I do not act, I am the actual Blues Brother not Dan Aykroyd, musician Don Baker says

VETERAN musician Don Baker insists he’s the actual Blues Brother and never Dan Aykroyd, who starred within the field workplace smash The Blues Brothers, one of many largest grossing musicals of all time.

The Dublin-born harmonica participant was in a position to take a look at the Canadian star’s musical credentials when starring reverse Dan again in 2000 in Irish film On The Nostril.

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Aykroyd arrived in Dublin quickly after taking part in ex con ‘Elwood Blues’ reverse the late John Belushi in The Blues Brothers, which took in over €100million on the field workplace.

Rival blues males Don and Dan had been seen going face to face singing and taking part in harmonica in a Harcourt Avenue pub at a shock fortieth birthday for his or her co-star Robbie Coltrane.

Don advised the Irish Solar: “The Blues Brothers had been an enormous, so I used to be nervous.

‘AMAZED’

“Like me, Dan performs harmonica and sings. I believed I’d have me work reduce out for me. However once we began jamming I used to be amazed to seek out Dan was solely satisfactory on the harmonica.

“Not that nice in any respect. I may waste the person taking part in the blues. However he had a great deal of character and charisma — and being an actor may carry off being a Blues Brother.

“However me, I don’t act like a Blues Brother. I’m a f****** Blues Brother.”

However In Identify of The Father actor Don admits he by no means advised Dan that he didn’t price his taking part in.

Don defined: “Dan was a pleasant man however, much more vital, so enormous.

“I didn’t wish to stand subsequent to him on stage as a result of he made me seem like a dwarf.

“He was that tall. The film was nice craic. I spent the entire time listening to Dan telling Robbie Coltrane jokes.”

‘WE REALLY SUFFERED’

Whereas Aykroyd and Belushi in The Blues Brothers play two ex-cons looking for the cash to maintain their outdated orphanage open,  Don, 72, has spent the final two years attempting maintain his Brogans Bar and Resort in Trim, Co Meath, going by way of the pandemic lockdown.

Don stated: “We actually suffered, like everybody else. It was heartbreaking to let workers go however we obtained by way of with so a lot of my musical associates like Finbar Furey and Liam Ó Maonlaí exhibiting as much as do little gigs at 5pm.”

And with the pandemic over now, it’s Don who’s taking part in once more, doing a nationwide tour kicking off in March — dates on donbaker.ie.

There’s additionally a brand new self-titled movie biography of the actor/musician which is airing subsequent Wednesday, February 9 at 9:30pm  on TG4.

It’s an inspiring story of how Don went from poverty in Sheriff Avenue, stealing milk bottles off doorsteps, to proudly owning a 17-bedroom lodge in  Meath.

He admits he generally does a Basil Fawlty and solutions the calls on reception.

Don stated: “In the future this man rang up who advised me he was an IRA prisoner simply launched due to the Good Friday Settlement. He needed me to satisfy him in a pub on the town.

‘SWAPPING MY TAPES’

“He sounded fairly jolly so for some mad purpose I went in to satisfy him. However once I obtained into the pub, it was a mixture of IRA and loyalist guys consuming collectively and now on ceasefire.

“They stated they’d been swapping my tapes within the H Block and needed to current me with a particular belt they’d made in there. I nonetheless have it.

“‘Don Baker Blues Man’ it says written throughout the center — however I’m not taking any credit score for the peace course of.”

Don landed the position of IRA man Joe McAndrew in film Within the Identify Of The Father after director Jim Sheridan began turning up at his blues gigs.

Don is about to carry out on the Pavillion, Dun Laoghaire, on March 25  and at Draiocht Blanchardstown on April 22.

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