On the Beat: Jake and Elwood Blues taking their act to New Philly
Asked how he began portraying Jake Blues for a living, Wayne Catania chuckles and says, “I was kinda forced into it.”
As a touring drummer with various recording artists, Catania had heard for years how much he resembled Belushi’s Blues Brothers persona, Jake.
“Everywhere I went, people were taking pictures of me and telling me I should do a Blues Brothers act. It was crazy,” he says. “I heard about it for so long and so often that I decided to actually pick up a copy of (the Blues Brothers album) ‘Briefcase Full of Blues.’ As soon as I spun that, I loved it, I visualized it and I never looked back.”
The Official Blues Brothers Revue, starring Catania and Kieron Lefferty — as Elwood Blues, his partner in crime and music — will roll into the Performing Arts Center at Kent State Tuscarawas in New Philadelphia at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
“We’ve got a great band, just wonderful, talented people,” Catania says about the revue’s combo of guitar, bass, drums, sax, trumpet, keyboards and backing vocalist. “They represent the music wonderfully, which was always the first intention — even with Dan (Aykroyd) and John. The comedy is built-in.”
The Blues Brothers’ concert will include clowning, dancing and such lively trademark songs as “Soul Man,” “Gimme Some Lovin’,” “Hey Bartender,” “Rubber Biscuit,” “Respect,” “Shout,” “Shake Your Tail Feather” and “Sweet Home Chicago.”
“We try to make the audience a part of everything. There is a great energy that Blues Brothers fans, which makes it a lot more fun for us.” Catania says.
“It’s a bit of a phenomena. We get people in their teens who weren’t even born when the (‘Blues Brothers’) movie came out, to fans well into their 80s.”
Both native Canadians, Catania and Lefferty first appeared together as Jake and Elwood in a “Legends in Concert” production in Toronto. Through an A&E docudrama about the duo titled “Lost in Las Vegas,” John Belushi’s widow Judy learned of them and invited the guys to audition for a stage musical titled “The Official Blues Brothers Revival” in Chicago in 2004.
“We learned that day how hard it is to do what John and Dan did,” said Belushi, quoted on the Blues Brothers Revue’s website. “Some looked the part but nobody had the whole package until Kieron and Wayne arrived.”
Through the Chicago production, “We were able to meet Dan (Aykroyd) and we kept working together. He’s a sweetheart,” Catania says. “We know Jim Belushi and the family and whatnot — all wonderful, wonderful people.” For years, he and Lefferty have worked with Aykroyd and Judy Belushi “scripting out a TV show based on Jake and Elwood,” he says. “We really understand the characters internally.”
To date, the Blues Brothers Revue has toured across the United States, Canada and Australia, with talk of a U.K. tour. “The schedule is pretty hectic sometimes,” Catania says. “It’s important to rest up and recharge the batteries. I really want to deliver for the audience.”
Tickets, $24, $27 and $37, may be ordered at www.tusc.kent.edu/pac and 330-308-6400.
TIDINGS OF JOY
After being off the air almost a year, Canton’s black gospel station “Joy” WINW-AM 1520 has returned. Currently, the station is operating at a low frequency that only covers the city of Canton, but general manager Curtis A. Perry III says a signal upgrade is expected within the next several months.
