Comic actors
John Belushi and
Dan Aykroyd received a lot of flak for their
Blues Brothers shtick -- mostly for the albums, not 1980's beloved classic film. But they should be given credit for exposing many people -- including this reviewer -- to the music of blues and R&B veterans.
The Blues Brothers soundtrack was released on Atlantic Records. On the surface this doesn't seem unusual, since
the Blues Brothers' Atlantic debut,
Briefcase Full of Blues, was a number one album; but the movie was released by Universal, and its parent company, MCA, passed on the soundtrack. The rollicking remake of
the Spencer Davis Group's "Gimme Some Lovin'" was a hit, featuring an arrangement notable for the horn section that replaces
Steve Winwood's rumbling organ work.
Ray Charles has a good time with "Shake a Tail Feather," and he's helped out by Jake and
Elwood Blues (
Belushi and
Aykroyd, respectively). The cover of
Solomon Burke's "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" is a lot of fun, thanks to the great overall rhythm and
Elwood's lightning-fast stage rap, while
James Brown and the Reverend James Cleveland Choir provide a blast of gospel music on "Old Landmark."
Aretha Franklin's "Think" is explosive, and
Cab Calloway's "Minnie the Moocher" is slyly irresistible.
Charles,
Brown,
Franklin, and
Calloway all have small roles in the film, yet so does
John Lee Hooker, but he's not represented here. ~ Bret Adams