CADILLAC SKY

Concert for Peace

Cadillac Sky’s propulsive brand of acoustic music is the perfect marriage of tradition and innovation. This original approach comes from a deep-seated respect for tradition wrapped around an unbridled musical curiosity. There’s no dichotomy in the band’s sound, just a synthesis of the band’s eclectic influences. The Cadillac Sky sound is the fruition of bandleader Bryan Simpson’s groundbreaking vision to create an acoustic roots band built for the 21st Century.

The band first came together in 2002 in Texas when Simpson (mandolin, vocals) teamed up with young banjo whiz Matt Menefee. The timing was perfect because Simpson was beginning to have success as a mainstream country songwriter but was burdened by a deep well of more personal material that he felt deserved a forum but had no vehicle for. Menefee’s colorful and rhythmic banjo playing combined with a similar musical vision, was the launching pad that Simpson had hoped for but not expected to find. They soon added a veteran influence in Mike Jump who had found success playing with regional favorites Southern Union and the Andy Owens Project. And shortly after, on the word of Menefee, added the virtuosic, Ross Holmes (fiddle, vocals), and, more recently, the talents of Houston native, Andy “Panda” Moritz (bass, vocals).

When the band began rehearsing, they quickly realized the diverse, but complementary musical backgrounds they could pull from. They blended the traditional sounds of Bill Monroe and the colorful stylings of The Beatles with free form jazz to develop their signature sound.

“Everybody in this band comes from such different backgrounds musically, that we all bring our own element to the group,” explains Holmes about the band’s original sound. “You can hear a lot of the classical and jazz influences that I have and Bryan’s more old-timey bluegrass style. Mike grew up with the ’70s rock and a lot of his harmony singing and rhythm playing reflect that. And Matt, he’s simply one of the best banjo players on the planet and everything he does is just amazing.”

Simpson believes building the band’s sound on the traditions of bluegrass has given Cadillac Sky a solid foundation—one strong enough to support their unique musical perspective. “We definitely have progressive leanings, but we are trying to find our own voice and not be flimsy retreads of New Grass Revival or Nickel Creek; even though we LOVE that stuff. What I like about acoustic music is that there is such an honest energy to it. We try to keep that and combine in it with the innovation of rock music. Then we take some of the country music sensibilities in the lyric and melody and put all that together. Probably not consciously, but it seems to sort of work out that way.”

Being rooted in the traditional music, along with prodigious picking and singing skills has allowed the band to win fans on both sides of the traditional/progressive fence. “We try to get the Mount Rushmore of grass in there when we perform live,” says Simpson. “The Godfathers: Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Ralph Stanley, maybe Jimmy Martin. We’ll do a couple of original songs then maybe a great old John Hartford song or some Green Day cover. We just try our best to entertain, more than anything. We try not to play music that’s over anyone’s head. We don’t want to indulge ourselves…we’re not interested in entertaining ourselves and doing long-winded solos forever. You can find a good middle ground with all of that. You can get enough for the people that enjoy the jam band scene and enough for people that enjoy the three-minute pop song.”

And, there’s something else that sets the band apart, something that may not be immediately apparent. There is an understated spirituality that infuses everything the band does. It’s one of the things that drew Ricky Skaggs to Cadillac Sky’s music and ultimately resulted in signing them to Skaggs Family Records. “When Ricky called me in January, the first thing he talked about was the spiritual side of our music,” says Simpson. “The record doesn’t hit you over the head with the spiritual stuff. But we’re all believers and so there’s an undertone when we write our songs that just comes out.”

Cadillac Sky are believers—not only in their faith, but in the power of great music. They know music makes a difference.