JOHN SULLIVAN BRIGADE: News Update

A great deal has happened since 2010 began. The John Sullivan Brigade finished recording its pre-production work on all 24 songs, which included lyric rewrites and revised song arrangements.

To keep from going crazy in "The Barracks" the band brought down a huge crowd to a local venue, mixing some new cover songs in with a dozen unreleased JSB3 songs.

The Brigaders were recently featured in a new film documentary about the local New York music scene along with three other artists and premiered at the C.W. Post Film Festival as the first film shown.

Last, college man saxophonist Charlie Lopresto joined as the newest member of the band and the final lineup for the 'rock opera'. A friend of fellow JSB bandmate Brian, we are excited about Charlie's tremendous talents.

With the songs written, the John Sullivan Brigade plans on first establishing the final lineup. Recording and mixing the project will take place during the second half of 2010 but will release the 'rock opera' in early 2011.

Ideally, the JSB hopes to get the word out first at CMJ in NYC in October, then later kickoff the new release around the 2011 South By Southwest Music Conference in Austin, Texas in mid-March, followed by a special, one-night performance in New York City in April. More summer 2011 details will follow.

Feel free to drop Sully a line via the CONTACT section for further questions.

The JSB finally returns to quintet form as Brian Caltabiano joins the Brigaders. He got our playbook and discs and likes what he hears. Brian's a music teacher and will be alternating between bass and acoustic guitar duties as well as providing backing vocals. Just in time for 2010!

The JSB is making it onto the big screen, as a film documentary crew interviewed the band and filmed down in "The Barracks" during rehearsal for an upcoming 2010 summer film about the local music scene. And....ACTION!

Our new digital single "I'm With Everyone At Christmas" is NOW available on www.CDBaby.com. Go check it out!!!

Another first for the Long Island rockers, as the band records its first-ever Christmas song over at Sabella Studios. Entitled "I'm With Everyone At Christmas", the JSB will be distributing a limited amount of CDs as gifts to selected fans and radio stations that play Christmas music beginning in November into December 25.

After some discussion and exploration, the last tune was added to the John Sullivan Brigade's upcoming JSB3 'concept album.

In addition, the two instrumental songs that start off each act on JSB3 (and originally slated as solo performances by Sully) are now in rehearsal/rearranging mode with the entire band. These songs will be 'recorded introductions' for future live performances.

On July 9 at Mirelle's on Long Island, the John Sullivan Brigade gave the JSB3 2010 concept album a two-set, 22 song 'test run' at Mirelle's on July 9. Making his live debut with the JSB was our new sax/keys player Steve Marsh. All the bells and whistles were present, including mandolin, pedal steel and even some 'a cappella' vocal work. The entire performance was videotaped and recorded separately. We'll let you know what it sounded like.

It is our distinct pleasure to welcome into BrigadeLand our new sax player Steve Marsh, who also plays piano. Steve's a music teacher in our neck of the woods and will fulfill our needs on a weekly basis for rehearsals and any live shows...he's already working on our upcoming project down in "The Barracks"...so welcome!!

Long Island's music magazine Good Times put the Brigaders' photo on their April 28-May 11 cover, which also included an inside story update along with another photo to boot. Free band advertising is the best!

Yes, the music press is supporting the Brigaders' efforts as Newsday puts us on their list of "Local Live" recommendations alongside music pros Aretha Franklin, Missing Persons, Shadows Fall and Zebra. The JSB will be doing 1/3 old JSB stuff, 1/3 inventive covers and 1/3 from the upcoming JSB3 concept album.

The John Sullivan Brigade got NYC area rock music producer Rob "Void" Caprio to successfully convert of the Brigade's 20th century rehearsal space into a 21st century recording studio ("The Barracks"), complete with the Zoom 16 hard disk multitrack digital recorder for the JSB's pre-production efforts. Yes!

In keeping with one of Sully's music New Year's resolutions, the band's website look has changed while carrying over its previous content. Hope you like it!

Newsday, in their Local Live music section that runs every Tuesday, shocked the JSB as they listed us as "THE JOHN SULLIVAN BRIGADE; Long Island's own bar-band legends" as we did our best-sounding gig yet at Mirelle's in Westbury.

Drummer Steve joined Sully on vocals and guitar/piano at 2008's CD co-producer Doug Kwartler's studio for some "unofficial" demos of JSB3.

Contact Sully on HOW to make donations to the band!

At The Great South Bay Music Festival's three-day, 40 band event, the JSB fulfilled a goal of playing an outdoor summer festival with other musical acts such as hard rockers Blue Oyster Cult, local cult rockers The Good Rats, folk & spiritual singing legend Odetta, and the jam sounds of the Mickey Hart (of Grateful Dead fame) Band. Good times!!

The JSB brought the neighborhood locals together for music and laughs (except for one cranky old witch who called the cops twice!) at the 2nd annual Brigade Backyard Bash on the creepy Friday the 13th (of June). We caught all 17 songs on tape and video (including the debut of one song from the JSB3 project) with hopes of doing something with this material in the future.

The summer edition of Long Island PULSE Magazine has editor Steve Matteo saying that the JSB is "one of the best bands on Long Island"...read the entire review in our PRESS section!

Sully has been slowly unloading to the Brigaders a few samples of the new songs slated for the next project. The goal will be to have the band's demo recording sessions for JSB3.

The John Sullivan Brigade continued their performances on the big, loud stage gig at The Nutty Irishman and the small, acoustic set at Pisces Cafe -- all videotaped and ready for a future project!

As part of promoting Sully's second rock novel, OPPORTUNITY ROCKING, the frontman (courtesy of Newsday's article about the event -- SEE our Press & Lyrics section) gave a short talk and Q&A at Long Island's largest indie book store Book Revue -- followed by the John Sullivan Brigade performing a FULL BAND acoustic version of "Shouldn't Be This Way" for the crowd.

Sully, George and Russ had some fun out at an open mic show, playing one acoustic song on acoustic guitar, fretless bass and mandolin (Shouldn't Be This Way) for an attentive but rain-drenched crowd in Suffolk County at Deepwells. Nice!

On short notice, The John Sullivan Brigade was asked to play at the reopened Munchaba Lounge on Long Island and made the most of a one-set show!

The John Sullivan Brigade brought their gear into a nearby school and shot their first-ever video. Featuring the song, "In Control", the band has released it into the ever-popular YouTube video web service.