They are back with more blues than ever before! Jake and Elwood Blues, also known as the Blues Brothers, performed at Sunderland Empire Theatre this week, entertaining many of the locals with many favorite songs by Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin, Cab Calloway, and many more artists.
For those who are not familiar with the Blues Brothers, the original band was formed in 1978 by two comedians—Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi—who predominantly covered old blues and soul songs as part of a skit for “Saturday Night Live.” They then starred in their own movie that became very popular and would later become a movie that would bring families together through music. After the tragic death of John Belushi, a handful amount of talented singers of musicians have gotten together to bring back the essence and excitement of the “Blues Brothers.”
Accompanied with a live band, which includes a saxophone, bass, guitar, keyboard, and trumpet, the Blues Brothers entertained the audience with Elwood’s magnificent harmonica playing and the gruff soulful voice of Jake. Throughout the entire show, they are also accompanied by Bluettes, a trio that have powerful and soulful voices and have great dance moves, and a band that know the true rhythm of the blues.
In addition to their singing, the Blues Brothers made jokes that have been updated, making fun of Justin Bieber when involving the audience to become a part of the show. Most of the audience included people who were in their 40s’ and 50s’, but also included young adults wearing the signature black hat and black sunglasses. Even though some of the jokes received a few chuckles, the Blues Brothers definitely brought a smile to each and every person in the audience.
There were a couple of songs that made the audience sing along and dance. A classic Calloway song “Minnie the Moocher,” performed by William Hazell, had the audience sing, “Heidi-heidi-heidi-hi,” when it came to the chorus. Another song that had the audience literally dancing was “Flip, Flop, Fly,” performed by the Blues Brothers. In this particular song, the brothers had the lyrics to the chorus available for the audience (the music sheet came down from the ceiling) and the audience was able to sing along and dance along as well.
Well-played, loud music from the band and interesting version of many songs made an awesome night with a nice surprise, which are songs that do not appear in the film, such as a beautiful blues cover of The Drifters’ “Under the Boardwalk.” The Blues Brothers show always leaves their audience satisfied, especially if you have some previous knowledge of the music and the film.
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