Friends, it was a little over thirty years ago that I came to a startling conclusion – I was born in the wrong era. At least in regards to my choice in entertainment as a teenager and young adult – I am referring to my love of film noir, old time radio, and big band music. That of course didn’t mean that I wasn’t a fan of modern entertainment too – but there was this little wistful desire to see the merging of my love of the past with the present. As a matter of fact, I think we have 1980’s Xanadu to thank for getting the ball rolling on that idea of the merging of eras.
Which is the long way around to explain why I immediately fell in love with Postmodern Jukebox, after catching their 2016 cover of “Forget You” featuring LeVance Colley. I was actually at the arcade and one of the Players happened to be at the snack bar listening to it – they were kind enough to let me watch a few videos on their phone – afterwards I hopped over to iTunes and bought a few albums.
Postmodern Jukebox began back in 2011 – founded by Scott Bradlee – who not only arranges the music but is also the band’s pianist. The group which is made up of a collective of artists has produced 26 albums and showcased over 70 guest performers – to say nothing of being able to tour six continents. Postmodern Jukebox has in addition been known to cover popular theme songs from animated series – such as Pokemon and of course Pinky and the Brain.
Featuring Emily Goglia (Grease Live!), this cover of the Pinky and the Brain theme is a slow and satisfying number that would be perfect for a nightclub in the ’50s. In my opinion however they have managed to up the ante by featuring none other than Maurice LaMarche (The Real Ghostbusters) and Rob Paulsen (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) – the legendary voice talents who portrayed the Brain and Pinky on both Animaniacs and the Pinky and the Brain spin-off series.
This is AMAZING. I do love Post Modern Jukebox. I’d love for them to revisit the Saturday Morning Slow Jams segment they did a few years ago. Getting Rob Paulsen and Mo LaMarche to do this again made this even better!