Road Recovery Benefit @ Varvatos Store (CBGB) a great success!

What a night! MajorWho was thrilled to help support Road Recovery's benefit concert last week at John Varvatos' store in NYC. His store is located in the old CBGB's and gets used occasionally as a performance space. So many of the performers and Road Recovery staff walked in with nostalgia in their eyes, remembering back as many as 30 years since their first gigs they played and attended at CBGB's.

Emceed by longtime Road Recovery supporter Matt Pinfield and his radio partner Leslie Fram, the show opened with performances by Road Recovery Performance Workshops, followed by the Road Recovery Staff band including: Knox Chandler on bass, Adam Roth on guitar, Mark Boquist on drums, Owen Comansky on guitar, Tom Dudley bv's- and Road Recovery house band Crazy James. It is such a thrill to see the kids perform the songs for a packed house that we've produced and recorded with them in the studio. The staff band was joined by MajorWho artist Todd Alsup, who sat in on keys and sang a fantastic version of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground."

Road Recovery Participants Meet With Peter Frampton Before The Show

Following the opening bands, the first of the two headliners performed. Denis Leary and The Enablers (featuring Road Recovery staff Adam Roth and Owen Comaskey) did their hybrid comedy-rock routine, including some of Denis' more well known songs such as "The Rehab Song," "F*** You," and his most famous, "A**hole."

Then came the headliner - the legendary Peter Frampton. Peter played a mostly acoustic set, but was joined by a keyboard player and bassist. The crowd loved hearing his classics - "Show Me The Way," "Baby I Love Your Way," and "Do You Feel Like We Do." He broke out the Framptone guitar/vocoder sound to raucous applause. For his encore, Frampton did his rendition of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and then invited the Enablers on stage for a reprise of "A**hole."

The show was packed, John Varvatos was a gracious host, and was a terrific night for Road Recovery. All of the artists voiced their overwhelming support for Road Recovery, who both raised money and awareness for their cause. Congrats to Gene Bowen, Jack Bookbinder, and the entire Road Recovery family for such a successful event. We look forward to many more amazing Road Recovery events and collaborations in the new year.

John Varvatos with MajorWho Artist Todd Alsup

Distant Partners, Distant Portraits

Brooklyn composer Randall Woolf gives some insight to the Brooklyn Philharmonic January 24, 2010 concert "Distant Partners, Distant Portraits" at the Brooklyn Museum.

Moby @ MajorWho with Road Recovery

Road Recovery's Performance Workshop program and house band Crazy James, who meet, rehearse, and record in our studio every Monday , are being visited by a special guest this evening. Moby is a DJ, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer who has sold millions of records and had his music in hundreds of commercials and movies. He is also a philanthropist and and activist, serving on the boards of several non-profit organizations. He is just one of the many renowned artists and music industry professionals who have stepped up to act as mentors to the participants in Road Recovery's programs.

amanda palmer - "gaga, palmer, madonna", a kitchen-ukulele-blogsong

I love Amanda Palmer and the way she's engaging her fans with the use of Twitter, YouTube and other web tools. Amanda is fiercely independent and carving out quite the niche. There are many artists out there taking advantage of social media to engage their audiences, but I think Amanda stands out in her vision and creative inspiration.

David Sanborn - I Believe It's Your Sh*t, Marvin

A little while back I was invited by Dave Sanborn to sit in on the recording sessions for his upcoming album on Decca. The clip opens with a brief shot of Dave Novik, label president, laughing as the camera pans to Phil Ramone, the producer.

Phil and Dave swap stories about some of the most legendary personalities in music; Frank Sinatra, Billy May, Marvin Hamlisch, etc. This is followed by a sweet Joey DeFrancesco organ solo. AWESOMENESS.

CONTAINS PROFANITY: NSFW

Todd Alsup + MajorWho @ NACA

We're here in Lancaster, PA - home of the Amish, Shoo-fly pies, and the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) Mid-Atlantic Conference. We're presenting MajorWho artist Todd Alsup at our booth, meeting student talent buyers from colleges around the region.

Todd's got a showcase tomorrow afternoon, which is a distinction most of the exhibitors would die for - it's a chance to perform for the entire convention and reach all the delegates in a single shot. Last year after his showcase in Hartford, our booth was mobbed with talent buyers.

Here's a quick pic of Todd talking to students at our booth.


Last year's showcase translated into a slew of great college gigs for Todd and we're already off to a great start this year.

Todd Alsup News - PBS Placement and NACA Showcase

Fun news from the world of Todd Alsup. Major Who recently found out that Todd's song "Good Fight" from his EP "Facts and Figures" is going to be used in the PBS show "Road Trip Nation." This show is a perfect match for Todd's song, which talks about pursuing your dreams. Way to go on getting this license!

About the show (from www.roadtripnation.com):

• It all started with four friends and one dilemma: "what do I want to do with my life?" Fresh out of college and unsure about the career paths in front of them, they were determined to expose themselves to more than just the traditional life roads. They hopped in an old RV, painted it green, and hit the road to talk with inspiring people from all walks of life to find out how they came to do what they love for a living.
• Today, Roadtrip Nation has evolved into a PBS series, three books, an online community, and a student movement. We send people on the road who are interested in exploring the world outside their comfort zone, talking with individuals who chose to define their own road in life, and sharing their experiences with our generation.

In other fantastic news, Todd was selected as a showcase artist at this year's NACA Mid-Atlantic conference. It is the second year in a row Todd will have a NACA showcase. It's quite an honor to be one of the only musicians chosen for showcase out of hundreds of submissions. Todd will have a chance to perform for hundreds of college students that book talent for their campuses. 50 shows or bust!

I first came across Roc Raida when he was invited to perform at Lincoln Center Festival 2000 where I was a production manager. He composed an amazing piece for the 'turntable as an ensemble instrument' segment that he played with the Xecutioners. I don't have any footage of that but here's a clip of Roc in action. Pretty amazing stuff. Roc Raida truly did elevate the art of the turntable. RIP Roc.

Christina Roberts Show and support for Malaria No More!!

NYC Concert Promo from Nairobi

September 9th, 2009 | Posted by Christina Roberts

I’m in Kenya this week working with a team of logisticians who are crucial to Africa’s current race to scale-up mosquito nets. But the minute we end our session here on Thursday, I’ll be racing back to New York so I can perform with the New York Songwriters Circle on Monday night.

Modeled after the famous “Writers in the Round” nights at Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe, the NYSC showcases up-and-coming songwriting talent from around the world. Intimate concerts like these always remind me of a song’s power to communicate where mere words might fail us. That’s why I wrote “A Closer Far”, a song born out of my own experiences working in Africa on behalf of Malaria No More. I’m looking forward to performing it along with other favorites of mine and I hope to see you all there.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of “A Closer Far” support the ongoing work of Malaria No More. Buy the song here. To hear my music, check out MySpace.

Categories:Africa, Christina, On-The-Ground

"Nippon Ga Dai Suki" (Japan We Love You!) ------- The Orion Experience

We had such a blast making this song in Threshold Studios with these guys. They came back with this video, which I think takes it to a whole other level. Enjoy!

Todd Alsup gets another NACA Showcase!

Todd Alsup and Major Who Booking have once again impressed the college crowd, being chosen for a second year in a row for a NACA (National Association for Campus Activities) showcase - this time at the Mid-Atlantic festival in Lancaster, PA.

There were over 700 submissions for only about 50 showcase slots, of which fewer than 15 were given to musicians.

Todd will be performing for 1000 student talent buyers from colleges across the region. Last year, Todd's Northeast Convention showcase translated into a slew of gigs up and down the east coast, and we're sure that with this year's showcase we will build on that success in the coming school year.

MajorWho Gets Copland Grant!

MajorWho has received a grant from the Aaron Copland Fund for Music to produce a record of piano music performed by Kathleen Supove. The record will consist of pieces by contemporary American composers such as Daniel Becker, Missy Mazzoli, Anna Clyne, Michael Gatonska, and Randall Woolf.

Congrats to Kathy - we look forward to working together on yet another project.

From http://www.coplandfund.org/

In keeping with his lifelong devotion to contemporary music, Aaron Copland created the Fund and bequeathed to it a large part of his estate. The Fund was officially announced to the public in 1992. The Fund’s purpose is to encourage and improve public knowledge and appreciation of contemporary American music. The fund operates three grant programs and also grants permission for the use of Copland’s music.

For a full list of this year's grant winners, visit http://www.coplandfund.org/news.html.