Other articles by Gerald M. Gay:

Remote Controlled : Tucson-linked family to hit the road in NBC reality series Found sound Mr. K's draws raves Remote Controlled : Head to Phoenix area in July for more shots at reality fame Want DJs' tweets? Here's a sampleDancers? But of courseInfectious young mambo project With daughters away, Lorber in Tucson for weekend Jazz Party Original 1974 menu prices at Tucson's Bum Steer today Tucson (but greener) featured on Fox series

Construction
West-Press
Printing Administrative & Professional
Tucson Urban League
CEO/President Health Care
CENTRAL ARIZONA COLLEGE
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Administrative & Professional
Jorgensen Brooks Group
Counselor Trades/Construction
RANCHO RESORT
MAINTANANCE POSITION Sales and Marketing
Everready Glass
Sales Reps Mechanical
Komatsu Equipment Co
Resident Field Mechanic

Irish vocalist Cara Dillon isn't sweating over Christmas presents for her 2-year-old twins this holiday season.

"They are a bit too young to understand Santa," Dillon said in a phone interview last week from her home in Somerset, England. "If we play it cool for another year, we might be able to save a little money."

Dillon, 33, assured that her boys are still getting the full experience. Last year, they spent their first Christmas with Dillon's family, all 23 of them, in her hometown of Dungiven in Northern Ireland.

Dillon said she loves Christmas, especially the music. She will share some of her favorite holiday tunes when she performs as part of an "Irish Christmas in America" at the Fox Tucson Theatre Saturday.

The concert, headlined by the traditional band Téada, features Irish musicians and dancers as they perform the Christmas classics from their youth.

Thanks to Téada's ties to the area — the band's booking agent lives in Vail — Tucson has become an annual stop.

Dillon is new to the tour this year but loves the concept. She already has a set in mind that will include a mix of holiday melodies as well as fan favorites from her own solo career.

Dillon has been impressing audiences with her dynamic voice, first as a member of folk groups like Equation, then on her own, since she was 19.

Together with her husband, producer Sam Lakeman, Dillon has put out three well-received CDs, released on Rough Trade and Compass Records, with a fourth on the way in January.

Her latest project out now is a DVD dubbed "The Redcastle Sessions" filmed at an old converted hospital in County Donegal on the northwest end of Ireland and at a pub in Dungiven in County Londonderry.

"People had been wanting us to create a DVD of one of our concerts," she said. "We wanted to do something a wee bit different. We thought we would choose Donegal. Lots of songs I sing are about Donegal. That was where people went when they wanted to emigrate to America."

The DVD features songs that Dillon felt deserved a DVD presence. Works such as Tommy Sands' "There Were Roses," about the violence between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland, and the traditional "Black Is the Colour" are among 15 tracks recorded for the release.

Dillon said the whole process of creating a DVD was more natural than expected.

"It was always so relaxed," she said. "The location was so beautiful and peaceful. We flew people in. It was like a get together. We ate fish every day caught at the local harbor. It was like being on holiday. The camera crew was the last thing we thought about."

Chances are you will hear some of the DVD's featured songs at Saturday's concert, alongside Christmas melodies that Dillon's little ones probably know by heart.

"We are playing Christmas carols in the house already," she said. "They love music. So far in their tiny little lives, they've heard nothing but music."