Hey Bob, Awesome write up and spot on here. Wait till you see them live next time they play in Los Angeles. They will blow you away. All 8 members of the band are so dynamic, and Paul is pure, non-stop entertainment!! I just heard the live version of ‘Sushi and Coca-Cola’ and they took this under 3-minute song and created a 7-minute live anthem that will make you get up and dance by yourself. You can’t stop moving! They are as authentic as it gets in music, and this song is going to move them to the next level and beyond. It does not fit a format or a DSP playlist, it is simply great music that is going to bleed into the mainstream and not leave, because the song and band has “it”. We all want “it”, and “it” is hard to find and get. St Paul and the Broken Bones will be around for many more decades, and you will love it when you see them every time live! 

Warren Christensen

Q Prime

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Thanks, BOB… Now you’ve created an earworm for me!  Not the greatest song I’ve ever heard, but certainly one with a nice groove. I’m not sure that Saint Paul is better than The Commitments, but Paul’s voice is really slick, and you don’t hardly ever hear any horn bands around anymore today, which I really miss! Bottom line is, this song should definitely have more traction than it currently does. As a former Head of promotion for several labels, I believe I could’ve gotten this played… Just sayin’…

Michael Abramson

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Hey Bob – your timing on this is so great.  I just saw St Paul & the Broken Bones this past Saturday at a free show in Marina del Rey as part of their summer concert series.  It was such a fun show, and as you mention below, everyone was up and moving for “Sushi and Coca-Cola.”  There’s no denying that he has a great voice, puts on a good show, AND they had the horns with them.  Keep spreading the word about real music!

All the best – Mary Jurey

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loved it song of summer 25…no lie…good vibe

Chris Rodinis

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I love the groove and his voice, that is one of the oddest videos I have seen but I like it!!

Doug Gillis

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Good shout on St Paul and the Broken Bones.

We saw them at the Ryman in Nashville many years ago. It was one of the greatest show I have seen. He looks like the guy other guys picked on in High School but he performs like James Brown only weirder. At one point he randomly rolled himself in the stage rug and hid under the drum riser. It was strange and fabulous. And he is a great singer.

Best

Michael Ross

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Saw them this summer at The Capitol Groove festival – a very cool midsize fest in downtown Hartford – where they blew the place out.  Was pretty inspiring and amazing to hear how many people – young kids – talking about their set even on Day 2.

Dave Rubin

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Been into them since their first album…..seen them many times live always a good time.

Michael Rosenblatt

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Simple? Yes.

Derivative? Yes.

Infectious? HELL YEAHHH!!

Nice find, Bob.

DG

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Thanks Bob, love this tune.

Louis Lindstrom

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Thank you, Bob!!!  This is great.  It is just where my head is right now.  Just sounds good.  Groove!  Give me an authentic band where people are playing real instruments. The horn section is killer.  The dude can sing, too!  The drummer plays just behind the beat, and it sounds like VINYL! This made me feel like I was a kid again, listening to Al Green or Billy Paul on my Zenith shelf-style radio (badass speaker, by the way!) in my bedroom .. singing along with an invisible microphone, while moving around the room like I was on “In Concert” or “Midnight Special!”

I hope to see this band LIVE. I was hooked at first listen!  Great group!

🙂

Beki Brindle-Scala

Woodstock, NY

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Terrific song.

Would feel at home on Stax.

Thanks,

Ernie Canadeo

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Al Green would’ve killed with this song..

I like it

Jeff Laufer

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I put these guys in the Muscle Shoals Sound category, classic style that, as you say, forces you to get up and move.  I’ve seen them live (in a smaller venue) and the show was great, they love their jobs and it comes across on the stage.

Jeff Bray

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This is crazy good.

You can’t possibly oversell it.

How is this not the song of the summer of 2025?!?!??!

I’ve never run into this band before.. Going off to research.

Thanks for this.!!!

It is exactly what I needed.

Karen Gordon

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Love this! And the video.

John Parikhal

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St. Paul and the BB, Sushi and Coca Cola is very good. Paul Janeway and his cape wardrobe and stunning voice range is simply masterful. I’ve been a fan since I first heard Apollo.

Thanks Bobby!

Thank you,

Gary Hunter, CCIM

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Me thinks one of your better picks. It’s a killin’  track for all your stated reasons.  I saw them live about 6 years ago and found them, meh. After listening to this tune, I might give em another chance live.

Thanks, Bob.

Dave McNair

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Check out St Paul and the Broken Bones’ performance on NPR’s Tiny Desk. Great stuff!

 

Love your letters!

 

Thanks!

 

Pete Thompson

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i like the sushi song!

Jeff Lorber

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LOVE IT!!

Tom Gillam

New BraunfelsTX

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Thanks for the tip, Bob.

Their latest, “Fall Moon” has it going on too.

Rusty

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Great pick, thank you.

Kind regards,
Rob Whittaker

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The difference between a guitar + keyboards pop rock band vs. the same band with a well-charted  horn section blended in is like the difference between a plain scoop of ice cream vs. a hot fudge sundae.

Paul Lanning

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As a mid-60ish music fan, I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s increasingly hard to find worthy tunes to spin in this era and when you run across a working band that brings some soul/funk and horns to the mix, like St. Paul & The Broken Bones, you will have my ears. I submit the finest example of this genre is Tedeschi Trucks Band. The “wall of sound” they emit as a 12-piece ensemble is magnificent! Certainly, the economics of touring with such a lineup are daunting, and I admire them even more for placing the auditory experience of their fans above simply maximizing the bottom line.

Taylor Josey

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You like this ’cause it’s a REAL song.  The lyrics work against the music in a terrific way.  It’s kind of everyday/every life, sweetly sad.  Tough day…nothin’ fancy, just another tricky, lucky day.

AND…Paul Janeway’s vocal is damned good. That kind of tight, focussed, nasal, soulful intelligence is pretty rare at the moment…(he reminds me a bit of Frazee Ford).

Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

gPresto

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Sorry, pass.

You want horns, listen to Tedeschi Trucks Band

Larry Mollin

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Thanks for bringing some love to songs like this, and more importantly, this fantastic band – especially live in concert.  I’ve seen them live many times over the last few years, including twice this year already. (They were touring with the Wood Brothers this summer, another non-mainstream band that is very good in concert).  At every show, Paul and the band play with real emotion and energy. There is no pretentious BS at their shows. They are all better musicians than you’d expect, and their lead guitarist can really rock. But you’re right, it’s the horns and Paul himself that kill it song after song.

I grew up in So. Cal and have been going to shows since my older sister took me to see Black Sabbath at the Long Beach Arena in 1976. Ater a long career in the event and sports marketing business, which included 30+ years of travel and the opportunity to see concerts all over the country, I recently retired.  And my passion now is seeing good bands in smaller venues.  I’m up to 26 shows this year, with another 10 already booked for the fall/winter.  I’m on a Rock n’ Roll retirement plan!

I don’t go to festivals, stadiums or big arena shows anymore.  I don’t want to see screens, videos, massive light shows or pyrotechnics.  I want to see and hear a band deliver a show to a crowd.  Some bands are good musicians.  Some bands are good entertainers.  But when a band can deliver both, that is a special night.  I live for those nights.   St. Paul and the Broken Bones is one of those bands.

At some point in every show, they play a very long version of the song Sanctify.  Paul usually goes out into the audience and finds a place he can get a little elevated.  He gets creative at times.  At the show I saw in Ft. Wayne, IN, last month, he climbed up a 20″ ladder and continued to sing!  When he’s in that robe (like he’s wearing in the video you sent), and he’s singing that song, the venue becomes a church, and he is testifying!!  The place is electric! To quote the late, great Jim Ladd, “Lord may mercy”!

Go see St. Paul and the Broken Bones live. They will fill your heart and soul with nothing but great music.

Cheers Bob!

Bill O’Neil