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J.C. Carroll sat in the cozy living room in East Syracuse this mid-afternoon, watching the snowflakes fall in a thick curtain.

The magic of the moment struck the singer, musician and songwriter from London.

"This morning, I was in a friend's apartment in New York City, overlooking Central Park, where they keep the horses," Carroll mused. "Now I'm in Syracuse, looking out at the snow as a little girl plays. I'm in proper America."

Proper Amerca is the home of East Syracuse guitar player Mark Cloutier, whose daughter is happily staring at a handheld video game as the man who's made a considerable name for himself in the United Kingdom talks about music.

Cloutier and Carroll met online, communicating on music community websites. One riff led to another, and the British veteran invited the East Syracuse pro to contribute tracks for his latest CD, "New English Blues Vol. I."

"I tell people that I made this album without ever being in the same room," Carroll says, looking across the room to the smiling Cloutier. "But we know each other. I chat with him online. We go to the same Internet pub."

In fact, they got to know each other so well that Cloutier invited Carroll to Central New York to play together live.

Continue reading "British blues-rock player J.C. Carroll visits East Syracuse guitarist Mark Cloutier" »

Synopsis: "Twilight": It's an action-packed, modern-day love story between a teen girl and a vampire. Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) has always been a bit different, never fitting in with the girls at her school. When Bella is sent to live with her father in the rainy little town of Forks, Washington, she doesn't expect much to change. Then she meets the mysterious and dazzlingly beautiful Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a boy unlike any she's ever met. Edward is a vampire, but he doesn't have fangs and his family is unique in that they choose not to drink human blood. Edward has been waiting 90 years for a soul mate, which he finds in Bella.

» Go see it | Trailer

More "Twilight":
» The official "Twilight" movie site
» "Twilight" creator Stephenie Meyer's official site
» The Daily Dose: "Harry Potter" and "Twilight" similarities
» LA Times: 'Twilight' makes you wish you were a romantic teen again
» New York Times: The love that dare not bare its fangs
» AP Video: Review: 'Twilight' takes bite out of books fun
» The Dallas Morning News: Fans burn the midnight oil for debut of 'Twilight'
» AP: Teen wins 'Twilight' car on 'Tyra Banks Show'

Continue reading "Teen thriller 'Twilight' opens" »

Listen Up reader J.J. Jenkins dropped a note with a plug for the David Byrne concert coming up at the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse on Nov. 29.

"Saw the show in Albany on Nov. 5," Jenkins writes. "Outstanding, and sold out. Talk it up. I haven't seen much coverage yet. He puts on a great show. (Ticket price of) $35 at a great venue is a steal."

I wrote about the Byrne concert here on Listen Up and then in The Post-Standard as soon as it was announced in early October.

And I immediately put in a call requesting a phone interview with the man who made Talking Heads tick.

Alas. Publicist Joe Cohen wrote with the bad news that he couldn't get any phone interview time with Byrne lined up.

Cohen did, however, send me a lengthy press packet about Byrne's "Songs of David Byrne and Brian Eno" and his collaborative new CD with his former Talking Heads and solo producer "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today."

"Byrne is doing the most open-hearted singing of his career," says the Washington Post.

"(Byrne) is an avatar of new-wave individualism," says the Toronto Globe and Mail.

Continue reading "Here's a music fan that says David Byrne's Syracuse concert is a must-see" »

John Rossbach and Chestnut Grove perform tonight for the last time in Central New York before Rossbach's move out of state. The concert, which is part of the Folkus Project, takes place at 8 p.m. at May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society (3800 E. Genesee St.). Tickets are $12.

Violinist Leila Josefowicz performs Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra tonight at part of the orchestra's Classic Series. The concert starts at 8 p.m. at the Mulroy Civic Center (411 Montgomery St.). Tickets range from $15 to $70.

The Syracuse University Symphony Orchestra performs the works of students Billy Joel Fellow and Ian Hartsough in a concert at the Jules R. Setnor Auditorium on the SU campus. The concert starts at 8 p.m.

Martin Simpson performs at 8 p.m. at the Ithaca Unitarian Church (306 N. Aurora St., Ithaca). Tickets are $20.

The Vogues bring their old-school sound to Le Moyne Manor (629 Old Liverpool Rd.) tonight for Christmas with the Vogues. The event includes dinner and dancing to the music of the group responsible for such classics as "Turn Around" and "Special Angel." Call (315) 457-3000 to make reservations.

Continue reading "John Rossbach's farewell show at May Memorial tonight" »

While catching up with Syracuse music veteran Todd Hobin during the get-together for the release of the Big Mike Fiss holiday CD on Wednesday night at the Palace Theatre Cafe, he dropped me a good nugget.

Hobin and fellow local legend musician Joe Whiting appeared together for a taping of "Food for Thought" on WCNY-TV.

Appearing with Fiss, they all made pizzas.

Cool.

More cool is the fact that Hobin and Whiting sat down and made music together in the same room for the first time. Ever. Even Hobin says that's kind of hard to believe, considering how their legacies stretch back through the decades.

"We jammed," Hobin said, simply. The songs they delivered: "O Christmas Tree," the piece Hobin plays on the Big Mike CD; "Auld Lang Syne," Whiting's contribution to the album; and the classic good time song "Route 66."

CNY music scholars may dive into their collection and discover that the pair have appeared on the same CD. One of Hobin's, he says. Alas, they recorded their parts separately.

Co-hosted by George Kilpatrick and Chris Xaver, this holiday edition of the show will be broadcast at 12:30 p.m. Thanksgiving day on WCNY-24.

Says Big Mike: "Joe is his usual best, in fine voice. But you gotta see Todd play the piano. Todd is certainly known as a great guitarist and over the years I've seen him play the keyboard a bit, but never with such intensity as during the taping."

Saturday's Best Bet: Marcellus-based indie band Jackson's Kid Summer plays CD release party for the their new record "Sierra Sunshine" at the Westcott Theater.

More Best Bets...

Thursday: Th3 hosts its monthly Visual Arts Open at all the museums in and around Syracuse

Friday: John Rossbach and Chestnut Grove play a farewell concert at May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society

Sunday: Soprano Helen Boatwright performs a concert at the Everson Museum

More than a handful of Central New York musicians got an early wave of Christmas spirit Wednesay night at the Palace Theatre Cafe in Eastwood.

SUNNY 102 morning host Big Mike Fiss was the man with the microphone in the midst of a party thrown by the folks at P&C Foods. The cause: Celebrate the release of "Big Mike's Christmastime in Syracuse," the 14th edition of the compilation of holiday sounds recorded by fine Syracuse-area musicians.

"It's an incredible CD," said Todd Hobin, co-producer of the CD along with Fiss.

The Hobin family scored three cuts on the compilation: dad Todd's "O Christmas Tree;" son Bret's "UpOnTheHouzTop" in his bass-playing role with rock band Simplelife; and son Corey's "Joy to the World" in his drummer position with pop-rock singer Erika Desocio.

Others on the CD are Grupo Pagan, Nancy Kelly with Lyman Strong, Letizia, Dave Hanlon's Cookbook with the Fayetteville-Manlius High School 16, Loren Barrigar, The Billionaires, Donna Colton, Gary Frenay and Arty Lenin, Ronnie Leigh with Rick Montalbano, Kanjira, Prime Time, and The Joe Whiting Band with Evan Knight and Michael Davis.

"This is a room full of very, very talented musicians," Fiss said. "How many of you have been able to come to an event like this without having to unpack your instruments."

The music came from them; only this time it was the recorded version from the CD. I'll review the work on Dec. 18 in the Post-Standard with my holiday CD reviews.

It's on sale now at P&C Foods supermarkets. The price is $6, and proceeds will benefit Elmcrest Children's Center and Casey's Place.

THE DETAILS
WHAT: Th3 visual arts open.
WHEN: 5 p.m. today.
WHERE: Various art galleries in Syracuse.
COST: Free.
INFORMATION: Call 425-7500 or 474-6064 or visit www.th3syracuse.com.
ALSO: Redhouse is hosting a reception for its new exhibit, "Paper Politics," from 5 to 8 p.m. today.

Continue reading "Best Bet, Thursday, Nov. 20, Th3 Visual Arts Open" »