Fun but cheesy
This era of music, the late 90's swing revival (like Cherry Popping Daddies)... not sure what to call it ("nu-swing"?) is not an style that I got into. During the late 90's, I was listening to a lot of Marilyn Manson and Megadeth. Now that my musical tastes have mellowed out, I am turning to Michael Buble, Paul Anka, Herb Alpert, and other smoother artists.

For years, I loved the song "Hey, Pachuro!" on this album without knowing where it came from. Every time I saw "The Mask", I made a mental not to look up the song. A few weeks ago, I finally did it, tracked down this album, and decided to check it out. I am glad I did! "Mugzy's Move" is a fun romp. The music itself is upbeat and bouncy.

The only real problem I have with this album is that some parts of it are really cheesy, especially the more "skit-like" aspects, in-song commentary, etc. The accents seem forced, like someone watched too many Scorcese films and bolted the accents onto text lifted from a bunch of Mickey Spillane novels. Of course, that is probably the point. But being from New York City, I know that the accent is more of a caricature than authentic, and I just can't take it seriously.

J.Ja

Great swing revival band.
I love this group. Eddie Nichols rivals Bobby Darin (listen to Beyond the Sea and compare) for vocal ability and cool.

Critics eh?
One thing is correct, you can't completely trust critics. Allmusic guide's review for this album takes the example. It wasn't the score (four stars out of five), but the review was crap. They think this band is a joke. THey actually think the Royal Crown Revue is merely mocking the sound of original swing jazz, saying this record is like a "Kitchy (or some other word like that) joke. It's obvious that the RCR love the music they play. Besides, the album really isn't just straightly swing jazz. It seems that there's rockabilly beats as well as swing. All the great retro music rolled into one band. Such a shame they didn't become more well known. They often were credited for starting the swing revival, but to me, their more than just that.

I'll be honest, they aren't legendary like Armstrong or Goodman, but I think the band knows that. Ted Templeton couldn't have been a better producer, as he produced Van Halen's classic debut album, which was fully produced while still retaining all the energy (I'm The One say hello). Yes, the album isn't perfect, but the band is talented and energetic enough. Perhaps the best part of the band is Eddie Nichols, who, unlike Steve Perry, has a voice that sounds actually smooth. I love the Life I Live, Beyond The Sea, Mugzy's Move, he never really fails. I like the guitar as well, he adds great textures and other things in the backround, and the drums and bass are great too. Excellent stuff, with edge, of course. Highly Reccomended, period. It goes without saying.

Well one thing that kind of made me mad was when listening to this album on bass heavy headphones in the double digit range, it drained the bite and focused too much on the bass. Way too much on the bass. I want that energetic horns, vocals, well everything was way too toned down. Not all music is bass driven. Maybe it was the cd player, which had too much bass pumped up. Nevermind. Unless you own a pair of Shure SE530 Sound Isolating Earphones (if you do, your an idiot. 500 Dollar headphones? Rather spend it on new music), stick to treble based headphones.

Mistery swing
This is a excellent swing cd. I recomended at all. Mugzys Move isn't a linear swing, they have ballad, retro swing and real jazz... Dont think any more and buy it.

Hard-core revival swing
Or swing with a sting, that's how I'd describe the Royal Crown Revue. I'd always thought that Squirrel Nut Zippers started the swing revival til someone set me straight. Royal Crown Revue's "Mugzy" is all on the level of the Zipper's "H#ll." (Sorry, Amazon edits out the epithets)

I imagine this would make a good remake soundtrack for movies based on Raymond Chandler's novels. "Zip Gun Bop" even has the cop siren running in the background at the first. Plus, of course, there's the offer for a man to try on a pair of cement shoes and 'walk on water.'

"The Rise and Fall of the Great Mondello" has the feel of the old daredevil circuses. You can almost see the performer falling...

"Beyond the Sea" just blows poor Bobby Darin out of the water. (Pardon the bad pun!)

"Dating with No Dough" is also one of those upbeat, funny hard-luck stories. You've got to laugh, because most of us have been there.

Really no bad songs here. "Mugzy" is one of those CDs you can put on when you need to get moving or cheer up and count on having something good to hear.