The Zoot Suit Riots were a series of violent conflicts that occurred from June 3 to June 8, 1943, in Los Angeles, California, during which U.S. servicemen attacked young Latinos and other minorities who wore zoot suits—outfits featuring balloon-legged trousers and long coats with wide lapels and exaggeratedly padded shoulders. Em B7 Throw back a bottle of beer Em Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) You're in a Zoot Suit Riot. The single was meant for a mod audience, but failed to chart. Thankfully, stories like that of the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles, California, stand to prove to us that the world doesn’t really change much. [12], In early 1998, once "Zoot Suit Riot" had charted and the Daddies were gaining commercial notoriety, Mojo requested that a newer video be filmed. "Zoot Suit" was written by Peter Meaden, the band's first manager. But the 10-day attacks on mostly Latinx young people in Los Angeles was a real event that made national headlines at a time when World War II was raging. That's not that deep, but there you go. AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Somewhat conspicuously following the novelty success of Squirrel Nut Zippers, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies released the album Zoot Suit Riot, culling the best "straight" swing tracks from their first three albums, instead of the rock- and ska-influenced songs that inform much of those LPs. Henry Leyvas was born in Tucson, Arizona, on April 24, 1923. With Daniel Valdez, Edward James Olmos, Charles Aidman, Tyne Daly. "Zoot Suit Riot" is a song by the American ska-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, written by vocalist and frontman Steve Perry for the band's 1997 compilation album of the same name on Mojo Records. C B7 Em A-pull a comb through your coal-black hair Em Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) People of the Sun - … Yes I am! Unbeknownst to us, it became a big hit record", noting elsewhere that he "probably would of given it 2 or 3 more rips, probably slightly slower, if we had known the future back in 1996". Lyrics to 'Zoot Suit Riot' by Cherry Poppin Daddies. Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) [9][10] Mojo nevertheless persisted and "Zoot Suit Riot" soon found regular rotation on several major stations, notably Los Angeles' KROQ-FM, helping boost the single onto Billboard's Hot 100 Airplay chart and launch the Daddies into temporary mainstream notoriety. Who's your daddy? Listen to sample songs; Buy at iTunes "A Zoot Suit (For My Sunday Gal)" was a 1942 song written by L. Wolfe Gilbert and Bob O'Brien. Who's that whisperin' in the trees? Zoot suit, white jacket with side vents Five inches long. [7] A promotional demo cassette featuring two swing songs from the album, "Dr. Bones" and "Brown Derby Jump", plus the ska b-side "Hi and Lo" was distributed to radio stations for possible airplay; "Zoot Suit Riot" was ultimately excluded from the tape as the band felt the song had no commercial potential.[8]. Pipes and chains and swingin' hands “Zoot Suit Riot” is considered one of the most notable songs from the 90s Swing Revival, and is the song for which Cherry Poppin' Daddies are most remembered. Is there a deeper meaning to the song "Zoot Suit Riot"? In an interview with Songfacts, lead singer Steve Perry said that the song was inspired by the Zoot Suit Riots, which began in Los Angeles in 1943, sparked by rising tensions between the American servicemen stationed in Southern California and the Los Angeles Mexican-American community. Zoot suit riot Pull a comb through your coal black hair Blow Daddy! Throw back a bottle of beer Fat cat came to play, now you can't run fast enough This song helped kick-start the swing revival movement when it received heavy play on both MTV and the Los Angeles radio station KROQ. [Bridge] Am Em You got me in a sway, and I want to swing you dove Am B7 Now you sailors know where your women come for love [Chorus] Em Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) As a result, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, who were then at that time largely associated with the West Coast ska punk scene, began attracting a separate and sizable following for the prominent swing influences in their music. According to Perry, the video's surrealist theme stemmed from his love of avant-garde cinema, notably the films of Luis Buñuel.[14]. (Source Zoot Suit Riot Songfacts). Eduardo “Lalo” Guerrero is the genius behind several of the upbeat 1940s Chicano Big Band music in Zoot Suit. Throughout the video, there are shots of such visuals as evil clowns, a goat head being used as part of a ritual sacrifice, vampires, skulls and foot fetishism. Despite Zoot Suit Riot being the fourth album of the Daddies then nine-year career, the band was nominated for a "Best New Artist in a Video" award at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards, though ultimately lost out to Natalie Imbruglia's "Torn". Acclaimed as the Father of Chicano Music, Guerrero was born on December 24, 1916 in Tucson, Arizona and died on March 17, 2005. "I had sung the tune and the engineer, my friend, pressed the button and said, 'I think it sounds pretty good, come in here and listen to it'", Perry revealed in a 2014 interview. The first victims of the zoot suit riots—12- and 13-year-old boys—were guilty of little more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. [1][2] The album, titled Zoot Suit Riot: The Swingin' Hits of the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, was released independently on Space Age Bachelor Pad Records in March 1997. A-pull a comb through your coal-black hair, You're in a Zoot Suit Riot WW2 Zoot Suit Riot Facts for kids The following fact sheet contains interesting information, history and facts on Zoot Suit Riots for kids. Copyright: Writer(s): Steve Perry Lyrics Terms of Use. By the end of 1996, the formerly underground swing revival began drawing mainstream recognition following the success of bands including the Squirrel Nut Zippers and the hit film Swingers. Stray cat frontin' out an eight-piece band • The Zoot Suit Riots were a series of riots in 1943 during World War II that broke out in Los Angeles between Anglo American Sailors and Marines stationed in the city, and Latino youths, who were recognizable by their zoot suits. Ignoring the protests of the patrons, the sailors tore the suits off their bodies and beat and clubbed the boys. The zoot suit consisted of a broad-shouldered drape jacket, balloon-leg trousers, and, sometimes, a flamboyant hat. As of 2021[update], "Zoot Suit Riot" remains the only single of the Daddies' career to place on the Billboard charts. The song has a wide variety of references, most notably the destruction of the Aztec Empire by the Spanish (see the article Five suns) and the Zoot Suit Riots of Los Angeles in 1943. So if you’ve never heard of the Zoot Suit Riots, it’s likely because of how popular culture reduced the zoot suit to a Halloween costume. Throw back a bottle of beer Lyrically, the song's narrative is based around the Los Angeles Zoot Suit Riots of the 1940s, a series of racially-motivated assaults by American servicemen upon Mexican-American youths. Two separate music videos were filmed for "Zoot Suit Riot". The Zoot Suit Riots were a series of riots that erupted in Los Angeles, California during World War II, between white sailors and Marines stationed throughout the city and Latino youths, who were recognizable by the zoot suits they favored. (if you folk happen to be interested in another swing song that was popular when swing got popular again, that one week, have a listen to "Hey Pachuco" by Royal Crown Revue) Hraesvelg on … "Weird Al" Yankovic parodied the song as "Grapefruit Diet" on his 1999 album Running with Scissors. It's two sailors and they're on leave to you, A few of the things that a face is supposed to do. Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) It was 1941, World War II was raging, and the … Perry stated in an interview that he felt "honored" to have been parodied, though didn't quite understand "why Weird Al is such an icon".[15]. It was an expression of a proud marginalism. Zoot Suit Riot Facts Franklin D Roosevelt was the 32nd American President who served in office from March 4, 1933 to April 12, 1945, the day of his death. A-pull a comb through your coal-black hair, A whipped-up jitterbuggin' brown-eyed man In my veins hot music ran, You got me in a sway, and I want to swing you dove "He said, 'We should keep that in and it will be our joke that we did this on the first take.' When barrio leader Henry Reyna and his friends are unjustly convicted on circumstantial evidence, activist lawyers Alice Bloomfield and George Shearer fight the blatant racially motivated miscarriage of justice to win them their freedom. One of the important events during his presidency was the Zoot Suit Riots. "Zoot Suit Riot" is written in the musical style of 1940s jump blues. Throw back a bottle of beer The riots started over fabric. Zoot Suit is a play written by Luis Valdez, featuring incidental music by Daniel Valdez and Lalo Guerrero. “Zoot Suit” combines two historic events: The 1942 “Sleepy Lagoon” killing and the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots. It's two sailors and they're on leave Pipes and chains and swingin' hands Who's your daddy? Norris J. Nelson, Los Angeles City Council member, proposed outlawing zoot suits after the Riots. "[3] In discussing the appropriation of the actual Zoot Suit riots, he wrote "To me, the simplified duality I used as I wrote the song was: we swingers were in solidarity with our counter cultural ancestors the 'Zoot Suiters' and we were opposed to the 'sailors' who represented the squares who weren’t yet hip to our growing communal jive". By the end of 1996, the formerly underground swing revival began drawing mainstream recognition following the success of bands including the Squirrel Nut Zippers and the hit film Swingers. Who's that whisperin' in the trees? So we left it in the song and moved on. First issued as a single in October 1997, "Zoot Suit Riot" slowly gained radio momentum with the commercial growth of the late-1990s swing revival before ultimately hitting its peak in the summer of 1998, reaching #41 on Billboard's Hot 100 and #15 on the Modern Rock chart, while a surrealist music video became one of MTV's most played of the year, earning the Daddies a nomination for "Best New Artist in a Video" at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards. As means of having something new to sell on their next tour while the band was writing their next studi… As a result, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, who were then at that time largely associated with the West Coast ska punk scene, began attracting a separate and sizable following for the prominent swinginfluences in their music. As means of having something new to sell on their next tour while the band was writing their next studio album, the Daddies quickly put together a compilation album of only the swing tracks from their first three albums, recording four new songs—including "Zoot Suit Riot"—to round out a full-length record. Released in October 1997, the original video received minimal exposure, having aired only once on MTV as part of 12 Angry Viewers, a program in which twelve music fans critique a series of music videos, where it received almost unanimous disapproval. [4], Due to the hurried production of the album, the song was recorded in one take. Dark's video became the version most associated with the song, becoming one of MTV's most requested videos of the year. A whipped up jitterbuggin' brown eyed man A stray cat frontin' up an eight-piece band Cut me Sammy and you'll understand In my veins hot music ran You got me in a sway And I want to swing you done Now you sailors know Where your women come for love Zoot suit riot Throw back a bottle of beer Zoot suit riot You'd best stay away when the pushers come to shove, Zoot Suit Riot (riot!) It was one of the dozen wartime industrial cities that suffered race-related riots in the summer of 1943, along with Mobile, Alabama; Beaumont, Texas; Detroit, Michigan; and New York City. [5][6], Following steady independent sales of the album which reportedly reached as many as 4,000 copies a week, the Daddies eventually signed a distribution deal with major label subsidiary Mojo Records and Zoot Suit Riot was re-issued and nationally distributed in July 1997. In Tucson, Arizona, on April 24, 1923 're on leave Pipes and chains swingin... 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