Imagine an R&B-slanted Steely Dan, or perhaps the Doobie Brothers with a lot more soul, and you'd have an idea of what an evening with Cadillac Moon would be like. Now imagine yourself sitting in a bar somewhere in New Orleans and you'd be even closer to the mark. In fact, the band's recent performance at Heads & Tails in Roslyn should have earned the town a one-night name change to Roslyn-on-th-Bayou.
There's a comfortably familiar feel to the group's music; like a well worn pair of shoes, the tunes need no breaking in. Blues soaked vocals wrapped around accessible melodies, further enhanced by the group's combined wealth of musical experietse and shared songwriting abilities, leave no doubt that this is one of Long Island's upper echelon bands.
Each of Cadillac Moon's members brings years of experieince to the band, brobably more than they would care to count. Before anyone gets the idea that this is a broup of aging baby boomers desperately clinging to the last vestiges of their youth, let me dispel that notion. What's happening here instead is that five adult musicians are managing to inject a powerful dose of youthful energy into their performance, which only makes the obvious talent within the band that much more in'your'face.
Their set at Heads & Tails left me highly impressed on all counts. Vocalist Al Santoriello is an attention-getting frontman whose delivery is strong and consisitent. Keyboardist/vocalist Rich Campbell, guitarist/vocalist Mike Nugent, bassist/vocalist David Noyes and drummer Cliff Hackford are one of the tightest bunch of musicians you'll hear. There's a big difference between playing with and off of each other; Cadillac Moon is a remarkable example of the latter. Nugent and Campbell each possess a sense of inventive melodicisim as well as the technical ability to play what's in his head, without ever treading on the other's toes. Noyes and Hackford are equally as melodic in their own right, and serve up the perfect rhythmic platter on which the material rests.
If this type and quality of music is heavily represented in your CD collection, you'll want to check this band out live as well as pick up a copy of their debut CD, Plug Me In.You'll find that Cadillac Moon's years of experience have paid off with rich musical rewards.
Roy Abrams
