Severn Records artists: The Original Blues Brothers Band - The Last Shade of Blue Before Black - New Release Review

I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, The Last Shade Of Blue Before Black, by The Original Blues Brothers Band and it's great! Opening with Jimmy Reed's Baby What You Want Me To Do, Bobby "Sweet Soul" Harden with Tommy "Pipes" McDonnell on harp and vocals and Rob "The Honeydripper" Paparozzi on harp and vocals take center stage with super harmony and John Tropea plays terrific guitar soloing backed by Tom Malone on trumpet, Baron Raymonde on alto sax, Eric "The Red" Udel on bass, Lee "Funkytime" Finkelstein on drums, Leon "The Lion" Pendarvis on organ, Rusty "Cloudmeister" Cloud on clav, Wurlitzer and piano. High stepping, Cherry Street, features McDonnell on lead vocals, Birch Johnson on trombone and Raymonde really rips on alto sax. Eddie Floyd is up on lead vocals on slinky, On Saturday A Night, and guest Tom Malone on bari sax  and with tight, warm horn backing. Harden takes the lead on funky, Itch and Scratch. This is a mover with hot horn work pushing all the way and snappy drum work over the funky bass line by Udel. Joe Louis Walker had the lead on Willie Dixon's Don't Go No Further. This track has a great groove with Rob Paparozzi on chromatic harp and featuring a cool harp solo by Tommy McDonnell. This track is saturated with soulful horns punctuated by Steve Howard's trumpet solo and a  classic guitar solo by Matt "Guitar' Murphy. A hot version of James Brown's Sex Machine is lead by Paul Shaffer on lead vocal and piano with David Spinozza on guitar and Tom Malone on trumpet. New Orleans flavored, Your Feet's Too Big has Paparozzi on lead vocal and harp. The horn work throughout is super with standout solos on this track by Cloud on piano and Lou Marini on clarinet. Excellent! Dr. John is front and center on Qualified with his distinctive vocal and piano styling. With Birch Johnson on trombone, Baron Raymonde on alto sax, Lou Marini on bari and tenor sax solos, this is one of my favorites on the release. Title track, The Last Shade Of Blue Before Black has a real nice Johnny Guitar Watson bluesy R&B feel featuring Lou Marini on lead vocal. This is a super closer with Tropea featured with some ultra tasty guitar and a sultry tenor sax solo by Marini. Excellent! 

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Severn Records Announces October 6 Release Date for New CD from The Original Blues Brothers Band featuring Steve Cropper & "Blue Lou" Marini, "The Last Shade of Blue Before Black"

Severn Records Announces October 6 Release Date for New CD from The Original Blues Brothers Band featuring Steve Cropper & “Blue Lou” Marini,

The Last Shade of Blue Before Black

Special Guests Include Eddie Floyd, Joe Louis Walker, Paul Shaffer, Dr. John, Matt “Guitar”Murphy and

Joe Morton

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Severn Records announces an October 6 release date for The Last Shade of Blue Before Black, the new album from the legendary Original Blues Brothers Band, featuring guitarist Steve Cropper and sax player “Blue Lou” Marini, with special guests Eddie Floyd, Joe Louis Walker, Paul Shaffer, Dr. John, Matt “Guitar” Murphy and Joe Morton.

“Had anyone told me in 1978 that in 2017 I would still be traveling around the world and playing with the Blues Brothers’ Band, I would have said they were out of their minds,” says “Blue Lou” Marini. “But, amazingly here we are with a new CD and still playing all over the world. This album is a true labor of love and I’m so proud of the organic way it came about. We really wanted to honor our history and to include some of our favorite musicians that we’ve worked with and loved over the years.  We have the legends, Eddie Floyd and Dr. John, plus our original band leader, Paul Shaffer and the great bluesman Joe Louis Walker.

“We also have Tom ‘Bones’ Malone playing and arranging, and cameos from Matt ‘Guitar’ Murphy and Joe Morton, a star from our second movie. We are also thrilled to have former members David Spinozza on guitar, Birch Johnson on trombone, and my steady sub, Baron Raymonde on alto sax.”

The Last Shade of Blue Before Black was produced by Lou Marini, Steve Cropper and The Original Blues Brothers Band and recorded at IWII Studios in Hoboken, NJ, by Jay Messina.

“We wanted to present some new original material and do some tunes that hearkened to our past,” declares Marini. “This is a live CD, with everyone recording at once, mostly first or second takes and live vocals and solos. The only overdubs were some baritone sax parts and a few minor fixes. We were blessed with a fantastic studio that suited us so well, IIWII in Hoboken, New Jersey, and the world’s greatest engineer and friend to all, Jay Messina.

Essentially begun as a one-time musical skit that debuted on NBC-TV’s Saturday Night Live” in 1978 and fronted by John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as Jake and Elwood Blues, the band became an overnight sensation, spawning numerous TV appearances, hit albums, two blockbuster movies and global touring.  

“I think the power and joy of this great band that has been playing together for so many years is evident,” states Marini. “We love each other and love making music together. Everyone played their asses off on this CD and none more so than our wonderful bassist, Eric Udel. Eric died tragically in September from a fall here in NYC. He was a great musician and a sunny, funny man whom we all loved. We dedicate this album to him as well as our other fallen and still greatly missed brothers, Donald ‘Duck’ Dunn” and Alan ‘Mr. Fabulous’ Rubin.

“I’ve often said that the OBBB is the world’s greatest part-time job because of you, our fans. We’ve gotten to see the world and enjoy it in your company. We’ve eaten and drank with you, especially the latter, and you have treated us like kings. Enjoy this music and for God’s sake, PLAY IT LOUD!”

The Original Blues Brothers Band are: Steve “The Colonel” Cropper - guitar; John “Smokin’ John” Tropea – guitar; Eric “The Red” Udel – bass; Lee “Funkytime” Finkelstein – drums; Leon “The Lion” Pendarvis – organ; Rusty “Cloudmeister” Cloud - clavinet, Wurlitzer, piano and organ; Steve “Catfish” Howard – trumpet; Larry “Trombonious” Farrell – trombone; Lou “Blue Lou” Marini – saxophones; Bobby “Sweet Soul” Harden – vocals; Tommy “Pipes” McDonnell - vocals and harmonica; and Rob “The Honeydripper” Paparozzi - vocals and harmonica.

The Last Shade of Blue Before Black Track Listing and Additional Credits

1. Baby, What You Want Me To Do - Music & lyrics by Jimmy Reed (Conrad Music/The Seeds of Reed Music, BMI) Arranged by Lou Marini Bobby, Tommy and Rob-vocals, John Tropea-guitar solo, Rob Paparozzi-harp, Tom Malone-trumpet, Baron Raymonde-alto sax

2. Cherry Street - Music & lyrics by Delbert McClinton, Kevin McKendree & Gary Nicholson (East Folks Music, BMI/ASCAP). Arranged by Lou Marini Tommy “Pipes’ McDonnell-lead vocal, Birch Johnson-trombone, Baron Raymonde-alto sax & solo

3. On a Saturday Night - Music & lyrics by Eddie Floyd & Steve Cropper (Irving Music, BMI) Arranged by Tom Malone Eddie Floyd-lead vocal, Tom Malone-baritone sax

4. Itch and Scratch - Music & lyrics by Ronald Hayes & Toby King (Gulf Coast Music LLC) Arranged by Lou Marini and The Original Blues Brothers Band Bobby “Sweet Soul” Harden-lead vocal, Rob, Tommy & Rusty-background vocals, Baron Raymonde-alto sax

5. Don’t Go No Further - Music & lyrics by Willie Dixon (Hoochie Coochie Music, BMI) Horn arr. by Lou Marini, rhythm arr. by The Original Blues Brothers Band Joe Louis Walker-lead vocal, Rob Paparozzi-chromatic harp, Tommy McDonnell harp solo, Steve Howard-trumpet solo, Matt “Guitar” Murphy-guitar solo

6. You Left the Water Running - Music & lyrics by Dan Penn, Rick Hall & Oscar Franks (Screen Gems-EMI       Music, Inc., BMI.)  Arranged by Tom Malone Bobby “Sweet Soul” Harden-lead vocal, Tommy, Rob & Lou-background vocals, Lou Marini-tenor sax solo, Tom Malone-baritone sax, David Spinozza-acoustic guitar

7. Don’t Forget About James Brown - Music & lyrics by Eddie Floyd (Irving Music, BMI) Arranged by Leon Pendarvis Eddie Floyd & Tommy “Pipes” McDonnell-lead vocals, Baron Raymonde-alto sax, Tom Malone-baritone sax, Larry Farrell-trombone solo

8. Sex Machine - Music & lyrics by James Brown, Bobby Byrd & Ronald Lenhoff (Dynatone    Publishing Co., BMI.) Arranged by Paul Shaffer & Tom Malone Paul “The Shiv” Shaffer-lead vocal and piano solo, David Spinozza-guitar, Tom Malone-trumpet

9. Your Feet’s Too Big - Music by Fred Fisher, lyrics by Ada Benson with extra lyrics by Fats Waller   (Morley Music Co/Sony ATV Tunes LLC, ASCAP) Arranged by Lou Marini and The Original Blues Brothers Band Rob Paparozzi-lead vocal & bass harmonica, Rusty Cloud-piano solo, Lou Marini-clarinet

10. 21^st Century Baby - Music & lyrics by Rob Paparozzi (Robodripper Tunes, SESAC) Arranged by John Tropea Rob Paparozzi-lead vocal, Baron Raymonde-alto sax, Tom Malone-trumpet & baritone sax

11. Blues in My Feet - Music & lyrics by Rusty Cloud (Stousefouse Music, BMI) Rusty Cloud-lead vocal, Tom Malone-baritone sax, Rob Paparozzi-harp solo

12. Qualified - Music & lyrics by Jessie Hill & Malcom Rebennack (Warner-Tamerlane Publishing OBO Skull Music, ASCAP) Arranged by Lou Marini Dr. John “The Nite Tripper”-lead vocal and piano, Bobby, Tommy, Rob & Rusty -background vocals, Birch Johnson-trombone, Baron Raymonde-alto sax, Lou Marini-baritone sax & tenor sax solo

13. I Got My Mojo Working - Music and lyrics by Preston Foster (ARC Music/Dare Music, Inc., BMI)      Arranged by Lou Marini Rob Paparozzi, Bobby Harden, Joe Morton & Tommy McDonnell-lead vocals, The Original Blues Brothers Band-background vocals, Rusty Cloud-organ solo,     Tom Malone-trumpet

14. The Last Shade of Blue Before Black - Music & lyrics by Lou Marini (Hip Pickles Music ASCAP) Arranged by Lou Marini and The Original Blues Brothers Band Lou Marini-lead vocal, Bobby, Tommy, Rob & Rusty-background vocals, John Tropea-guitar solo, Lou Marini-tenor sax solo