Word: nut
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Well, Polvo have turned into Led Zeppelin 20 years late and without the world-wide stardom, and the Squirrel Nut Zippers are big enough that nobody cares in what state they grew up. And Superchunk has a new album. The surprise: it's not just good, it's probably the best album they've ever released. They've written better songs, and the singles collection Throwing Seeds can still bury Indoor Living alive, but singles don't keep veteran bands afloat unless they're filling stadiums or far more prolific than Superchunk...
This is what bassist Stu Cole has to say about the recent popular success of Squirrel Nut Zippers, a seven-member swing jazz outfit that has rapidly gained a loyal cult following throughout North America. The group's roots sprouted in 1993 when Jim "Jimbo" Mathus and Katherine Whalen formed a communal studio for disenchanted musicians in upstate New York. Their creative hideaway attracted an unusual array of artists that included a biomedical engineer, political worker, scientific repairman and professional gardener, all of whom were dissatisfied with the paths their lives had taken. This unlikely array of people soon discovered...
Once they had formed a band, the members needed to find a name for it. Jim recalled the story behind the name of one of his favorite candies-the Squirrel brand's Nut Zipper bar. A 1920's newspaper article cited the tale of a drunken Vermont man who had to be coaxed down from a tree by police. When asked to explain himself, he replied, "it must have been the Nut Zipper," referring to a popular alcoholic drink. The Squirrel Brand candy company, located on Boardman Street here in Cambridge, decided that this would be the perfect name...
After all the band members had sampled-and loved-the Nut Zipper candy bar, they asked the Squirrel Brand for permission to use its copyright as their band's title. Assuming that the group wouldn't be around for long, the company granted permission for the band to be named after the candy. However, the Squirrel Nut Zippers have definitely not faded away. They have since cut two records and toured extensively, playing for thousands of fans across the nation...
...Date-nut muffins...