Over the years, a variety of cars have been celebrated in music, including the Mercedes Benz and the Porsche. But no vehicle has excited as many songwriters as the mighty Cadillac -- a vehicle that has inspired countless songs in different genres and is the subject of this compilation. Fins, Chrome and the Open Road: A Tribute to the Cadillac contains 21 songs that are relevant to Caddies in some way, and the material ranges from roots rock, Americana, and country-rock to electric-urban-blues. Everything has a rootsy appeal on this very nostalgic release, which is appropriate because the Cadillacs in question aren't the so-called "Cadillac SUV" eyesores of the '90s and 2000s -- -they're the hip, stylish Cadillacs of the '50s, '60s, and '70s (sorry, but no SUV is worthy of the name Cadillac). Many of the artists on this 79-minute disc are providing songs of their own, including Charlie Musselwhite on "Mighty Fine Cruisin'," Ottomatic Slim on "Cadillac Forever," Rory Block on "Don't Touch My Caddy" and Jim Lauderdale on the humorous "One Piece at a Time" (which favors a classic country-rap narrative style along the lines of Commander Cody's "Hot Rod Lincoln" and Johnny Cash's "A Boy Named Sue"). But there are some inspired covers as well -- for example, Rosie Flores' version of Bruce Springsteen's "Cadillac Ranch" and Little Milton's performance of the blues standard "I Ain't Got You." Fins, Chrome and the Open Road: A Tribute to the Cadillac is by no means the last word on Caddy-inspired songs; there are no performances of Slade's "Slick Black Cadillac" or Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac" (just to give two examples). But it's a fun compilation that celebrates what was -- back in the day -- the American highway's ultimate symbol of cool. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide