Goodfellas bring back time when Copacabana was popular

Rita Hickey/Special to ViewFrom left, Reggie Reed, Danny Rome and Phil Riccobono sing to the crowd at Bugsy?s Bar and Grill. Advertisement

Step back into the past with the Goodfellas band -- a time when the Copacabana was the talk of the town, and supper clubs were the Saturday night hotspot. Rock bands and R&B singers dressed to the nines to perform, and musical acts catered to the crowd.

The Goodfellas band, straight out of Spring Valley, is on a mission to bring the music of the '50s, '60s and '70s to the masses in Las Vegas. At a recent gig at Bugsy's Bar and Grill, the Goodfellas played to a packed banquet room crowd, mixed with both young and old. Staring up at the eight men in their pin-striped suits and fedoras, the audience was transported back into time.

As the guys started to play, the crowd jumped to their feet and started to boogie. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, and it didn't matter who you were -- the music was timeless.

"These gentleman are professional," said the band's manager, Raye Zammit. "They took an era and bring it back to life."

Zammit, a long-time Spring Valley resident who is originally from back East, said she can envision herself at 16 years old again when she listens to the Goodfellas. Memories flood into her mind of when her parents used to step out to the Copa on weekend nights to see and be seen.

"The older generation wants to go back in time to their youth," Zammit said. "If you want to listen to good music and know the words to it, this is the music."

"You get enjoyment from just watching them," said Ann Marcasciano, a friend of Zammit's and a fan of the band. "It brings back memories; you have to go see them."

The Goodfellas, made up of Phil Riccobono, Danny Rome, Reggie Reed, Mike Candito, Scott Webb, Tony Cammilleri and Milo (who doesn't use his last name), hope to bridge generation gaps with their music. From the look of a Friday night crowd at Bugsy's, they're working toward that wish.

Twenty-somethings danced on the floor with 60-somethings, and every age in between was represented at the club.

"The standards are really what made this thing happen," Zammit said. "It's oldies rock and roll; it's just pure music."

The Goodfellas were named the Best Local Blues Band in the 2007 Las Vegas Review-Journal Best of Las Vegas Poll, and Zammit hopes that honor will continue to be carried by the band.

"The concept of this group is going to keep getting better and better," she said. "We have a local following."

"You won't be disappointed," Marcasciano said of the group's stage show.

The Goodfellas band is scheduled to perform at 4 p.m on Sept. 1 at the Cannery, at 8 p.m. on Sept. 14 and 15 at the Rampart and at the San Gennaro Feast, also on Sept. 14 and 15.

For more information call the group's hotline at 215-8024 or visit www.goodfellasband.us.