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The Bluze brothers - Blues Brothers tribute show & rhythm & blues revue, is an authentic Blues Brothers Tribute based in Stoke on Trent, North Staffordshire & to our knowledge is the only Blues Brothers tribute based in the area & featured online.
 Blues brothers fans Matt ("Elwood" number 1) & Ian ("Jake" or “Mighty Joliet Jake Z Bluze” as his character is a combination of the characters historically played by John Belushi “Joliet Jake”, John Goodman “Mighty Mack” & James Belushi “Zee Blues”), who both had some limited success on the local & national karaoke & singing scene over the last 10 years or so, who after listening to some Blues brothers tracks decided they could do a tribute to emulate their heroes & quickly worked on a new act & founded "The Bluze brothers" The two began their quest, mainly singing Blues brothers songs in costume as a duet at 1st during breaks or for additional entertainment at karaoke & disco events to backing tracks for a number of years before deciding to gain credibility as a full stand alone entertainment spectacle. Matt was already an established pub singer having some success in local singing contests as well as pub/club singing & even national singing contests & televised talent shows & Ian was an experienced karaoke show host who had also had some small success in local competition. .
 During the Summer of 2006, Matt & Ian along with the backing of Matt's show manager (& now Bluze brothers show manager), decided they could do their Blues Brothers tribute act no longer as a gimmick but a more serious showcase. Not to long after, Sarah ("Buster Bluze") became involved with the show as the 3rd member of the Bluze brothers & the 3rd singer in the act which was known as "four fried chickens & a coke" as 4 people were now involved with the act - 3 singers, 1 manager & giving them the added flexibility of their respective characters in the 2 films.
 As always, the Bluze Brothers would be nothing without their mentor, who we call “the Penguin” who’s part is played by the manager for the tribute act, who makes a non singing appearance on stage from time to time when required. I know what you are already thinking, they have a female vocalist playing the part of Buster & you probably are wondering why... simple, for the exact same reason they have a female doing the character voice of Bart Simpson.. have you ever heard a female voice break?
 Matt decided that he wanted to concentrate more on his other projects & his own singing career but still be involved with the Bluze Brothers on a part-time level & so a new "Elwood" stepped forwards to help out when needed, however Gavin ("Elwood" number 2) wanted to sing more to a backing band & become a proper tribute than to sing to backing tracks & suggested that it would be a great idea to perform as The Blues Brothers as a more authentic tribute act instead of just singing along to backing tracks - the two immediately began practicing for the show & decided to put a band together but keep singing to backing tracks as well when they needed to. Gavin has one significant difference over Matt, in that Gavin lives & breathes the Blues brothers 24/7 - so much so that even on a daily basis as part of everyday life can be seen walking around in his black suit, fedora hat & dark glasses even blowing the harp from time to time when the mood takes him, emulating his hero Dan Aykroyd who of course is the original Elwood & co-writer of the Blues Brothers films. Sadly Matt, Gavin & the band are no longer part of ”the Bluze brothers” & the Bluze Brothers, like their original counterparts are Putting the band back together.
In the Summer of 2007, remaining “Bluze Brothers” Jake, Buster & The Penguin, took part in a nationally advertised “Stars in Their Eyes” talent contest which was held at Mundesley Holiday Village in Norfolk, England, hosted by Granville Payne from Dancebeat. We performed “Sweet Home Chicago” as our choice of song with Buster drafted in as substitute for the missing Elwood. From a large line up of over 30 entrants taking part & some very stiff competition, we are proud to announce that the Bluze Brothers came 2nd overall - but then, if you recall from “Blues Brothers 2000”, so did the Blues Brothers in the Battle of Bands losing out to the “Louisiana Gator Boys.”, so by all accounts we didn’t do so bad to finish 2nd! We even ended the night with a rendition of “New Orleans” after the contest to add to the realism & we also gained a few fans - who all said we should of won. You can see pictures from this event in our Gallery section.
 With the death of Soul Legend James Brown in December 2006, Bluze Brothers.. Ian, Matt & Gavin each wanted to ensure the new show lives, thrives & survives if only to continue the great legacy of the Godfather of soul & of course in memory of the iconic character of Reverend Cleophus James he played from the 2 films. James Brown : 03/05/1933 - 25/12/2006
John Belushi : 24/01/1949 - 05/03/1982 Cab Calloway : 25/12/1907 - 18/11/1994
John Candy : 31/03/1950 - 04/03/1994 Ray Charles : 23/09/1930/ - 10/06/2004
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