The Brilliance of the Blues Brothers…

Cover of Briefcase Full of Blues

The other day I was driving and heard “Soul Man” by the Blues Brothers on the radio.  Now, I have heard this song, both the Blues Brothers version and Sam and Dave’s original, about a hundred times in my life, but for some reason this time it sparked a different feeling in me.  Idon’t know, maybe it’s middle age setting in.  Nah, can’t be that.  I still feel and act as though I’m 16.

Anyway, as I was listening to the song I hearkened back to the first time I saw and heard the Blues Brothers on Saturday Night Live in 1978.  I was all of 11 years old at the time.  You may be asking, what the hell was an 11 year old doing up at midnight?  Well, my parents were only 29 and 30 years old at the time.  So you know, they were pretty cool in that regard.  But I digress.  Back to my first viewing of the Blues Brothers.  I remember my first reaction was laughter.  Seeing John Belushi and Dan Ackroyd’s spastic dance routine as the band whipped into “Soul Man” had me giggling, but the music was what hit me.

Now, I should preface this by saying that my parents were very much into rock ‘n roll music.  I grew up listening to the Stones, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind & Fire, Sly, Jimi, etc.  And my dad loved the old R&B, Stax Records, Motown stuff.  But like I said, I was 11 at the time.  My favorite bands were Van Halen, Cheap Trick, Devo, The Cars, you know more contemporary stuff at the time.  And I liked the Stones, Beatles, and Zep.  But it was the Blues Brothers that REALLY turned me on to rhythm and blues.

And THAT’S what I mean when I say THE BRILLIANCE of the blues brothers.  Because behind the comedic element of Belushi and Ackroyd was a deep, deep knowledge and appreciation of the music.  And sure Dan Ackroyd’s gyrations on the stage appealed to my 11 year old comedic sensibilities, but again, it was the music that really got me.  From the intro of  Otis Redding’s “ICan’t Turn You Loose” to Delbert Mclinton’s “B Movie Box Car Blues” and the goofy, Ackroyd rendition of “Rubber Biscuit”  Breifcase Full of Blues was and still is a high energy traipse through the history of 1950’s and 60’s rhythm and blues.

Much like the British invasion of the early to mid ’60’s introduced a new generation of music listeners to American blues, the Blues Brothers introduced my generation (Generation X) to the likes of Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, and Junior Wells.  And the Blues Brother did authentically by employing the likes of Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Donald “Duck” Dunn, Steve Cropper, Lou Marini, and Tom Scott, the VERY guys who appeared on these songs in their original incarnations.

So, in addition to my parents, I owe a debt of gratitude to Jake and Elwood Blues for opening my musical horizons.

If you’ve never heard the album in it’s entirety do yourself a favor.  Dedicate an hour or so of your life and just sit and listen to it.  And if you have heard it, listen to it again.  It’s a masterfully performed work of art.  And you’ll get some laughs as well.

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