Folk Roots/Folk Branches with Mike Regenstreif: Dave Van Ronk

Showing posts with label Dave Van Ronk. Show all posts

Thursday, July 16, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – July 21, 2026: Dave Van Ronk at 90

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif finds connections and develops themes in various genres. The show is broadcast on CKCU, 93.1 FM, in Ottawa on Tuesdays from 3:30 until 5 pm (Eastern time) and is also available 24/7 for on-demand streaming.

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/76339.html

Theme: Dave Van Ronk at 90.

Dave Van Ronk – who died in 2002 at age 65 while battling cancer – would have turned 90 three weeks ago on June 30. Dave – who grew up in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens – arrived in Greenwich Village in the 1950s where he began playing in the early folk clubs. He was a great guitarist and influential singer with a wide-ranging repertoire that moved seamlessly between folk, blues, jazz, cabaret and much more. He was a friend and mentor to generations of musicians who followed him in the village – most notably, Bob Dylan. And, not just musicians. I consider the late nights I spent on Dave’s couch in the Village, and the nights I spent with him in my apartment in Montreal in the 1970s and ‘80s, talking about music and arguing about politics to be essential parts of my education.

MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village was the center of the Greenwich Village folk scene and Dave became affectionately known as The Mayor of MacDougal Street – which was also the title of the memoir that Dave was working on with Elijah Wald at the time of his death. Elijah finished the book writing in Dave’s voice and I think it’s one of the best books ever about the ‘60s folk scene.

Dave Van Ronk- Losers

Going Back to Brooklyn (HighTone)

Jim Byrnes- He was a Friend of Mine

Everywhere West (Black Hen Music)

Susan Werner- House of the Rising Sun

NOLA: Susan Werner Goes to New Orleans (Sleeve Dog)

Bill Morrissey & Greg Brown- Hang Me, Oh Hang Me

Inside (Philo)

Dave Van Ronk- The Pearls

Sunday Street (Philo)

Deborah Robins- Tell Old Bill

Lone Journey (Zippety Whippet Music)

Dave Van Ronk- Teddy Bears’ Picnic

Songs for Ageing Children (Cadet)

David Massengill- Dave Van Ronk’s Last Cigar

Dave on Dave: A Tribute to Dave Van Ronk (Gadfly)

Dave Van Ronk- Somebody Else, Not Me

Somebody Else, Not Me (Philo)

Elijah Wald- That’ll Never Happen No More

Street Corner Cowboys (Black Rose)

Durham County Poets- St. James Infirmary

Hand Me Down Blues (Durham County Poets)

Dave Van Ronk & Christine Lavin- I Can’t Give You Anything But Love

Hummin’ to Myself (Gazell)

Bruce Brackney A.K.A. Haywire Brack- Another Time and Place

Case History (Pilgrims Rest)

Dave Van Ronk & The Red Onion Jazz Band- Hesitation Blues

Two Sides of Dave Van Ronk (Fantasy)

Tom Russell- Van Ronk (with Dave Van Ronk singing a fragment of Sportin’ Life Blues)

Hotwalker (HighTone)

Dave Van Ronk- Mack the Knife

Let No One Deceive You: Songs of Bertolt Brecht (Flying Fish)

Dave Van Ronk- That Song About the Midway

Sunday Street (Philo)

Peter, Paul & Mary featuring Dave Van Ronk- Wanderin’/Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out

LifeLines (Warner Bros.)

Hans Theessink- Green, Green Rocky Road

Songs from the Southland (Blue Groove)

Dave Van Ronk- Did You Hear John Hurt?

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

Tom Paxton- The Mayor of MacDougal Street

Redemption Road (Pax)

Dave Van Ronk- Last Call

Going Back to Brooklyn (HighTone)

Next week: Baseball.

--Mike Regenstreif

Wednesday, July 1, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – July 7, 2026: Remembering Jane Voss and Remembering David Clayton-Thomas

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/76134.html

Themes: Part 1 – Remembering Jane Voss; Part 2 – Remembering David Clayton-Thomas.

Remembering Jane Voss (1948-2026)

Jane Voss

Jane Voss was a fine singer of her own original material as well as songs drawn from traditional sources and other contemporary songwriters. Most of her albums were collaborations with Hoyle Osborne, her partner in life and music for 50 years.

I first met Jane in the early 1970s when she came to do a gig at the Yellow Door Coffee House in Montreal. Our paths would cross from time to time over the decades, particularly on the folk festival circuit, and I always enjoyed the times I spent with her and Hoyle.

Jane Voss- Free at Last (Let Me Find My Wings)

Farther Down the Road (Ripple)

Jane Voss & Hoyle Osborne- Gateway Blues (Blues for Bessie)

Get to the Heart (Ripple)

Jane Voss & Hoyle Osborne- Having a Drink with Jane

Sparkle and Shine (Front Hall)

Jane Voss & Hoyle Osborne- Things About Coming My Way

Beyond the Boundaries (Ripple)

Jane Voss & Hoyle Osborne- I Am There

Beyond the Boundaries (Ripple)

Dave Van Ronk- To All My Friends in Far-Flung Places

To All My Friends in Far-Flung Places (Gazell)

Jane Voss- Farther Down the Road

Farther Down the Road (Ripple)

Remembering David Clayton-Thomas (1941-2026)

Mike Regenstreif & David Clayton-Thomas (2006)

David Clayton-Thomas began his music career singing with R&B bands on Yonge Street in Toronto in 1962. In 1966, David went to New York and began singing in basket houses and clubs. Judy Collins heard him one night and told her friend, the drummer Bobby Colomby, about him. Bobby’s band, Blood, Sweat & Tears had pretty much fallen apart after their first album came out and Bobby reformed the group with David as its lead singer. The new Blood, Sweat & Tears with David became a major recording and touring ensemble. David stayed with Blood, Sweat & Tears until 1972 when he relaunched his solo career, returning to Blood, Sweat & Tears sporadically over the years until 2004.

The first time I met David was at a party in Toronto in 1975 after a Rolling Thunder Revue concert. On that trip to Toronto, I was staying with Tex König, a veteran of the Greenwich Village folk scene of the early-‘60s who later moved to Montreal, where we became friends, before he moved to Toronto. David and Tex knew each other from the Greenwich Village basket houses and David gave Tex and me a ride back to Tex’s place in Cabbagetown.

David and I got reacquainted in 2006, when David came to Montreal for a concert at the Montreal Jazz Festival and was my studio guest on Folk Roots/Folk Branches, my program on CKUT in Montreal. In subsequent years, we occasionally kept in touch via email and Facebook.

Blood, Sweat & Tears- Spinning Wheel

Definitive Collection (Columbia)

Blood, Sweat & Tears- Lucretia Mac Evil

Definitive Collection (Columbia)

Blood, Sweat & Tears- Go Down Gamblin’

Definitive Collection (Columbia)

David Clayton-Thomas- Summertime

Combo (Antionette)

David Clayton-Thomas- (Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay

Soul Ballads (Antoinette)

David Clayton-Thomas- Sonny’s Dream

Canadiana (Antoinette/ILS)

David Clayton-Thomas- Suzanne

Canadiana (Antoinette/ILS)

David Clayton-Thomas- Holy Moses

A Blues for the New World (Antoinette)

David Clayton-Thomas- This Town

Say Somethin’ (Linus)

David Clayton-Thomas- The Circus

Say Somethin’ (Linus)

David Clayton-Thomas- And When I Die

In Concert: A Musical Biography (Justin Time)

Next week: ‘Round Midnight.

--Mike Regenstreif

Thursday, April 30, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – May 5, 2026: 1966

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/75251.html

Theme: 1966.

All the recordings on this show were first released 60 years ago in 1966.

Gordon Lightfoot- Early Morning Rain

Lightfoot! (United Artists)

Sylvia Tyson & Mike Regenstreif (1997)

Ian & Sylvia- The French Girl

Play One More (Vanguard)

Noel Paul Stookey & Mike Regenstreif on Zoom (2023)

Peter, Paul & Mary- Hurry Sundown

Album (Warner Bros.)

Doc Watson- Southbound

Southbound (Vanguard)

Simon & Garfunkel- Homeward Bound

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (Columbia)

Mike Regenstreif & Tom Paxton (2009)

Tom Paxton- Leaving London

Outward Bound (Elektra/Rhino)

Fred Neil- The Dolphins

Fred Neil (Capitol)

Bob Dylan- I Want You

Blonde On Blonde (Columbia)

Percy Sledge- When a Man Loves a Woman

When a Man Loves a Woman (Atlantic)

The Beach Boys- Good Vibrations

Good Vibrations/Let’s Go Away for Awhile (Capitol)

Judy Collins & Mike Regenstreif (2014)

Judy Collins- Pirate Jenny

In My Life (Elektra)

Dave Van Ronk- Alabama Song

No Dirty Names (Verve Forecast)

Tom Rush- Joshua Gone Barbados

Take a Little Walk with Me (Elektra)

Eric Andersen & Mike Regenstreif (2000)

Eric Andersen- Thirsty Boots

‘Bout Changes and Things (Vanguard)

Jim Kweskin & The Jug Band (lead vocal: Maria Muldaur)- Richland Woman

See Reverse Side for Title (Vanguard)

Mississippi John Hurt- I’m Satisfied

Today (Vanguard)

The Lovin' Spoonful- Daydream

Daydream (Sony/Legacy)

Tim Hardin- Don’t Make Promises

Tim Hardin 1 (Verve Forecast)

Bobby Darin- If I Were a Carpenter

If I Were a Carpenter (Atlantic)

The Greenbriar Boys- Different Drum

Better Late Than Never (Vanguard)

The Beatles- Eleanor Rigby

Revolver (Parlophone)

The Rolling Stones- Paint It Black

Aftermath (London)

Buffalo Springfield- For What It’s Worth

For What It’s Worth/Do I Have to Come Right Out and Say It (Atco)

The Mamas & The Papas- Monday, Monday

If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears (Dunhill)

Julie Felix- Gifts are for Giving

Changes (Fontana)

Next week: Klezmer Tunes and Yiddish Songs.

--Mike Regenstreif

Thursday, April 16, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – April 21, 2026: Swingtime in Springtime

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/75045.html

Theme: Swingtime in Springtime.

Lew London- Swingtime in Springtime

Swingtime in Springtime (Philo)

Ella Fitzgerald with Duke Ellington & His Orchestra- It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook (Verve)

Benny Goodman- Breakfast Feud

The Benny Goodman Small Bands Collection 1935-45 (Acrobat)

Catherine Russell & Mike Regenstreif (2007)

Catherine Russell- At the Swing Cats Ball

Send for Me (Dot Time)

Jackie Washington & Mike Regenstreif (2008)

Jackie Washington- Dinah

Midnight Choo Choo (Borealis)

Susie Arioli Swing Band featuring Jordan Officer- No Regrets

Pennies from Heaven (Justin Time)

Michael Jerome Browne & Mike Regenstreif (2005)

Michael Jerome Browne- He Ain’t Got Rhythm

Drive On (Borealis)

Annabelle Chvostek- Belleville rendez-vous

String of Pearls (Annabelle Chvostek)

Mike Regenstreif & David Amram (2004)

David Amram with Lynn Sheffield- Pull My Daisy

No More Walls (Flying Fish)

Laura Smith & Mike Regenstreif (2004)

Laura Smith- If I Were a Bell

As Long As I’m Dreaming (Borealis)

Bob Wills & The Texas Playboys- Take Me Back to Tulsa

Take Me Back to Tulsa (Rounder)

Asleep at the Wheel- San Antonio Rose

Western Standard Time (Epic)

Bebop Cowboys- Deep Water

Début (Bebop Cowboys)

Mike Regenstreif & Cathy Fink (2025)

Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer- Cactus Swing

Voice on the Wind (Rounder)

Dakota Dave Hull & Sean Blackburn- River of Swing

River of Swing (Arabica)

Sunny and Her Joy Boys- Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.

Introducing Sunny and Her Joy Boys (Stony Plain)

Guy Van Duser & Billy Novick- Stompin’ at the Savoy

Guy & Billy (Daring)

Dave Van Ronk- I’ll See You in My Dreams

Sweet & Lowdown (Justin Time)

The Hot Sardines- Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen/Diga Diga Do

Live at Joe’s Pub (The Hot Sardines)

Mike Regenstreif & Loudon Wainwright III (2015)

Loudon Wainwright III with Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks- I’d Rather Lead a Band

I’d Rather Lead a Band (Search Party)

Lambert Hendricks & Ross with Count Basie & His Orchestra- Jumpin’ at the Woodside

Sing a Song of & Along with Basie (Jasmine)

Finest Kind- Home in Pasadena

Heart’s Delight (Fallen Angle)

Jeff Healey- Three Little Words

The Best of the Stony Plain Years: Vintage Jazz, Swing and Blues (Stony Plain)

Sussex- Bye Bye Blues

Shine (Lucky Bear)

Next week: The Art of the Long Song, Volume 3.

--Mike Regenstreif

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – April 7, 2026: Songs of Phil Ochs

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/74828.html

Theme: Songs of Phil Ochs (1940-1976).

This week marks the 50th anniversary of Phil Ochs’s death by suicide at age 36 is this week on April 9.

Phil – who struggled with bipolar disorder – was one of the greatest songwriters of the folk revival. He was particularly noted for his topical songs. And although Phil’s songs were all written more 50 years ago, and up to more than 60 years ago, one of the reasons that his songs are still sung today by so many artists is that so many of them are just as relevant now – or even more relevant now – as when they were written.

Phil Ochs- Links on the Chain

Farewells & Fantasies (Elektra/Rhino)

Magpie- One More Parade

Raise Your Voice (Sliced Bread)

Pete Seeger- The Draft Dodger Rag

Dangerous Songs (Columbia/Legacy)

Arlo Guthrie- I Ain’t Marching Anymore

What’s That I Hear: The Songs of Phil Ochs (Sliced Bread)

Disappear Fear- Is There Anybody Here

Get Your Phil (Disappear)

Phil Ochs- Song of a Soldier

Farewells & Fantasies (Elektra/Rhino)

Katy Moffatt- The Highwayman

Midnight Radio (True North)

The Roches- The Bells

What’s That I Hear: The Songs of Phil Ochs (Sliced Bread)

Ian & Sylvia- Changes

Play One More (Vanguard)

Garnet Rogers- Crucifixion

Speaking Softly in the Dark (Snow Goose Songs)

Judy Collins- In the Heat of the Summer

Fifth Album (Elektra)

Kim & Reggie Harris- What’s That I Hear

Let My People Go! A Jewish & African American Celebration of Freedom (Appleseed)

Phil Ochs- Too Many Martyrs

Farewells & Fantasies (Elektra/Rhino)

John Gorka- Bracero

What’s That I Hear: The Songs of Phil Ochs (Sliced Bread)

Sloan Wainwright- There but for Fortune

Rediscovery (Derby Disc Music)

Dave Van Ronk- Outside a Small Circle of Friends

To All My Friends in Far-Flung Places (Gazell)

Phil Ochs- Canons of Christianity

Farewells & Fantasies (Elektra/Rhino)

Phil Odgers & John Kettle- The Passing of My Life

Far Rockaway: The Songs of Phil Ochs (Vinyl Star)

Karen Savoca- No More Songs

What’s That I Hear: The Songs of Phil Ochs (Sliced Bread)

The David Amram Quintet- When I’m Gone

David Amram Honors Guthrie and Ochs: Old Souls (Guthrie Legacy)

Next week: Part 1 – Conversation and Songs with David Eisenstadt; Part 2 – Ruination Day.

--Mike Regenstreif

Tuesday, March 17, 2026

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – March 21, 2026

Saturday Morning is an eclectic roots-oriented program on CKCU, 93.1 FM, in Ottawa on Saturday mornings from 7 until 10 am (Eastern time) and available for on-demand streaming anytime. I am one of the four rotating hosts of the Saturday Morning show.

This episode of Saturday Morning was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/128/74611.html

Vance Gilbert- Simple Things

The Mother of Trouble (Vance Gilbert)

Mike Regenstreif & Garnet Rogers (2006)

Garnet Rogers- First Day of Spring

Shining Thing (Snow Goose Songs)

Judy Collins & Mike Regenstreif (2014)

Judy Collins- So Early, Early in the Spring

Fifth Album (Elektra)

John Gorka & Mike Regenstreif (2012)

John Gorka- A Light Exists in Spring

unentitled (Red House)

Kim Wallach- Come, Spring

Chatter of the Finches (Black Socks Press)

Tommy Makem & Liam Clancy- Rambles of Spring

The Makem & Clancy Collection (Shanachie)

Kate Weekes- Trace a Constellation

Rideau Roots (Kate Weekes)

Sultans of String- Emerald Swing

Symphony (Sultans of String)

Ken Whiteley- Pallet On Your Floor

Keep Going (Pyramid)

Andy Cohen & Mike Regenstreif (2025)

Andy Cohen & William Lee Ellis- Mr. Furry’s Blues

Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard (Riverlark Music)

Sid Selvidge- Pearlee

Twice Told Tales (Elektra Nonesuch)

Dave Van Ronk- Casey Jones

Somebody Else, Not Me (Philo)

Furry Lewis- Glory Hallelujah, When I Lay My Burden Down

The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions (Sony BMG)

Greg Kelly- Slow Horses

Slow Horses (Greg Kelly)

Jamie Anderson- This Old

The Curves are Still There (Tsunami)

Dave Gunning- Going Nowhere Tonight

Field Notes (Wee House of Music)

Daughters of Donbas- Another Heaven

Songs of Stolen Children (Daughters of Donbas)

Esther Kaiser- Masters of War

Songs of Courage (GLM Music)

Mike Regenstreif & Marc Nerenberg 2009)

Marc Nerenberg- Ain’t Gonna Study War No More (Down By the Riverside)

Times Ain’t Nuthin’ Like They Used to Be (Marc Nerenberg)

Jillian Matundan- Hold On

Hold On – single (Keezamonkee)

Anne Kalmering & Stalhammer Klezmer Classic- Bulbes

Tshiribim (Kakafon)

Roger Davidson & The Frank London Klezmer Orchestra- The Jester

Villages of Old (Soundbrush)

Daniel Kahn & Jake Shulman-Ment- Di Tsukunft (The Future)

The Building and Other Songs (Oriente Musik)

Leonard Cohen- Darkness

Old Ideas (Columbia)

Madeleine Peyroux- Careless Love

Careless Love (Rounder)

Yo-Yo Ma & The Silk Road Ensemble featuring Rhiannon Giddens, Michael Ward-Bergeman & Reylon Yount- St. James Infirmary

Sing Me Home (Sony Masterwoorks)

Center of the River- Mississippi

Americana Art Music from the Mississippi (CotR)

Benoît LeBlanc- Kan mo té piti

Mô kouzin, mô kouzinn (Benoît LeBlanc)

Mike Regenstreif & April Verch (2025)

Newberry & Verch- Robin on the Wagon Wheel

Blessing on the Wing (Slab Town)

Andy Hedges- A Cowboy’s Hard Times

The Westerner (Andy Hedges)

Mike Regenstreif & Bill Staines (1993)

Bill Staines- My Sweet Wyoming Home

Miles (Mineral River)

Emily Scott Robinson- Sea of Ghosts

Appalachia (Oh Boy)

Ian Tyson- Sam Bonnifield’s Saloon

Ol’ Eon (Stony Plain)

Tom Russell & Mike Regenstreif (2005)

Tom Russell- 1946 Martin D18

Mount Olive (Frontera)

Amy Speace- In This Home

The Blue Rock Session (Windbone)

Cliff Eberhardt & Mike Regenstreif (2024)

Cliff Eberhardt- 500 Miles

500 Miles: The Blue Rock Sessions (Red House)

Mary Gauthier- I Drink

Live at Blue Rock (In the Black)

Mike Regenstreif & Missy Burgess (2014)

Missy Burgess- Pilgrim

Missy Burgess with The Blue Train Live (Missy Burgess)

Tom Chapin & The Chapin Sisters- Quite Early Morning

Songs of Hope (Sundance Music)

Suzanne Nuttall- Dali Never Slept

Live Without a Net (Suzanne Nuttall)

Debi Smith- Vincent Van Gogh’s Mom

Flight of the Robin (Degan Music)

Mike Regenstreif & Tom Paxton (2001) photo: Janice Hanson

Tom Paxton & John McCutcheon- Ran Away with the Circus

Together Again (Appalsongs)

Thea Hopkins- Trouble (Pulled Up a Chair)

Blossoms & Ghosts (Thea Hopkins)

Mativetsky Amiri Pagé- Metamorphose

Metamorphose (Mativetsky Amiri Pagé)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on April 18. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

--Mike Regenstreif

Thursday, February 19, 2026

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – February 24, 2026: The Legacy of Lead Belly

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/74248.html

Theme: The Legacy of Lead Belly.

Lead Belly – whose real name was Huddie Ledbetter – was one of the most important and influential blues and folk singers of all time. Lead Belly was born in Louisiana in 1888 or 1889 and died in 1949 at age 60 or 61. Lead Belly was known as the King of the 12-String Guitar, and he recorded and performed prolifically in the 1930s and ‘40s, Many of his songs – both songs he wrote – and many traditional songs he adapted, have been recorded and sung by countless artists.

This show includes some of Lead Belly’s recordings, versions of songs from his repertoire by many other artists, and a couple of tribute songs to him.

Lead Belly- Good Morning Blues #2

Bourgeois Blues: Lead Belly Legacy, Vol. 2 (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee- Rock Island Line

Blues Masters, Vol. 5 (Storyville)

Guy Davis & Fabrizio Poggi- Take This Hammer

Sonny & Brownie’s Last Train (M.C.)

Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder- Pick a Bale of Cotton

Get On Board: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee (Nonesuch)

Harry Belafonte- Cotton Fields

Belafonte Sings the Blues (RCA)

Lead Belly- Governor Pat Neff (Sweet Mary)

Shout On: Lead Belly Legacy, Vol. 3 (Smithsonian Folkways)

Pete Seeger- Huddie Ledbetter was Helluva Man

Pete (Living Music)

Odetta- In the Pines

Lookin’ for a Home: Thanks to Leadbelly (M.C.)

Dave Van Ronk- Old Hannah

Somebody Else, Not Me (Philo)

Sweet Honey in the Rock- The Midnight Special

A Tribute: Live! Jazz at Lincoln Centre (Appleseed)

Eric Bibb & JJ Milteau- Bring a Little Water, Sylvie

Lead Belly’s Gold (Stony Plain)

Lead Belly with The Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet- Alabama Bound

Take This Hammer – When the Sun Goes Down, Vol. 5 (Bluebird)

Howard Armstrong- John Henry

Louie Bluie (Blue Suit)

Ian & Sylvia- Ella Speed

Four Strong Winds (Vanguard)

Elijah Wald- Duncan and Brady

Street Corner Cowboys (Black Rose)

Andy Hedges featuring Dom Flemons- When I was a Cowboy

Roll On, Cowboys (Andy Hedges)

Lead Belly with Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee- Diggin’ My Potatoes

Bourgeois Blues: Lead Belly Legacy, Vol. 2 (Smithsonian Folkways)

Cathy Winter- House of the Rising Sun

Next Sweet Time (Flying Fish)

Nina Simone- Silver City Bound

Folksy Nina (Colpix)

Long John Baldry- We’re in the Same Boat Brother

Remembering Lead Belly (Stony Plain)

Lead Belly, Woody Guthrie, Sonny Terry & Cisco Houston- We Shall Be Free

Woody at 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee- Best of Friends

Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry Sing (Smithsonian Folkways)

Lead Belly- Irene (Goodnight Irene)

Where Did You Sleep Last Night: Lead Belly Legacy, Vol. 1 (Smithsonian Folkways)

Next week: The Water Lily and Other Song/Poems of Henry Lawson.

--Mike Regenstreif

Wednesday, April 9, 2025

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – April 15, 2025: “All God’s Critters Got a Place in the Choir”

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/69786.html

Theme: “All God’s Critters Got a Place in the Choir” – all the songs have something or other to do with animals.

Bill Staines- A Place in the Choir

The First Million Miles (Rounder)

Ian & Sylvia- Old Blue

Ian & Sylvia (Vanguard)

Ron Hynes- A Good Dog is Lost

Get Back Change (Borealis)

James Talley- Somewhere in the Stars (A Song for Diego)

Ballads, Bandits and Blues (Cimarron)

Bob Dylan with Hilda Harris, Albertine Robinson & Maeretha Stewart- All the Tired Horses

Another Self Portrait 1969-1971: The Bootleg Series Vol. 10 (Columbia/Legacy)

Garnet Rogers- Small Victory

The Best Times After All: Live (Snow Goose Songs)

Amy Speace- There Used to Be Horses Here

There Used to Be Horses Here (Windbone)

Priscilla Herdman- Waltzing with Bears

Stardreamer (Alacazam)

Rosalie Sorrels- Mehitabel’s Theme

Always a Lady (Green Linnet)

Phil Harris- Thomas O’Malley Cat

Disney’s Jazz Album: Big Band & Swing (Disneyland)

Cisco Houston- The Cat Came Back

The Folkways Years 1944-1961 (Smithsonian Folkways)

Tom Russell- Gallo del Cielo

Old Songs Yet to Sing (Frontera)

Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer- Man Gave Names to All the Animals

Get Up and Do Right (Community Music)

Odetta- The Fox

At the Gate of Horn (Tradition)

Paul Geremia- Foolish Frog

I Really Don’t Mind Livin’/My Kinda Place (Flying Fish)

Dave Van Ronk, Anne Hills & Cindy Mangsen- Froggy Went A-Courting

Never Grow Up (Flying Fish)

Ladysmith Black Mambazo- Mbube (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)

Gift of the Tortoise (Music for Little People)

Amelia Hogan- The Snow Hare

Burnished (Amelia Hogan)

The Marigolds- Inchworm

The Marigolds (The Marigolds)

Oscar Brand- The Derby Ram

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

Deborah Robins- The Three Ravens

Lone Journey (Zippety Whippet Music)

James Keelaghan- Red-Winged Blackbird

Home (Jericho Beach Music)

Jackie Washington- The Snake

Midnight Choo Choo (Borealis)

Dave Van Ronk- I’m Proud to Be a Moose

Peter and the Wolf (Alacazam)

Next week: Songs for Earth Day.

--Mike Regenstreif

Thursday, March 27, 2025

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – April 1, 2025: Remembering Jesse Colin Young; April Fools; Day

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/69610.html

Themes: Part 1 – Remembering Jesse Colin Young (1941-2025); Part 2 – April Fools’ Day.

Part 1 – Remembering Jesse Colin Young (1941-2025)

Jesse Colin Young – whose real name was Perry Miller and who died at age 83 on March 16 – was a singer and songwriter originally from New York City who was lead singer of The Youngbloods from 1966 to 1971 and who recorded as a solo artist before and after his tenure with The Youngbloods.

Jesse Colin Young- Four in the Morning

The Soul of a City Boy (One Way)

Jesse Colin Young- Same Old Man

The Soul of a City Boy (One Way)

Jesse Colin Young- Rider

Young Blood (Mercury)

Jesse Colin Young- Doc Geiger

Young Blood (Mercury)

The Youngbloods- Get Together

The Youngbloods (RCA)

The Youngbloods- Light Shine

Good and Dusty (Racoon/Warner Bros.)

Jesse Colin Young- California Child

Light Shine (Warner Bros.)

Jesse Colin Young- Songbird

Songbird (Warner Bros.)

Part 2 – April Fools’ Day

Shel Silverstein- Folk Singer’s Blues

Inside Folk Songs (Water)

Stan Rogers- The White Collar Holler

Between the Breaks…Live! (Fogarty’s Cove/Borealis)

Ian Robb with The Friends of Fiddler's Green- Garnet’s Home-Made Beer

From Different Angels (Fallen Angle)

Bowser & Blue- The Night They Invented Poutine

Crackpots (You Guys Publishing)

Spike Jones & His City Slickers- Yes! We Have No Bananas

Musical Deprecation Revue! The Spike Jones Anthology (Rhino)

Steve Goodman- Vegematic

No Big Surprise: The Steve Goodman Anthology (Red Pajamas)

Nancy White- Leonard Cohen’s Never Gonna Bring My Groceries In

Momnipotent (The Children’s Group)

Christine Lavin- What Was I Thinking?

Live at the Cactus Café: What Was I Thinking? (Philo)

Grit Laskin- The Photographers

Unabashedly Folk: Songs and Tunes 1979-1985 (Borealis)

Al Mamlet- Five Thousand Years of Folk Music

Bring It On Home Volume 1 (Legacy)

Michael Smith- Dead Egyptian Blues

Love Letter on a Fish (Tales from the Tavern)

Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers- King Tut

Red Bird Alert (Rounder)

Dave Van Ronk- Garden State Stomp

Going Back to Brooklyn (Gazell)

Erik Frandsen- I’ve the Blues

Antiques: New & Used (Erik Frandsen)

Shelley Posen with Erik Frandsen- It’s for You

Old Loves (Well Done Music)

Martin Mull & His Fabulous Furniture- Dueling Tubas

In Your Living Room (Capricorn)

John Prine & Iris DeMent- In Spite of Ourselves

In Spite of Ourselves (Oh Boy)

Next week: A Tribute to Doc Watson.

--Mike Regenstreif

Thursday, March 20, 2025

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – March 25, 2025: Songs of Laura Nyro; Bringing It All Back Home Revisited

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/69511.html

Themes: Part 1 – Songs of Laura Nyro (1947-1997); Part 2 – Bringing It All Back Home Revisited.

Part 1 – Songs of Laura Nyro (1947-1997)

Laura Nyro – who died of ovarian cancer in 1997 at age 49 – was a singer-songwriter from New York City who made a number of fine albums and whose songs were also done by artists from a variety of genres of music.

Laura Nyro- Eli’s Comin ‘

Eli and the Thirteenth Confession (Columbia/Legacy)

Darol Anger & Emy Phelps- Stoney End

Music of Our People (Darol Anger & Emy Phelps)

Laura Love- Stoned Soul Picnic

Fourteen Days (Zoë)

Laura Nyro- Wedding Bell Blues

More Than a New Discovery (Columbia)

David Clayton-Thomas- And When I Die

In Concert: A Musical Biography (Justin Time)

Billy Childs, Esperanza Spalding & Wayne Shorter- Upstairs by a Chinese Lamp

Map to the Treasure: Reimagining Laura Nyro (Sony Masterworks)

Laura Nyro- Save the Country

New York Tendaberry (Columbia/Legacy)

Part 2 – Bringing It All Back Home Revisited

Bob Dylan’s Bringing It All Back Home was released 60 years ago this week on March 22, 1965. Even before Highway 61 Revisited, which came out later in 1965, Bringing It All Back Home marked Dylan’s first embrace of electric folk rock.

Dave Van Ronk- Subterranean Homesick Blues

To All My Friends in Far-Flung Places (Gazell)

The Flatlanders- She Belongs to Me

Treasure of Love (Rack ‘Em)

Ian Hanchet- Maggie’s Farm

Dealin’ from the Bottom (of My Heart) (Ian Hanchet)

Eliza Gilkyson- Love Minus Zero/No Limit

A Nod to Bob (Red House)

Queens of the Stone Age- Outlaw Blues

Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan (Amnesty International)

Ben Sidran- On the Road Again

Dylan Different (Bonsai)

Taj Mahal & The Phantom Blues Band- Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream

Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan (Amnesty International)

Jimmy LaFave- Mr. Tambourine Man

Trail Three (Music Road)

Julie Felix- Gates of Eden

Starry Eyed and Laughing… Songs by Bob Dylan (Remarkable)

The Duhks- It’s All Right, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)

The Village: A Celebration of the Music of Greenwich Village (429)

Crowes Pasture- It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue

Edge of America (Crowes Pasture)

An outtake from Bringing It All Back Home became the title song of an album released in 1965 by Joan Baez and one of her signature songs.

Joan Baez- Farewell, Angelina

Farewell, Angelina (Vanguard)

Next week: Part 1 – Remembering Jesse Colin Young (1941-2025); Part 2 – April Fools.

--Mike Regenstreif

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – January 21, 2025: Blood on the Tracks Revisited and A Complete Unknown

This episode of Stranger Songs was recorded and can be streamed on-demand, now or anytime, by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/68626.html

Themes: Blood on the Tracks Revisited and A Complete Unknown.

Blood on the Tracks Revisited

It was 50 years ago this week, on January 20, 1975, that Bob Dylan released Blood on the Tracks, one of his greatest albums. On this program, we revisit the songs from Blood on the Tracks, in order, played by various artists.

Ben Sidran- Tangled Up in Blue

Dylan Different (Bonsai)

Dave's True Story- Simple Twist of Fate

Simple Twist of Fate: DTS Does Dylan (BePop)

Emma Swift- You’re a Big Girl Now

Blonde on the Tracks (Tiny Ghost/CRS)

Lucinda Williams- Idiot Wind

Bob’s Back Pages: A Night of Bob Dylan Songs (Highway 20)

Barney Bentall & Valentino Trapani- You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go

Cosmic Dreamer (True North)

Sloan Wainwright- Meet Me in the Morning

Rediscovery (Derby Disc Music)

Tom Russell, Eliza Gilkyson & Joe Ely- Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts

Indians Cowboys Horses Dogs (HighTone)

Erik Balkey- If You See Her, Say Hello

If You See Her, Say Hello – single (Hudson Harding)

Crowe’s Pasture- Shelter from the Storm

Edge of America (Crowe’s Pasture)

Dave Van Ronk- Buckets of Rain

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

Bob Dylan recorded two other songs during the sessions for Blood on the Tracks that he left of the original album. "Call Letter Blues" and "Up to Me" were included, though, on More Blood, More Tracks: The Bootleg Series Vol. 14, a 2018 box set that included every take of every song Dylan recorded for Blood on the Tracks.

Bob Dylan- Call Letter Blues

More Blood, More Tracks: The Bootleg Series Vol. 14 (Columbia/Legacy)

Bob Dylan- Up to Me

More Blood, More Tracks: The Bootleg Series Vol. 14 (Columbia/Legacy)

A Complete Unknown

A Complete Unknown is a partly true, partly fictional account of Bob Dylan from his arrival in New York City in 1961 until his first electric performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival.

As a movie, I really enjoyed A Complete Unknown and thought the main cast members – Timothée Chalamet as Dylan, Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez, Elle Fanning as the Suze Rotolo character renamed Sylvie Russo, and the rest – were all very good.

Fo the most part, I didn’t mind the many historical inaccuracies I recognized in the film and thought A Complete Unknown did a good job of capturing the essence of Dylan’s rise in the first half of the 1960s.

Timothée Chalamet- Song to Woody