The Cherry Poppin' Daddies Take Over Harrah's Ak-Chin Tonight

By Benjamin Leatherman Tue., Dec. 30 2008 at 3:59 PM

Go, Daddies: Steve Perry (center, white tux) and the rest of CPDs swing through town tonight.

The rumors are true: The Cherry Poppin' Daddies will be hitting the Valley tonight.

The late-90s swing sensations will perform two separate shows at Harrah's Ak-Chin Casino, 15406 North Maricopa Road in Maricopa, starting at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Admission is even free, to boot (although you have to be 21 to enter the joint).

But then again you may not have even heard the rumors to begin with. The band hasn't exactly gone out of their way to promote the shows, nor has the casino. As far as we can tell there have been nary an advertisment in the local media.

It's a somewhat puzzling move. Even though the Daddies are essentiually late-90s one-hit wonders (who rose to stardom from the success of the single Zoot Suit Riot), they could easily sell out a mid-sized venue like the Clubhouse Music Venue or even Celebrity Theatre (where they once performed in 1998). Perhaps it might have something to do with the fact the band is trying to separate themselves from their swinging personas of the past. Their latest disc, Susquehanna, features a more varied sound that's similar in some respect's to their salad days in the early to mid-'90s.

Still, we probably shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. Like we said, both shows are free (although it's a bit of a haul to drive the 30-plus miles to Maricopa). -- Benjamin Leatherman