Briefcase Full of Blues [Original recording]

The Blues Brothers | Format: Vinyl

Product Details

• Vinyl
• Format: Original recording
• Label: Atlantic
• ASIN: B0018NGX22
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #127,340 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Great Blues Brothers jacket. All band members to back. Hey Bartender, Messin with the Kid, Almost, Rubber Biscuit, Shot Gun Blues, more. Rare version with no title to jacket front

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my all-time favorite "Tribute" albums!, January 10, 2003

By 

Henry R. Kujawa ("The Forbidden Zone" (Camden, NJ)) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Briefcase Full of Blues (Audio CD)

Who'd have BELIEVED a pair of white comedians would have wound up doing an album of R&B and Soul music THIS DAMN GOOD??? It started out as a joke on SNL, but with the aid of the best session players in the business (who at the time made up the SNL band!) BRIEFCASE FULL OF BLUES became a reality that outlasted the comedy that spawned it. EVERY song a classic, recorded live with style, class, POWER and panache-- MAN do I love the sound of a big band horn section doing "rock & roll"! I still remember at first not being sure about John Belushi's singing on this. Is he joking? Is he real? After a few plays it just didn't matter-- the recordings were just SOOOOO good! Of course "Soul Man" is the most well-known, but EVERY song here is a stand-out, with "B Movie Box Car Blues" one of my faves-- it builds and builds until it finally reaches that wild, explosive climax. WOW!!

I only wish the CD would have included "Excuse Moi Mon Chere", the "B" side of the "Soul Man" 45. What kind of oversight is that?

Like others have said, BRIEFCASE... introduced me to songs & artists I might never have heard otherwise, for which I remain grateful. Of the 6 (count 'em, 6!) albums to date by The Blues Brothers Band, this is my favorite. A VERY close follow-up is 1992's RED,WHITE AND BLUES, where the band proved they could make SENSATIONAL recordings even without Belushi. (Take it from me-- if you like this, RW&B will blow your mind!!!)

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars this ain't no joke!, January 4, 2002

By 

"e_blues" (Ramat Gan Israel) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Briefcase Full of Blues (Audio CD)

The Blues Brothers were no joke, nor a gimmick. They WERE on a mission from god, and that is to keep the next generations connected to the Blues, or at least to know it exists. Elwood's (Dan Akroyd) prophecy about "the music we hear today" is just a re-programmed electronic music and the existence of Blues only in "the classical department of your local library" is not far from reality today (the prophecy is brought to you free of charge in track 1). So the two "brothers" took their blues (big) band (featuring Matt guitar Murphy, Blue Lue Marini, Alan Rubin and others), and recorded some easy-to-listen tracks, mostly covers to Blues, Soul & RNB classics like "Soul man", "Messin' with the kid", "I don't know" etc.
This CD features a great live performance with an excellent selection of songs. Each and every track gets its special treatment to make it "blues brothers style". Just listen to Willie Mabon's "I don't know" to know what I'm talking about.
I wouldn't want to use the whole 1000 words I have, so I'll just finish saying this is a 5 stars fun both for Blues fans (like myself) and for those who don't listen to the Blues on a regular basis. Enough. Just Buy this one!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It grooves me, October 16, 2003

By 

Damian P. Gadal (Santa Barbara, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Briefcase Full of Blues (Audio CD)

Not often do you get the right group of people together at the right time and right place, but when you do, magic happens!!!

This recording captures that magic and is a joy to listen to over and over again! It's timeless as well! Just as fresh and fun to listen to today as it was 25 years ago!

Everyone involved with this took the music serious, but had fun at the same time, and the interaction with the audience is a testament to that!

A great R&B/Blues recording to add to any collection!

Shotgun Blues is still my favorite, but the whole recording groves me!