Sound Bites SUMMER IN FULL SWING: This spring The Rialto Theater, 318 E. Congress St., has been hosting intermittent Swing Night Saturdays, packing the house with all manner of people in swanky suits and fedoras. The week ahead, however, is the cherry royale atop the two-tone sundae of swing: The Cherry Poppin' Daddies appear with Unsteady for an all-ages show at 8 p.m. Tuesday, June 9. Tickets are $13.50 in advance, $15 on the day of the show. This show is followed two days later by perennial favorites Royal Crown Revue with special guests, also performing for all ages. This swing fest gets underway at the Rialto at 8 p.m. Thursday, June 11. Tickets are $16 in advance, $17 the day of the show.

Back before ska and swing had ballooned into the bloated, phonetically engineered, commercial cash cow now lowing every five minutes on alternative "rock" radio, Royal Crown Revue and The Cherry Poppin' Daddies were doing what came naturally--combining jazz, swing, ska and a dash of punk into stage shows renowned for their energy. Both bands have been around for nearly a decade, setting the scene for the rest of these swanky Johnny-come-latelies. Their reputations were built on performances, and a lot of them, rather than a single timely single. Dress up, get down, and pay your respects by polishing the dance floor.

Tickets for both shows are available in advance at Dillard's, or at the door on the night of the show only. Call 740-0126 for information.

MONSOON MADNESS: The shows on Fourth Avenue's Winsett Park stage are in their third season, picking up steam with the rising mercury. The park is now festooned with new banners and signs, making the Madness that much harder to miss. The event has been steadily drawing larger and more regular crowds, and currently has a schedule booked through July. An incendiary performance by art/space-rock spectacle Flam Chen, playing a double bill with The Osgoods, literally lights up the night on Thursday, June 4. For the past few months, The Osgoods have been a regular Sunday attraction at the Third Stone Bar & Grill, pumping out a straightforward, three-piece mix of solid alternapop.

Have no fear of Fourth Avenue--the international volleyball convention which last week created a little madness of its own, Tom Selleck sightings and all, has finally ended; and the avenue has returned to its accustomed state of unfettered freakiness. Monsoon Madness generally runs from 7 to 10 p.m. every Thursday at Winsett Park, on the east side of Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street. All shows are free and outdoors.

LAST NOTES: News of a Summer Punk Fest is exciting enough, but the fact that Spillblanket is regrouping just for the occasion means mandatory attendance. Add to that appearances by the Weird Lovemakers, F.U.C.T., Los Federales and The Blacks, and you have five of Tucson's most righteous bands for $5. The Summer Punk Fest is all-ages and gets underway at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 6, at The Rialto Theater, 318 E. Congress St.

Digital Underground has once again canceled their appearance at the Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. Imagine that. In their stead, Congo has supplied us with a mind-bogglingly eclectic and potentially exceptional triple bill: On Friday, June 5 Roger Manning, Oslo B. with The Grooves and the Chrome Addicts.

Poet, raconteur and punk-folk hero Roger Manning returns to the Old Pueblo at the end of a lengthy national tour. If you missed his show here last winter, don't make the same mistake twice. Manning mesmerized a mostly uninitiated crowd during his November performance, playing an emotive, intimate set deftly delivering a balance of new material as well as older favorites, to the delight of longtime fans. He's a stunning performer, and even as a soloist commands the stage with the magnitude of his message and the intensity of his delivery. Tickets for the show are a scant $5. Call 622-8848 for information.

But the show creating the biggest buzz this week is Jerry Cantrell (of Alice in Chains' fame) at the Club Congress on Tuesday, June 9. Never a big fan of Alice in Chains myself, I can't say that I share the Christmas morning delight that seems to be catching. All the same, an intimate, solo show by such a major player is big news, and a great opportunity to see locals Blues Crusher rock out. Tickets are $10.

Running the risk of derision and presumed favoritism, there's yet another show this week at The Rialto Theater that I'd be remiss not to recommend: Another front man gone solo, Michael Rose, former lead singer for the legendary reggae band Black Uhuru, performs with Neon Prophet on Sunday, June 7. Tickets are $12, available at Twelve Tribes Reggae Shop and at the door.

Perhaps no two words cause more of a knee-jerk rejection from twentysomething hipsters than "New Age," but when you're done cringing consider walking on the wild side with Bill Miller. He weaves traditional tribal rhythms with contemporary, folk, country, and (gulp) New Age inspirations into masterful, poetic performances. Miller performs at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 10, at The Berger Center, 1200 W. Speedway, with special guests the Burning Sky trio. All seating is reserved. Tickets are $16, available in advance at Hear's Music. Call 621-3341 for information.

The Boondocks continues its spring line-up of roadhouse rockin' with southern blues salted with the Gulf Coast by The Beat Daddys, at 9 p.m. Thursday, June 4. The band sports a new line-up (assembled for the recording of their last album), featuring bassist John Hedman along with Britt Meacham, Lewis Ross and founding Beat Daddy Larry Grisham. Cover is $5 at the door. Call 690-0991 for information.

BIRDS, BEES AND NEW CD'S: Recording studios have been busy this spring, judging by the number of local discs now surfacing. Along with the recently reviewed GAT-ROT and Parasite long-players, there are some fresh, first-rate demo efforts floating around by The Twine, Helldriver, and the recently departed Amor-Belhôm Duo. And let's not forget the new releases by The Weird Lovemakers, Flu Shot, and Calexico's The Black Light. The bad news is that one of the places where you'd be sure to find all of these and many other fine local offerings is closing. The Sound Addict, lately located at 113 E. Congress St., is going out of business. But there's going to be one mother of a sale, beginning on Thursday, July 11. Check it out before it's too late.

ALL APOLOGIES: My regrets for reporting that Al Perry was not playing the Brad Singer Farewell Bash at the Club Congress last Sunday. Although I was not alone in my confusion, sorry for not pushing further for the real dope. Much to the delight of his many fans, Perry returned to Tucson a few days prior to the event and played as originally scheduled.

Also, we incorrectly referred to Béla Fleck as a "Scottish vocalist/musician" in the May 21 issue, right in the second paragraph, no less. It was an editor's error, though we wish to vindicate writer Dave Irwin about his knowledge of his subject: "He was born and raised in NYC, and Béla certainly isn't a Gaelic moniker. And he's never sung (although he did transfer to choir after he flunked French horn as a teenager at the New York School for Arts)." So there. TW

--Lisa Weeks


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