Inspired by the zoot suits and glamour of the old time big bands, Kid Creole
became a Cab Calloway-type figure for the 1980s, mixing Caribbean and Latin
swing rhythms with the funk and disco of the day. Raised in The Bronx, New York
City, August Darnell worked as a teacher before playing bass with Dr Buzzard's
Savannah Band and taking the stage name Kid Creole after the Elvis Presley film.
Forming the band with Coati Mundi in 1980, they enjoyed major success in the UK
when second album Tropical Gangsters (1982) reached Number 2 and produced the
Top 10 hits I'm A Wonderful Thing, ...