The film, The Blues Brothers directed by John Landis is known for its large musical numbers and classic soundtrack. The soundtrack has numerous R&B and soul music, and also includes some rock and jazz elements. Many famous soul musicians make appearances throughout the film and perform very powerful numbers. Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Cab Calloway, Chaka Khan, and many others are all featured in the film and add to the many diegetic songs seen within the film. In one of the opening scenes of Blues Brothers we see the godfather of soul music, James Brown. James Brown plays the role of Reverend Cleophus, where he leads the church in song. The song “The Old Landmark” is performed by the Reverend and the rest of the church.
The scene begins with the two brothers outside of the church deciding weather or not they should go in. From the outside of the church we can see the faint sound of an organ. As the brothers enter the church the organ grows louder and goes from non-diegetic to diegetic. The Reverend begins to talk over the organ, and he transition into song. The reverend leads the church in the song “The Old Landmark.” The song talks about preaching the word of god to the old landmark. The song is very energetic and lively, and the voices singing the sound are full and boisterous. At this portion of the film the brothers are trying to decided how they are going to save the orphanage. They are told by “the penguin” that they need to “move towards redemption.” In order for them to make this move they have to go to church. As soon as they walk into church they are immersed in music and god. The song is very sweet joyous and the people in the church share the same characteristics.
During this scene in the middle of the song Jake “sees the light.” The light of god shines down on Jake and inspires him to bring the band back together. This is a very important point of the movie because it propels the rest of the plot and the journey we see the brothers go on. When this “light” shines down on Jake we hear non-diegetic music of a choir singing “Hallelujah.” The music transition back into the diegetic performance by James Brown. Landis used this song in the film to move along the plot, without the song sung by the reverend and the rest of the church Jake wouldn’t have seen the light and decided to get the band back together. This song is also very important because it gives background on where the brothers grew up. The brothers grew up in the orphanage and the church. The church and the music was a large part of their life growing up, and is part of the reason why they perform.
This song also contributes to the overall understanding of the film. This scene is the start of the brother’s mission. The song and the light of god from the church brought Jake his idea. One of the main themes of the film is music, specifically blues music. Gospel music has a major influence on blues and R&B music. It is important to include gospel music in one of the opening numbers of the film because that’s where many of the famous performers in the film got their start. The film includes many diegetic performances that move along the plot similar to a musical. This song is the first musical number and it aids a lot to the plot.
