Trick or Treat? Susie Blue & the Lonesome Fellas releases a wildly fun & rockin’ new single for Halloween this year “The House is Haunted”
The original tune “The House is Haunted by the Echo of Your Last Goodbye” is a classic swing song from 1938, but the Lonesome Fellas cleverly morph it into a swing/rockabilly/blues crossover, featuring the distinctive and renown tempo from Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You”.
The spotlight is turned to saxophonist Eric Schneider, who wails away like Sam Taylor from the Screamin’ Jay rendition, while guitarist Neal Alger breaks out a hard blues guitar. Bassist Chris Bernhardt leads the throbbing tempo and drummer Phil Gratteau spanks a hard, rock-blues beat. Over the top of it all, vocalist Solitaire Miles belts the lyrics for “Haunted” with her notorious Patsy Cline/Billie Holiday hybrid vocal, consummating a cacophony of melody, tempo and genres.
When you listen to the first few bars you get a TRICK, thinking that Miles will be warbling the first lines of “I Put a Spell on You”, but Fellas fans are in for one hell of a TREAT when she delivers a totally different and unexpected melody on top of the infamous Screamin’ Jay beat. “The House is Haunted” is an entertaining and lively addition to your Halloween collection – JM Reid