(Classic Rock | Blues) [CD] Gaetano Letizia & The Underworld Blues Band - Beatles Blues Blast - 2018, FLAC (tracks), lossless

The Fab Four are unquestionably one of the most influential groups of modern times, with over 500 artists recording cover versions or full tribute albums of Beatles’ songs. The list of artists spans the gamut from Ella to Elvis, the Philharmonic to Phish, even The Muppets and Alvin & the Chipmunks have had a go at them. The Beatles themselves began as a cover band, recording songs by 50’s icons Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Carl Perkins and the influence of classic R&B and blues can be heard on all the group’s albums. Several notable R&B stars had hits with Beatles songs, such as Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles, but only a few authentic blues acts have ventured into the territory of the lads from Liverpool.
Cleveland Ohio is the home of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and birthplace of guitarist extraordinaire, Gaetano Letizia, leader of the Underworld Blues Rock Band, who was a teenager during the years of Beatlemania and the British invasion. The effect of those heady days has stayed in the forefront of his mind for decades and now, with a little help from his friends, Mike D’Elia on drums and bass man Lenny Gray, Gaetano presents “Beatles Blues Blast.” The third disc from the trio is a rowdy romp through 17 classics from the Beatles’ catalog, cleverly arranged and reframed as a funky blues jam session. Recorded live off the floor in a single day at Bad Racket Studio in downtown Cleveland, this lo-fi indie blues rock album takes this magical music back to its roughneck roots of dance clubs in a hard-working industrial town.
In classic Beatles’ fashion the album begins at the end with ‘Come Together,’ which was the opening song of their final studio album “Abbey Road,” where the trio forgo the dramatic intro and jump headlong into the groove setting up the formula for the project. D’Elia turns McCartney’s first drum track into a jungle beat of swamp rock fury on ‘Do It In The road,’ and then we all yell “More Cowbell!” during the four on the floor funk ‘Drive My Car.’ 1960 Motown hit ‘Money (That's What I Want)’ is injected with surf guitar as a tip of the hat to the American bands that also covered it. Harrison’s Rocker ‘Taxman’ is given a Texas Shuffle treatment, and his beloved ode to the six string, ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps,’ shifts between a samba and power ballad. ‘She Came In Through The Bathroom Window,’ retains the funky groove of the Joe Cocker version, and they keep the psychedelic blues rocker, ‘I Want You (She's So Heavy),’ true to its original metal prototype form. The Latin tinged ‘And I Love Her’ has a 70’s Santana vibe, and ‘Can’t Buy Me Love,’ is turned into a Chicago Blues. Letizia steps hard on the fuzz pedal for ‘You Can’t Do That,’ and plays ‘Yesterday,’ as a soft blues rhumba.
The boys pick up the rooftop party right where the Beatles left off for a rocking ‘Get Back,’ then bring out the full drama for ‘With A Little Help From My Friends.’ The novelty song with a great riff, ‘Birthday,’ is tossed in for laughs before a sweet country blues reading of ‘Blackbird’ that features marvelous finger picking lead guitar and articulate counter point on the bass. The aptly chosen closer ‘A Day In The Life,’ also the final track of the 1967 album “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely-Hearts Club Band,” is bumped up with touches of Soul and Rockin’ Fire for an epic climax.
By tackling this iconic repertoire, Gaetano Letizia and The Underworld Blues Rock Band, have created a whimsical and yet sincere tribute with “Beatles Blues Blast,” that will find a respected place in the Pantheon of Beatlemania that remains strong some 50 years on. ~Rick J Bowen