October 1996 Vol1#11

Andy Cahan
Snarfel: Thirty years of Andy Cahan

Cool, funky, quirky, amazing how to
describe a single disk encompassing
thirty years of one man's work?
Singer, songwriter, keyboardist, vocalist,
engineer, arranger, producer - Andy
Cahan can do it all and has for the likes of
Ringo Starr, Harry Nilsson, Eric
Carmen, the Grandmothers, and the
Monkees to name just a few.These days
the "Demo Doctor" operates a "one man demo
service" offering a complete service at a
fraction of the usual cost since he's able
to wear all the required hats at once.
Over the years he's recorded many of his
own songs aided by some of the many
professionals he's worked with.
Snarfel is a collection of twenty-five
of these tunes spanning the years
1965-1995 and featuring artists from
groups such as Captain Beefheart, X,
Loggins and Messina, Zappa,
 and The Motels.

As you might expect, Snarfel contains
a wide variety of styles and genres.
Cahan's work through the years brought
to my mind comparisons from Todd
Rundgren to Uriah Heep, from psychedelia
to cool pop harmonies. Mixed in among them are
some classical and jazz instrumentals
featuring bassoons, recorders, clarinets,
oboes and violins. It is difficult to put a label on
an album with the diversity of Snarfel,
listening to it is like loading up your CD
player with several nice albums and setting
it on "random." What is consistent is the quality
delivered in each song, this is an excellent
demonstration of Andy Cahan's talent.

Nathan Smith

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