The problem with retro-swing is that it´s better in live performance than it is on record. That has been said of a lot of music, from the blues and jazz to punk rock, but that´s all a matter of taste. With retro-swing, it´s all about the moment ? dressing up for the night and dancing to the swinging sounds. In concert, it doesn´t matter if the singer is out of tune or if the covers are predictable or if the new tunes are unremarkable or if the band is merely competent, since it all suits the atmosphere. Put that on record, and it doesn´t quite work. That´s the problem with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy´s second major-label album, This Beautiful Life. BBVD is undeniably one of the biggest retro-swing groups ? it was the house band in Doug Liman´s Swingers, the film that brought the whole underground movement to the mainstream ? even if the band never had a crossover hit on the level of the Squirrel Nut Zippers or Cherry Poppin´ Daddies. BBVD