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The Squirrel Nut Zippers Return With Their Annual Holiday Caravan Tour And Celebrate The Holidays In Chicago
By Kelly Clausen
Jimbo Mathus brings his jazz-revival band, The Squirrel Nut Zippers (now in their 30th year) back on the road to celebrate the holidays the only way they know how with song. The New Orleans band of misfits rolls up to Chicago’s City Winery for a two show party. We attended the late show and witnessed the Nut Zipper fun.
If you haven’t attended a Zipper Holiday Caravan Show, you are missing out. The fact is, it’s just not the holidays without attending. This year marks the bands forth year of this traveling show. A show not only filled with Squirrel Nut Zipper hits, but more, reminiscing a vaudeville act.
The show starts promptly at 9:30 and runs for almost 2 hours. The band (all dressed to the nines) take the stage, seated at their own outlined spots, and jumps right into song. “Good Enough for Granddad” off their debut album, ‘The Inevitable’ (1995). This sets the mood for the night being warm and inviting.
From there, the show kicks into high gear.
The band, for the last five years, now consisting of all new members from the early incarnation of the original 90’s version, carries on the songs with Mathus at the helm to guide them along. The new Zippers are tight, fun and talented. The spark new life into those neo-jazz classics. One of the stand out performers in this new lineup was multi-instrumentalist, Dr. Sick. Sick, played fiddle, guitar, banjo and other instruments including, the saw blade. When he played this, it really got noticed as the house became enthralled with it and cheered for him when his ‘solo’ was complete.
The show continued on with Christmas classics like “Misfit Toys”, “Hot xmas” and a Benny Goodman cover of “Winter Weather”. Every so often they’d pause and talk to the crowd. Every few songs they’d break down into commercial jingle skits similar to olde timey radio broadcasts, each one a reference to Squirrel Nut Zipper branded candy, smokes and peanuts. Even a couple new songs were heard with tracks off their latest release, “Lost Songs Of Doc Souchon” (2020) the depression era classic, “Happy Days Are Here Again” and an original, “Purim Nigrum”.
One of the highlights from the show was a skit performance about Santa smoking reefer. Jimbo brought out a giant stocking, reached in and pulled out a treasure trove of oversized joints ending with a smoking good time.
Other hits were strung throughout the set including everyone’s favorites, “Hell”, “Put A Lid On It” and “Ghost of Stephen Foster” complete with the old black and white animated video accompaniment. This along with a rabble raising rendition of “Trou Macacq” where Dr. Sick started off with an amazing violin solo that impressed. And the talent showcase didn’t end there. The rest of the band joined in on their own instruments doing solos like a Jazz club show should before ending the almost eight minute jam.
At the end, the band exclaimed, “At this point in the show we’d do an encore, but since we already did a show before this, we’re not. We’re gonna do three more for ya!”. The house cheered and sang along with the final moments ending on the romantic, cozy by the fireside classic, “I’m Coming Home For Christmas”.
Seeing this show at City Winery is both good and bad. I mean, I love the venue. It’s small intimate seating gives everyone an up close personal view. The sound is great. Not too loud. Everything is clear as a bell, even your tablemate neighbors, but this is a dancing kind of show with a dancehall band. They really should have had a section set up for dancing. That would have really put this over the top. I know that’s not what this club is about, but, since it’s a special occasion and a holiday party, I think space could have been made for it. Maybe a consideration for next year.
This is one of those shows you just look forward to each year. I know I do. If you are looking for a great pick me up, warm your soul kind of holiday event, this is it. It primes you good for the season and leaves you tapping your feet on the way out.
For more on the Squirrel Nut Zippers, click here
For photos from the show, click here
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