The Blues Brothers are an American rhythm and blues band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live. Belushi and Aykroyd, respectively in character as lead vocalist "Joliet" Jake Blues and harpist/vocalist Elwood Blues, fronted the band, which was composed of well-known and respected musicians. The band made its debut as the musical guest on the April 22, 1978, episode of Saturday Night Live.
The Blues
Brothers became cult icons of a generation. No one had any idea that
this movie would become the theme song of a nation of cult worshipers.
John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an Emmy Award-winning American actor, comedian and singer, most notable for his work on Saturday Night Live, National Lampoon's Animal House and The Blues Brothers.
Belushi's first big break as a comedian occurred in 1971, when he joined The Second City comedy troupe in Chicago, Illinois. Thanks to his uncanny caricature of singer Joe Cocker's intense and jerky stage presence, he participated in National Lampoon's Lemmings stage show in 1972 (which also featured future Saturday Night Live performers Chevy Chase, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray and Christopher Guest).
From 1973 to 1975 the National Lampoon aired The Radio Hour, a half-hour comedy program syndicated across the country on approximately 600 stations. When original director Michael O'Donoghue quit in 1974, Belushi took over the reins until the show was canceled. Other players on the show included future SNL regulars Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Brian Doyle-Murray and Chevy Chase. Belushi married Judy Jacklin, an associate producer of The Radio Hour. A number of comic segments first performed on The Radio Hour would be translated into SNL sketches in the show's early seasons.
Belushi achieved national fame for his work on Saturday Night Live, which he joined as an original cast member in 1975.
Between seasons of the show, he made one of his best-known movies, Animal House.
Known for his drug usage, which eventually cost him his life, Belushi was found dead on March 5, 1982, at age 33, in a hotel room at the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. The cause of death was a speedball, an injection of cocaine and heroin. On the night of his death, he was accompanied by friends Robin Williams and Robert De Niro (at the height of their own drug exploits)[1], who later left the premises, leaving Belushi in the company of Cathy Smith. His death was investigated by forensic pathologist Dr. Ryan Norris among others, and while the findings were disputed, it was officially ruled a drug-related accident.
John Belushi is interred in Abel's Hill Cemetery on Martha's Vineyard Chilmark, Massachusetts. His tombstone reads "I may be gone, but rock n roll lives on."
The Grateful Dead song "West L.A. Fadeaway" is about Belushi's death. Belushi was a good friend to the band, especially Jerry Garcia. He even performed with them on occasion in the late 1970s.
If you are to young to know the Blues Brothers you need to check the web, and your local video store. This is part of American History you
will want to learn about.
Live on Jake and Elwood. We can and will not ever forget you! Who said life is fair.
