#5), and "I Won't Stand In Your Way" (#35).In the 1990s, Setzer retorted swing and big band music, when he fashioned The Brian Setzer Orchestra. The band released 6 albums to date and two live DVDs. With a hit, "Jump, Jive An' Wail" and songs like the Cherry Poppin' Daddies' "Zoot Suit Riot" received applause in mainstream America.

During the past 7 years, Setzer earned 3 Grammy Awards (Best Pop Performance Duo/Group for "Jump Jive An' Wail", and 2 Best Pop Instrumental Performance awards for "Sleepwalk" and "Caravan"). In December 2006 he received his 7th Grammy nomination for his version of "My Favorite Things," again in the Best Pop Instrumental Performance category.

Setzer and his 17 member orchestra struts through a set of standards and originals, all featuring his guitar and vocals. It gears with screeching trumpet and a quintet of melodious saxophones before Setzer fills up the room with the originals "Lady Luck" and "Ball and Chain." Both feature witty lyrics recalling the '40s and '50s smoke-filled bars and dance halls yet still sounding contemporary. That's the trick Setzer maintains throughout the whole record: the style references Louis Jordan and Louis Prima through Count Basie and Henry Mancini, but the band is potent and unyielding as a drum. The swing is natural and never dated with the sound of Stray Cats as ever. However, on the slower numbers, Setzer's vocal limitations are evident; he sounds more like Dino than Frankie. Both "Route 66" and "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" pale in comparison to other recent versions by Natalie Cole or the Manhattan Transfer. But, as he remakes Carl Perkins, Al Jolson, and even his own Stray Cats past, Setzer swings throughout in a way that makes it obvious he both enjoys and understands the music. More vital and enjoyable than the ghost bands, it sets the stage for the '90s swing movement that featured Royal Crown Revue and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.

In his trial of solo albums during Stray Cats' break in the 1980s with some work in the 1990s, he released an album titled Ignition with his band '68 Comeback Special in 2001. A tribute album titled Rockabilly Riot Vol. 1: A Tribute To Sun Records was released on July 26, 2005, in the United States. His latest Record, 13, was released in October 2006. Brian tours in the United States and overseas with his orchestra.

The orchestra still maintains a high level of popularity as one of the only acts from the Swing Revival of the 1990s. The BSO is commonly seen during the December holidays covering Christmas songs, and often play the Rockefeller Center tree lighting ceremony. After covering Louis Prima's "Jump Jive An' Wail", the follow up single was "Gettin' In the Mood." The group paved the way for other Swing Revival artists such as Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Squirrel Nut Zippers, and Cherry Poppin' Daddies.