Canadian Spaces – CKCU – November 19, 2022

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time). 

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts. 

This week’s show was hosted by Mike Regenstreif.

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web. 

This particular show was recorded and is already available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/58358.html

Chris Coole- Upon the Mystery

The Old Man and the C Chord (Chris Coole)

The Dumptrucks- Stealin’

Selections (Laughing Cactus)

Bruce Cockburn- Honey Babe Let the Deal Go Down

Rarities (True North)

Zachary Lucky- I Wish I was a Mole in the Ground

Songs for Hard Times (Zachary Lucky)

Ken Whiteley- Michael Row

Long Time Travelling (Ken Whiteley)

Kaia Kater- White (Long Time Traveling)

Nine Pin (Kaia Kater)

Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Mike Regenstreif, Chaim Tannenbaum (1976) photo: Felicity Fanjoy

Chaim Tannenbaum- Ain’t No More Cane on the Brazos

Chaim Tannenbaum (StorySound)

Mountain City Four- Motherless Children

Mountain City Four (Omnivore)

Kate & Anna McGarrigle- No Biscuit Blues

Tell My Sister: Dancer with Bruised Knees (Nonesuch)

Norah Jones with Lily Lanken- Over the Hill

Sing Me the Songs: Celebrating the Works of Kate McGarrigle (Nonesuch)

Braden Gates- Norah Jones at Closing Time

Kitchen Days (Borealis)

Chris Coole & John Showman- Back in the Goodle Days

Much Further Out Than Inevitable: A Fiddle and Banjo Tribute to Some Music of John Hartford (Chris Coole)

The Slowinks- The Problem

Stay With Me Awhile (weewerk)

Jane Hawley- Take These Chains from My Heart

Sorrow Bound: Hank Williams Re-examined (Ruby Moon)

The Mahones- Watch Me Fall

Jameson Street (True North)

Al Grierson- Barney Rubble Meets Mack the Knife

The Petals (Folkin’ Eh)

Ofra Harnoy- Let Me Fish Off Cape St. Mary’s

On the Rock (Analekta)

Stan Rogers- Three Fishers

For the Family (Folk Tradition)

Tony Turner- Indelible Blue

Love & Other Attractions (Tony Turner)

Orit Shimoni- Sing Back to Me

Lorem Ipsum (Orit Shimoni)

Garnet Rogers- Shadows on the Water

Summer’s End (Snow Goose Songs)

Eric Andersen- More Often Than Not

Blue River (Columbia/Legacy)

Jason Lang- Happiness Is

Handled with Care: Hommage à Penny Lang (Jason Lang)

Mike Regenstreif & Penny Lang (2005)

Penny Lang- Geremia

Carry On Children (She-Wolf)

Durham County Poets & Michael Jerome Browne- Diamonds on the Water

Grimshaw Road (Durham County Poets)

Po’ Girl- Ain’t Life Sweet

Home to You (Nettwerk)

Penny Lang- If I Could Be the Rain

Stone + Sand + Sea + Sky (Borealis)

Moore & McGregor- Don’t Let Us Get Sick

Dream with Me (Ivernia)

Dennis O’Toole- To Grow Old Together

Dennis O’Toole (Dennis O’Toole)

Terra Spencer & Ben Caplan- Maybe

Old News (Terra Spencer & Ben Caplan)

Holly Cole- Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues

Night (Rumpus Room)

Ian Tamblyn- Whip Poor Will

Voice in the Wilderness (North Track)

I also host Stranger Songs every Tuesday from 3:30 to 5 pm; and the Saturday Morning show from 7 to 10 am, once every 4 weeks with my next slot on November 5.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday October 22, 2022

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time). 

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts. 

This week’s show was hosted by Mike Regenstreif.

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web. 

This particular show was recorded and is already available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/58008.html

Hour 1

Humphrey & The Dumptrucks- Merry Mansion Quadrology: Merry Mansion; Magician; Front Door; Red White & Blue

Six Days of Paper Ladies (Boot)

Mike Regenstreif & Bruce Cockburn (2017)

Bruce Cockburn- Going Down the Road

Rarities (True North)

Russ Kelley- Somewhere Later Down the Road

Crazy Shades of Blue (Ark Road Music Productions)

Hannah Shira Naiman- Caroline Collins

The Wheels Won’t Go (Hannah Shira Naiman)

Mike Regenstreif & Garnet Rogers (2006)

Garnet Rogers- The King of Rome

Small Victories (Snow Goose Songs)

Onna Lou- Saber

Diamante (Onna Lou)

Terra Spencer & Ben Caplan- Maybe

Old News (Terra Spencer & Ben Caplan)

Mike Regenstreif & Lynn Miles (2013)

Lynn Miles- Main St.

We’ll Look for Stars (Must Have Music)

Missy Burgess- Picture in a Frame

Missy Burgess with The Blue Train Live (Missy Burgess)

Old Man Luedecke- I Skipped a Stone

Easy Money (True North)

The Once- Anthem

The Once (Borealis)

Ball and Chain & The Wreckers- Daydreamin’

Surrender (Ball and Chain)

Hour 2 – The Great Canadian Tour

Ian Tyson- Great Canadian Tour

Ol’ Eon (Stony Plain)

Deborah Holland- Vancouver

Vancouver (RageOn)

Chris Rawlings- Lillooet

Pearl Soup (Cooking Fat Music)

Hank Snow- The Spell of the Yukon

Tales of the Yukon (RCA)

James Keelaghan- Alberta

Second-Hand (Borealis)

Michael Earnie Taylor Orchestra- Calgary Song

$3 Pants (Laughing Cactus Music)

Johnny Cash- Girl in Saskatoon

Change of Address: The Singles As and Bs, 1958-1962 (Jasmine)

Tom Russell & Mike Regenstreif (2018)

Tom Russell- Winnipeg

Hurricane Season (Stony Plain)

Shelley Posen- Ontario Moon

Ontario Moon (Well Done Music)

Oscar Peterson- Hogtown Blues

Canadiana Suite (Limelight)

Paul Weber- Ottawa Lament

Ode to Gerry Barber (Paul Weber)

Allison Russell- Montreal

Outside Child (Fantasy)

Mike Regenstreif & Bill Staines (1993)

Bill Staines- The Streets of Old Quebec

Tracks and Trails (Philo)

Steel Rail- Argyle Street

Coming Home (Crossties)

Kevin Head- Digby Lament

Hear Them Callin’ (Kevin Head)

Bill Garrett & Sue Lothrop- St. John’s Waltz

Red Shoes (Borealis)

I’ll be hosting Canadian Spaces next on November 19. I also host Stranger Songs every Tuesday from 3:30 to 5 pm; and the Saturday Morning show from 7 to 10 am, once every 4 weeks with my next slot on November 5.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday September 17, 2022

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time). 

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts. 

This week’s show was hosted by Mike Regenstreif.

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web. 

This particular show is now available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/57624.html

Guest: David Eisenstadt

Pharis & Jason Romero- Going Across the Sea

Tell ‘Em You Were Gold (Smithsonian Folkways)

Mountain City Four- The Log Driver’s Waltz

Mountain City Four (Omnivore)

Ian Robb & James Stephens- Charming Molly

Declining …with thanks (Fallen Angle)

Hannah Shira Naiman- Little Black Train

The Wheels Won’t Go (Hannah Shira Naiman)

Morgan Toney- Kwana Li

First Flight (Ishkõdé)

Bob Jensen- Who By Fire

For the Sake of the Song (Bob Jensen)

ES:MO (Elizabeth Shepherd & Michael Occhipinti)- Lovers is a Dangerous Time

The Weight of Hope (ES:MO)

Alec Fraser, Jr- Grandma’s House

On the Wings of the Wind (Alec Fraser, Jr.)

Chris Rawlings & Anne Lederman- Apple Blossom Time

A Whistle, a Tune, a Song and a Dance (Cooking Fat Music)

Ken Tizzard & Amelia Curran- St. John’s Waltz

A Good Dog is Lost: A Collection of Ron Hynes Songs (Ken Tizzard)

Dennis O’Toole- Man of a Thousand Songs

Lone Gunman at the Assassin’s Hotel (Dennis O’Toole)

Ron Hynes- Boy from Old Perlican

Ron Hynes (Borealis)

Suzie Vinnick- Raino

Fall Back Home (Suzie Vinnick)

James Keelaghan- Walk On

Second-Hand (Borealis)

Windborne- Le Diable et le Fermier

Of Hard Times & Harmony (Wand’ring Feet)

Frida's Brow- Old Friends

Frida’s Brow (Frida’s Brow)

Michael Kaeshammer- How Long Blues

The Warehouse Sessions (Linus)

The next six songs punctuated my conversation with David Eisenstadt, author of Under the Radar: 30 Notable Canadian Jewish Musicians. Visit https://undertheradarbook.com/ for more information about the book.

Aviva Chernick- La Serena

La Serena (Aviva Chernick)

The Travellers- Something to Sing About

The Travellers 1960-1966: This Land is Your Land (Sony)

Oscar Brand- The Derby Ram

The Riverside Folklore Series, Volume Three: Singing the New Traditions (Riverside)

Ofra Harnoy- Barrett’s Privateers

On the Rock (Analekta)

Danny Marks- Heading Down to New Orleans

Cities in Blue (Danny Marks)

Shelley Posen- Will Their Children Light the Candles

Menorah: Songs from a Jewish Life (Well Done Music)

Conklin Céilí Band- Shadow Boats

A Three Legged Stool (Conklin Céilí Band)

Wade Hemsworth with The Mountain City Four- The Story of the I’m Alone

Wade Hemsworth with The Mountain City Four (Peter Weldon)

Chaim Tannenbaum- Brooklyn 1955

Chaim Tannenbaum (StorySound)

I’ll be hosting Canadian Spaces next on October 22. I also host Stranger Songs every Tuesday from 3:30 to 5 pm; and the Saturday Morning show from 7 to 10 am, once every 4 weeks with my next slot on October 8.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday August 27, 2022

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time). 

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts. 

This week’s show was hosted by Mike Regenstreif.

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web. 

This particular show is now available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/57395.html

Jesse Winchester- How Far to the Horizon

Learn to Love It (Stony Plain)

Willie Dunn- The Dreamer

Creation Never Sleeps, Creation Never Dies: The Willie Dunn Anthology (Light in the Attic)

Dennis O’Toole- Willie on the Wind

Lone Gunman at the Assassin’s Hotel (Dennis O’Toole)

Sylvia Tyson- Donegal Tavern

River Road & Other Songs (Outside Music)

Brendan Nolan- Connemara Morn

Where Do I Go From Here (Ould Sagosha)

Doug McArthur- Hills of Connemara

The Horses of the Sea: A Personal Exploration of Ireland (dougimac.com)

Maria Dunn- Love Carries Me

Joyful Banner Blazing (Distant Whisper)

OXLIP- All My Trials

Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies (World Peach)

Bob Stark- Some Little Sign

Sculpted Pieces of Love (Bob Stark)

Kate & Anna McGarrigle- Matapedia

Matapedia (Hannibal)

Caitlin Hanford- Red Clay Halo

Bluer Skies (Denon)

Noah Zacharin- One Time in 20

A Startle of Wings (Noah Zacharin)

Susie Arioli Swing Band featuring Jordan Officer- Trying to Get to You

It’s Wonderful (SASB)

Lynn Miles with Keith Glass- Fearless Heart

Road (Lynn Miles)

Jay Linden- August Night

Satchel (Jay Linden)

Dave Clarke- Lucinda

The Healing Garden (Crossties)

The rest of the show features songs written by Canadian songwriters but performed by non-Canadian artists.

Bill Staines- Rompin’ Rovin’ Days (Bruce Murdoch)

Journey Home (Red House)

Nanci Griffith- Ten Degrees and Colder (Gordon Lightfoot)

Other Voices/Other Rooms (Elektra)

Norah Jones- (Talk to Me of) Mendocino (Kate McGarrigle)

Sing Me the Songs: Celebrating the Works of Kate McGarrigle (Nonesuch)

June Tabor- Heart Like a Wheel (Anna McGarrigle)

At the Wood’s Heart (Topic)

Judy Collins- The Dealer (Down and Losin’) (Bob Ruzicka)

True Stories and Other Dreams (Elektra)

Tom Russell- Sam Bonnifield’s Saloon (Ian Tyson)

Play One More: The Songs of Ian & Sylvia (True North)

Rosalie Sorrels- Trucker’s Café (Sylvia Tyson)

Travelin’ Lady Rides Again (Green Linnet)

John Gorka- Lock-keeper (Stan Rogers)

Writing in the Margins (Red House)

Joe Jencks- Can You Blame the Poor Miner (Maria Dunn)

The Coming of the Years (Turtle Bear Music)

Grace Griffith- Wondering Where the Lions Are (Bruce Cockburn)

Minstrel Song (Blix Street)

Claudia Schmidt- Having a Drink with Jane (Shelley Posen)

Live at the Dakota (Pragmavision Publishing)

Dave Van Ronk- Urge for Going (Joni Mitchell)

…and the tin pan bended, and the story ended… (Smithsonian Folkways)

William Bell- All of Your Stories (Jesse Winchester)

This is Where I Live (Stax)

SONiA disappear fear- Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)

By My Silence (Disappear)

Priscilla Herdman- Wood River (Connie Kaldor)

Darkness Into Light (Flying Fish)

I’ll be hosting Canadian Spaces next on September 17. I also host Stranger Songs every Tuesday from 3:30 to 5 pm; and the Saturday Morning show from 7 to 10 am, once every 4 weeks with my next slot on September 10.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday July 30, 2022

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time). 

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts. 

This week’s show was hosted by Mike Regenstreif.

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web. 

This show was recorded and is already available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/57073.html

Guest: Lenka Lichtenberg.

Me & My Uncle- Me and My Uncle
Me & My Uncle (Laughing Cactus Music)
OXLIP- Will the Circle Be Unbroken
Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies (World Peach)
Pharis & Jason Romero- Train on the Island
Tell ‘Em You Were Gold (Smithsonian Folkways)
El Coyote- Satellite Lost
El Coyote (El Coyote)
Kim Beggs- They Shut the Greyhound Down
Steel and Wool (Out of a Paper Bag Productions)
Over the Moon- Someday Soon
Chinook Waltz (Borealis)
Tom Russell- Short Grass
Play One More: The Songs of Ian & Sylvia (True North)
Ian & Sylvia- Four Rode By
The Lost Tapes (Stony Plain)
Ken Whiteley- Farewell to Nova Scotia
Long Time Travelling (Ken Whiteley)
Conklin Céilí Band- Giant
A Three Legged Stool (Conklin Céilí Band)
Stan Rogers- Cliffs of Baccalieu
For the Family (Folk Tradition)

Ian Robb with Finest Kind- The Mary Ellen Carter
From Different Angels (Fallen Angle)

Ball and Chain & The Wreckers- I’m All Alone
Surrender (Ball and Chain)
Durham County Poets- Out of the Woods
Out of the Woods (Durham County Poets)

Boxcar Bos- Sidecar
Rye Whiskey (Fedora Upside Down)

The next five songs punctuated my conversation with Lenka Lichtenberg. The songs on Lenka’s new album, Thieves of Dreams, are settings of poems written by Anna Hana Friesová, her maternal grandmother, while she was a prisoner in the Terezin concentration camp in what was then Czechoslovakia during the Second World War and the Holocaust.

Lenka Lichtenberg- Miracles
Thieves of Dreams (Six Degrees)

Lenka Lichtenberg- That monster, custom
Thieves of Dreams (Six Degrees)

Lenka Lichtenberg- What is this place?
Thieves of Dreams (Six Degrees)

Lenka Lichtenberg- Run, run, you little human
Thieves of Dreams (Six Degrees)

Lenka Lichtenberg with Jana Renée Friesová- I have my own grief

Thieves of Dreams (Six Degrees)

Lisa Null passed away from cancer at age 79 on July 19.

Lisa Null- I’m Going Home to Georgia
Legacies (Folk-Legacy)
Bruce Cockburn- One Day I Walk
Greatest Hits (1970-2020) (True North)
Stephen Mendel- The Parting Glass
Sing Me a Story (Stephen Mendel)

I’ll be hosting Canadian Spaces next on August 27. I also host Stranger Songs every Tuesday from 3:30 to 5 pm; and the Saturday Morning show from 7 to 10 am, once every 4 weeks with my next slot on August 13th.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday January 30, 2021

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and www.ckcufm.com/ on the web.

This particular show is now available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/50686.html

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time).

It was hosted for more than 33 years by the late Chopper McKinnon and is now hosted by Chris White and a rotating cast of co-hosts.

This week’s show was co-hosted by Mike Regenstreif and Chris White.

Guests: Marc Nerenberg; Jim Hurcomb (author of Rockin’ on the Rideau: Ottawa’s Golden Age of Rock and Roll). We also recorded interviews with Orit Shimoni and Kat Goldman which, I believe, Chris will be playing on next week's episode of Canadian Spaces.

El Coyote- Come Around
El Coyote (El Coyote)

Corin Raymond- Rec Room
Dirty Mansions (Local Rascal Records)

Susan Ellenton- Yukon Women
Learning to Listen (Susan Ellenton)

Maria Dunn- Ontario Song
Joyful Banner Blazing (Distant Whisper)

Marc Nerenberg- This Time Around: A Banjo-Harmonica Duet
Little Birdie: Birds, Beasts & Banjo Blues (Marc Nerenberg)

Orit Shimoni- Strange and Beautiful Things
Strange and Beautiful Things (Orit Shimoni)

Rick Fines- Scared to Dance
Solar Powered Too (Rick Fines)

Suzie Vinnick- Drift Away
Shake the Love Around (Suzie Vinnick)

Rob Lutes- Rabbit
Walk in the Dark (Lucky Bear)

Kat Goldman- The Workingman’s Blues (Kat Goldman)
The Workingman’s Blues (Kat Goldman)

Shelley Posen- The Best Song Ever Written
Ontario Moon (Well Done Music)

Steel Rail- Flow River Flow
Coming Home (Crossties)

Three Sheets to the Wind- Woodsmoke and Oranges
Canoesongs, Volume 1 (Portage)

Marc Nerenberg- The Fox
Little Birdie: Birds, Beasts & Banjo Blues (Marc Nerenberg)

Lynn Miles- Something Beautiful
Fall for Beauty (True North)

Linda Morrison- Line By Line
Line By Line (Heartstrung Music)

Don Norman & The Other Four- Low Man
Low Man – single (Sir John A.)

Doris Folkens- Across the Sea
Doris Folkens (Doris Folkens)

Eugene Ruffalo- Fool for Every Season
Fool for Every Season (Continental Song City)

Jennifer Noxon- The Bottomless Cup
Watch As You Walk (Jennifer Noxon)

Announcement: I have a new weekly show on CKCU called Stranger Songs that will debut on Tuesday, February 9 from 3:30 until 5 pm. Expect an eclectic, roots-based show that will often revolve around a specific theme. Like all CKCU shows, Stranger Songs will be available 24/7 for on-demand streaming.

Find me on Twitter. www.twitter.com/mikeregenstreif
 
And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Canadian Spaces – CKCU – Saturday December 5, 2020

CKCU can be heard at 93.1 FM in Ottawa and http://www.ckcufm.com/ on the web.

This particular show is now available for on-demand listening. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/129/50034.html

Canadian Spaces on CKCU in Ottawa is Canada’s longest-running folk music radio program. It is heard Saturday mornings from 10:00 am until noon (Eastern time) and is now hosted by Chris White who is often joined by a rotating cast of co-hosts.

This week’s show was co-hosted by Mike Regenstreif and Chris White.

Guests: Murray McLauchlan; Pat Moore (Christmas Goose).

Marc Nerenberg- The Coo-Coo: A Reimagined Traditional Song
Little Birdie: Birds, Beasts & Banjo Blues (Marc Nerenberg)

Ian & Sylvia- Nancy Whiskey
The Lost Tapes (Stony Plain)

Joni Mitchell- Born to Take the Highway
Archives – Volume 1: The Early Years 1963-1967 (Rhino)

Leonard Cohen- Listen to the Hummingbird
Thanks for the Dance (Columbia/Legacy)

SONiA disappear fear- Hallelujah
By My Silence (Disappear Records)

Orit Shimoni- George Street
Strange and Beautiful Things (Orit Shimoni)

Sussex- Drive
The Ocean Wide (Lucky Bear)

Catherine MacLellan & John Connolly- The Call
If It’s Alright With You: The Songs of Gene MacLellan (True North)

Bella White- The Hand of Your Raising
Just Like Leaving (Isabel White)

Jackie Washington- Gotta Go
The World of Jackie Washington (Borealis)

Gathering Sparks- Feathers and Wings
All That’s Real (Borealis)

Murray McLauchlan- The One Percent
The One Percent – single (Murray McLauchlan)

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Ron Sexsmith- Gold in Them Hills
Cobblestone Runway (Nettwerk)

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Frida's Brow- Skating Song
Christmas Platter (Christmas Goose)

David Keeble- Angels in the Snow
Christmas Goose (Christmas Goose)

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Murray McLauchlan- I Live on a White Cloud
I Live on a White Could – single (Murray McLauchlan)

Murray McLauchlan- Pickin’ Up Mary Lou
Human Writes (True North)

Murray McLauchlan- Love Can’t Tell Time
Love Can’t Tell Time (True North)

Find me on Twitter. @MikeRegenstreif
 
And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Laura Smith 1952-2020

“Safe home, sweet light, no longer of this world

On wings, safe and sound you are carried

No longer casting shadows, no longer counting days

You are love and you are loved always”

My friend Laura Smith wrote “Sweet Home, Sweet Light” as a farewell song to a brother and an old friend after losing both around the same time in July 2012. Last night, I was deeply saddened to learn, via an email from Ross MacDonald, that Laura “passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by love, joy, music and compassion from her family of friends in Mahone Bay,” and immediately went to her album Everything is Moving to find comfort in her voice, her music, and particularly in the words of that poignant and beautiful song. Laura was 11 days shy of her 68th birthday.

This news was not unexpected. Just a couple of months ago, Laura was diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer and elected to receive palliative care at home. With the support of friends and fans from near and far, she was able to spend her final weeks peacefully reading so many messages from those who loved her. On February 15, she spoke so bravely on the phone with Chris White on CKCU’s Canadian Spaces about her “life challenging” situation. But, still, this news was hard.

In the 1990s, Laura’s recordings were staples on the Folk Roots/Folk Branches radio show I hosted on CKUT in Montreal. Her reimagined version of the traditional “My Bonny” was one of the most requested songs on the show. I met Laura for the first time in 1997 when she was my guest on the show. It took only one conversation to form a bond of friendship with her. After I moved to Ottawa, I was honoured, in 2013 and 2015, that Laura asked me to MC both of her concerts at the National Arts Centre.

Chris White, Laura Smith & Mike Regenstreif at the National Arts Centre (2013)

Laura overcame a number of difficult struggles in her life – struggles that she faced with much grace and dignity. Although she has left this earthly life, she will live on in the beautiful, elegant and timeless songs she left behind.

“Safe home, sweet heart, no longer beating here

Your life is but a whisper to my sorrow

But time does not confine you now, my spirits I must raise

You are love and you are loved always

You are love, you are love, you are loved always

Safe home, sweet light, no longer shining here

Though your joy is now a beacon for the weary

Never more to shed a tear, never more to feel alone

You are love and you are loved, you’re home

You are love and you are loved, you’re home…home…

Home”

Find me on Twitter. www.twitter.com/mikeregenstreif

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

–Mike Regenstreif