Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – November 18, 2025: Toms, Dicks and Harrys

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/595/72868.html

Theme: Toms, Dicks and Harrys.

Tom Paley- Hello Stranger

Beware Young Ladies (Gravitational)

Dick Annegarn- Worried Man Blues

Folk Talk (tôt Ou tard)

Harry Manx- Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues

Live at the Glenn Gould Studio (Dog My Cat)

Tom Russell & Mike Regenstreif (2018)

Tom Russell- Into the Wild

Mount Olive (Frontera)

Dick Curless- Rovin’ Gambler

Don’t Fence Me In: The Early Recordings 1956-1960 (Jasmine)

Harry Belafonte- Jamaica Farewell

Belafonte at Carnegie Hall (RCA)

Tom Northcott- Dance Me to the End of Love

Joyful Songs of Leonard Cohen (Full Circle)

Last Forever (Dick Connette & Sonya Cohen)- Buddy’s Blues

No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)

Harry Chapin- Cat’s in the Cradle

Story of a Life (Elektra/Rhino)

Tom Chapin- Broadside

Hold Our Ground (Sundance Music)

Dick Nolan- Maritime Farewell

Best of Dick Nolan (Sony BMG)

Harry Nilsson- Everybody’s Talkin’

Personal Best: The Harry Nilsson Anthology (RCA)

Mike Regenstreif & Tom Paxton (2009)

Tom Paxton- Central Square

Redemption Road (Pax)

Dick Weissman- Banjo in the Mist

No Ceiling (Dick Weissman)

Harry Tuft- Sweet Substitute

Across the Blue Mountains (Folk-Legacy)

Tom Mitchell & Mike Regenstreif (1999)

Tom Mitchell- Wasted Rose

Tom Mitchell (Philo)

Dick Hyman- The Entertainer

Scott Joplin: Greatest Hits (RCA)

Harry Connick, Jr.- You’re Sensational

True Love: A Celebration of Cole Porter (Verve)

Tom Rush- San Francisco Bay Blues

Blues, Songs and Ballads (Fantasy)

Dick Justice- Old Black Dog

The Rough Guide to Ragtime Blues (World Music Network)

David Johansen & The Harry Smiths- Richland Woman

David Johansen and the Harry Smiths (Chesky)

Tom Waits- Martha

Closing Time (Elektra)

Harry Van Walls (AKA Van “Piano Man” Walls)- Tee Nah Nah

Atlantic Rhythm and Blues 1947-1974: Volume 1 1947-1952 (Atlantic)

Next week: If It Wasn’t for the Work of the Weavers.

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – June 17, 2025: Music for 88 Keys

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/595/70697.html

Theme: Music for 88 Keys – all of the songs and instrumentals feature the piano as a primary instrument.

Philip Dyson- The Entertainer

Scott Joplin, The King of Ragtime: Complete Piano Works (Decca)

Perla Batalla- Sisters of Mercy

A Letter to Leonard Cohen: Tribute to a Friend (Mechuda Music)

Chaim Tannenbaum- Time On My Hands

The McGarrigle Hour (Hannibal)

Kate & Anna McGarrigle- Talk to Me of Mendocino

Tell My Sister: Kate & Anna McGarrigle (Nonesuch)

Pink Martini with Rufus Wainwright & The Von Trapps- Kitty Come Home

Get Happy (Audiogram)

Last Forever- Lonesome Day

Acres of Diamonds (StorySound)

Hoyle Osborne- The Baltimore Todalo

Panazon: Pan American Café Music (Ripple)

Odetta & Dr. John- Oh Papa

Blues Everywhere I Go (M.C.)

Jay McShann with Johnnie Johnson- Kansas City (Revisited)

Goin’ to Kansas City (Stony Plain)

Alberta Hunter- Always

Amtrak Blues (Columbia)

Tom Waits- Tom Traubert’s Blues

Small Change (Asylum)

Mary Chapin Carpenter with Anais Mitchell- Home is a Song

Personal History (Lambent Light/Thirty Tigers)

Rosalie Sorrels- Moments of Happiness

Moments of Happiness (Philo)

Suzie Brown- Songs are My Tears

Songs Worth Saving (Suzie Brown)

Jesse Winchester- The Easy Way

Third Down, 110 to Go (Stony Plain)

Lee Hunter & The Gatherers- Farewell, Farewell

Beneath My Feet (Birds Tale)

Penny Lang- Nama Says

Yes (She-Wolf)

Julian Fauth- Bad John

The Weak and the Wicked, the Hard and the Strong (Electro-Fi)

Memphis Slim & Willie Dixon- Chicago House Rent Party

Songs of Memphis Slim & Willie Dixon (Folkways)

Count Basie & Oscar Peterson- S & J Blues

Satch and Josh (Pablo)

Next week: 1965.

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday August 10, 2024

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/128/66371.html

Emily Triggs- Beautiful August

The Great Escape (Emily Triggs)

Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer with Chao Tran- August Flower

From China to Appalachia (Community Music)

Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer with Chao Tran- High on a Mountain

From China to Appalachia (Community Music)

Laurie Lewis- Trees

Trees (Spruce & Maple Music)

Tiffany Williams & Dalton Mills- Gold Watch and Chain

Wasted Luck (Tiffany Williams & Dalton Mills)

The Haden Triplets- Single Girl, Married Girl

The Haden Triplets (Third Man)

Jesse Winchester- Rosy Shy

Jesse Winchester (Stony Plain)

Bruce Murdoch- (The Plains of) Jericho

Bruce Murdoch (Radio Canada International)

Sean Gagnier- Circle Harbor

Circle Harbor (Sean Gagnier)

Mike Regenstreif & Penny Lang (2005)

Penny Lang- Ain’t Life Sweet

Ain’t Life Sweet (She-Wolf)

Kevin Head- Everyone Needs a Backyard

Hear Them Callin’ (Kevin Head)

Madeleine Peyroux- Showman Dan

Let’s Walk (Thirty Tigers)

David Amram- East and West

Subway Night (RCA)

Ramblin’ Jack Elliott- If I Were a Carpenter

South Coast (Red House)

Tim Hardin- The Lady Came from Baltimore

Live in Concert (Polygram)

Tom Russell- Dance Hall Girls

Song of the West: The Cowboy Collection (HMG)

Tio Chorinho- Frevo Corrido

Tempestuoso (Lulaworld)

Archie Fisher & Garnet Rogers- Riverboat

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

Archie Fisher & Garnet Rogers- Mary Ann

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

House of Hamill- The Highwayman

Wildfire (House of Hamill)

Janie Rothfield & Allan Carr- Love is Teasing

The Two of Us (Janie Rothfield & Allan Carr)

The Spain Brothers- The Leaving of Liverpool

Bright and Better Morning (The Spain Brothers)

The Proclaimers- Bonnie Lass

Linda Thompson: Proxy Music (StorySound)

Beth DeSombre- My Father’s Piano

Holding the Threads (Beth DeSombre)

John Stewart- Anna on a Memory

Cannons in the Rain (RCA)

Teni Rane- Firefly

Goldenrod (Teni Rane)

Lou Dominguez- Eddie Went to Nashville

Hanging at the Luna Star (Lou Dominguez)

Hana Zara- Our Work Here is Not Yet Done

Bloom Where You Fall (People of Orphalese)

Last Forever- In the Pines

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonya Cohen Cramer- Black Jack Davey

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Evenchick & Hucul- Child of the Mississippi

This is My Story (Melissa Hucul & Mark Evenchick) 

Gathering Time- Ripple

Old Friends (Triple-G)

Guy Davis & Mile Regenstreif (2006)

Guy Davis- In the Evening Time

The Legend of Sugarbelly (M.C.)

The Dumptrucks- Thinkin’ of Home

Selections (Laughing Cactus)

Me & My Uncle- Next Train Blues

Me & My Uncle (Laughing Cactus)

Michael ‘Earnie’ Taylor- I Just Fiddle All Day (The Busking Song)

Folk ‘n’ Western (Laughing Cactus)

Guy Clark- A Nickel for the Fiddler

Old No. 1 (Sugar Hill)

James Talley- When the Fiddler Packs His Case

Touchstones (Cimarron)

Ruth Moody- Michigan

Wanderer (Blue Muse/True North)

Catherine MacLellan & John Connolly- The Call

If It’s Alright With You: The Songs of Gene MacLellan (True North)

Hank Snow- Cure for the Blues

Cure for the Blues (RCA)

Colin James featuring Lucinda Williams- Protection

Chasing the Sun (Stony Plain)

Tracy Nelson- The Summer of the Silver Comet

Home Made Songs/Come See About Me (Flying Fish)

Chuck E. Weiss & Willie Dixon- Down the Road a Piece

Old Souls & Wolf Tickets (Slow River/Rykodisc)

Misty Blues- Yonder Come the Blues

I’m Too Old for Games: A Live Tribute to Odetta (Guitar One)

Odetta- Look the World Over

Blues Everywhere I Go (M.C.) 

Marc Nerenberg- The Coo-Coo: A Reimagined Traditional Song 

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

Lemon Bucket Orkestra- Cuckoo

Cuckoo (Lemon Bucket Orkestra)

Ivan Strunin- Really the Blues

The First Day of December (Ivan Strunin)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on September 7. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday July 13, 2024

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/128/65969.html

Geoff Bartley- July

Interstates (Magic Crow)

Lui Collins- The Wildflower Song

The Seasons Project: Summer (Christine Lavin)

Robin Batteau- How Can You Love Me

The Seasons Project: Summer (Christine Lavin)

Tina Ross- Summers Like These

The Seasons Project: Summer (Christine Lavin)

Cosy Sheridan- Here Comes the Rain

The Seasons Project: Summer (Christine Lavin)

Kami Thompson- The Solitary Traveller

Linda Thompson: Proxy Music (StorySound)

Lynne Hanson- Just a Little Bit

Just a Poet (Lynne Hanson)

Terre Roche- The Man Who Can’t

Inner Adult (Terre Roche)

Michael Jerling- I Talk to Dead People

Halfway Home (Fool’s Hill Music)

Teresina Huxtable- First and Only Tango

Wallflowers (Philo)

Sonya Cohen & Penny Seeger Cohen- Oh, Blue

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonya Cohen & Peggy Seeger- A Squirrel is a Pretty Thing

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonya Cohen & Pete Seeger- When I was Most Beautiful

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Last Forever- Hide and Seek

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Sonya Cohen  Cramer & Elizabeth Mitchell- You’ve Been a Friend to Me

You’ve Been a Friend to Me (Smithsonian Folkways)

Tim Isberg- Better Times Ahead

Prairie Fire (Tim Isberg Music)

Lynn Miles- Night Owl

tumbleWeedyWorld (True North)

David Francey- Daughter

The Breath Between (Laker Music) 

Kathleen Edwards- Options Open

Dogs and Alcohol (Dualtone)

Ian Tamblyn- That Boxcar in Algoma

Scenes Through a Mirror (North Track)

Keith Glass Band- Can’t Blame Me

Different World (Stump)

Ruth Moody- Wanderer

Wanderer (Blue Muse/True North)

Adam Karch- My Birmingham

Some Awkward Country Ahead (Adam Karch)

Martha Wainwright- Or Nothing at All

Linda Thompson: Proxy Music (StorySound)

Ken Tizzard & Music for Goats- Barstools and Broken Hearts

The DAGG Sessions (Ken Tizzard)

Miranda Hardy- The Price of Happiness

The Price of Happiness (Great Divide)

Ian Robb & James Stephens- Charming Molly

Declining …with thanks (Fallen Angle Music)

Finest Kind- Blue Mountain

Lost in a Song (Fallen Angle Music)

Shelley Posen- The Old Songs Home

The Old Songs Home (Well Done Music)

Jubal Lee Young- Jig

Wild Birds Warble (7Bridges Entertainment)

The Roches- Hammond Song

Where Do I Come From: Selected Songs (StorySound)

Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Rufus & Martha Wainwright, Loudon Wainwright III & Chaim Tannenbaum- Schooldays

The McGarrigle Hour (Hannibal)

Waterson:Carthy- Rackabello

Common Tongue (Topic)

The Copper Family- Come Write Me Down, Ye Powers Above

The Ultimate Guide to English Folk (Arc)

Richard & Linda Thompson- For Shame of Doing Wrong

Dreams Fly Away: A History of Linda Thompson (Hannibal)

Teddy Thompson- Those Damn Roches

Linda Thompson: Proxy Music (StorySound)

Mason Daring & Jeanie Stahl- Pack Up Your Sorrows

Recordings Celebrating 50 Years of a Musical Partnership (Mason Daring & Jeanie Stahl) 

Rory Block- Like a Rolling Stone

Positively 4th Street: A Tribute to Bob Dylan (Stony Plain)

Erin Ash Sullivan- Goat on a Stone Wall

Signposts and Marks (Erin Ash Sullivan)

Enzo Garcia- I Wanna Hold You

Calicoustic (Recaredo)

Deb Seymour- Sometimes You Gotta Wear Boots

Sometimes You Gotta Wear Boots (Herkimer Productions)

Ish Theilheimer & Friends- The Wilno Chicken

The Wilno Chicken and Other Songs for My Community (Ish Theilheimer)

Leonard Cohen- Story of Isaac

Songs from a Room (Columbia/Legacy)

Art of Time Ensemble featuring Sarah Harmer- Dance Me to the End of Love

Songs of Leonard Cohen Live (Art of Time Recordings)

Two of a Kind- We Give Thanks in Hard Times

Let the Light In (Magillicutty Music)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on August 10. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday February 24, 2024

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/128/64070.html

Cleia- February Morning Drive

This Side of Main (Cleia)

Mike Regenstreif & David Francey (2019)

David Francey- This Morning

The Breath Between (Laker Music) 

John Prine- Souvenirs

Souvenirs (Oh Boy)

Nanci Griffith- Speed of the Sound of Loneliness

Other Voices/Other Rooms (Elektra)

Reggie Harris- Hello In There

On Solid Ground (Reggie Harris Music)

Bonnie Koloc- Clocks & Spoons

Timeless (Mr. Biscuit)

Mike Regenstreif & James Talley (2005)

James Talley- If We Could Love One Another

Bandits, Ballads and Blues (Cimarron)

Susan Werner- Tiny Texans

Halfway to Houston (Susan Werner)

Tom Rush- Glory Road

Gardens Old, Flowers New (Appleseed)

Jim Kweskin & Maria Muldaur- Let’s Get Happy Together

Never Too Late: Duets with My Friends (StorySound)

American Patchwork Quartet- Beneath the Willow

American Patchwork Quartet (Carolina Jasmine)

Ken Whiteley- Michael Row

Long Time Travelling (Ken Whiteley)

Ranky Tanky- Pay Me My Money Down

Beat Em Down (Resilience Music)

Jenny Whiteley Things are Coming My Way

The Original Jenny Whiteley (Black Hen Music)

Last Forever- Ain’t Going Down to the Well No More/Poor Lazarus

No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)

Cat Power- Fourth Time Around

Cat Power Sings Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert (Domino)

Sassenach- MacPherson’s Rant/Reel du pendu

Passages (Sassenach)

Mike Regenstreif & Brendan Nolan (2023)

Brendan Noaln- The Broom O’Cowdenknowes

Familiar Brew (Ould Sagosha)

Portage- The Dawning Set: Dawning on the Pacific Rim/Washington’s March/Raleigh & Spencer

Portage (Portage)

The Once- Anthem

The Once (Borealis)

Béla Fleck with Eric Jacobsen & The Virginia Symphony Orchestra- Rhapsody in Blue

Rhapsody in Blue (Thirty Tigers)

The Heart Collectors- Kathy’s Song

The Space Between (Spins the Gold)

Bobby Watt- Desperado

Watt Next? (Glenashdale Music)

Roberta Flack- Ballad of the Sad Young Men

First Take (Atlantic)

The Dumptrucks- Stealin’

Selections (Laughing Cactus)

Taj Mahal- Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good to You

Savoy (Stony Plain)

Allison Russell- The Returner

The Returner (Fantasy)

Alan Doyle- Welcome Home

Welcome Home (Skinner’s Hill Music)

Carole Wise- I Know My Roots

North Star (Soulful Cricket)

Jay Linden- Ordinary Sunrise

Ordinary Sunrise (Americana North)

Jessica Heine- Burning Bridges

Build Again (Fallen Tree)

Nick Justice- Let the Wind Blow

Stranger in My Town (Nick Justice)

Jeff Talmadge- Night Train from Milan

Sparrow (Berkalin)

Terre & Maggie Roche- Kin Ya See That Sun

Kin Ya See That Sun (Earth Rock Wreckerds)

Mad Agnes- Holy Well

Likely Story (DigDag)

Lisa Klotz- Seventh Generation (For Mother Earth)

Morning Sun (Lisa Klotz)

Charm City Junction- Roll On John

Salt Box (Charm City Junction)

Leslie Evers- Along the Rocky Way

Bound for Land (Cumulus)

Eric Brace & Thom Jutz- Can’t Change the Weather

Simple Motion (Red Beet)

Mike Regenstreif & Lynn Miles (2013)

Lynn Miles- Cold Cold Moon

tumbleWeedyWorld (True North)

Mr. O’Muck- Big Bill Mess Around

Home Field Recordings: The Ancient Blues of Mr. O’Muck (Muck-O-Phone)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on March 23. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday September 20, 2022: At the Intersection of Folk Street and Jazz Avenue

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

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

This episode of Stranger Songs was prerecorded and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/57659.html

Theme: At the Intersection of Folk Street and Jazz Avenue.

Paul Geremia & Mike Regenstreif (2012)

Paul Geremia- Dr. Jazz

Love My Stuff (Red House)

Louis Armstrong & Velma Middleton- Loveless Love

Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy (Columbia/Legacy)

Preservation Hall Jazz Band & Ani DiFranco- Freight Train

Preservation (Preservation Hall)

Rahsaan Roland Kirk- Make Me a Pallet on the Floor

Boogie Woogie String Along for Real (Warner Bros.)

Oscar Brown, Jr..- Go Down Moses

The Voice of Cool (Not Now Music)

Nat Adderley- Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child

Much Brass (Riverside)

Mike Regenstreif & Erik Frandsen (1976) photo: Felicity Fanjoy

Erik Frandsen- Bopsville

Antiques: New & Used (Erik Frandsen)

Dave Van Ronk- The Fresno Shuffle

Hummin’ to Myself (Gazell)

Leon Redbone- Sweet Substitute

Any Time (Rounder)

Dakota Dave Hull & Sean Blackburn- River of Swing

River of Swing (Arabica)

Last Forever- Buddy’s Blues

No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)

Loudon Wainwright III with Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks- Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

I’d Rather Lead a Band (Search Party) 

Geoff Muldaur's Futuristic Ensemble & Martha Wainwright- Singin’ the Blues

Private Astronomy: A Vision of the Music of Bix Beiderbecke (Edge Music)

Jim Kweskin & The Neo-Passé Jazz Band- Staggerlee

Jump for Joy (Vanguard)

Maria Muldaur with Tuba Skinny- I Like You Best of All

Let’s Get Happy Together (Stony Plain)

David Grisman- Naima

Quintet ’80 (Warner Bros.)

Annabelle Chvostek- Belleville rendez-vous

String of Pearls (Annabelle Chvostek)

Sussex- Drive

The Ocean Wide (Lucky Bear)

Michael Jerome Browne- He Ain’t Got Rhythm

Drive On (Borealis)

Mike Regenstreif & David Amram (2004) photo: Ron Petronko

David Amram with Ramblin' Jack Elliott & Odetta- Home on the Range

At Home/Around the World (Flying Fish)

Reggie Harris- Harlem Renaissance

Ready to Go (Reggie Harris Music)

Jackie Washington- Gotta Go

The World of Jackie Washington (Borealis)

Charlie Haden & Hank Jones- Wade in the Water

Steal Away: Spirituals, Hymns and Folk Songs (Verve)

Next week: Songs of The Mountain City Four and Kate & Anna McGarrigle.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday January 4, 2022: The Folk Roots of Rock ‘n’ Roll and The Rock ‘n’ Roll Branches of Folk Music

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

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

This episode of Stranger Songs was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/54758.html

Theme: The Folk Roots of Rock ‘n’ Roll and The Rock ‘n’ Roll Branches of Folk Music – rock ‘n’ roll artists sing folk songs and folk-rooted artists sing rock ‘n’ roll songs.

The Animals- House of the Rising Sun
The Animals (ABCKO)
Dave Van Ronk- Alley Oop
Dave Van Ronk and The Hudson Dusters (Verve Forecast)
Little Richard- Rock Island Line
Folkways: A Vision Shared – A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly (Columbia)
Ian & Sylvia- Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa
Play One More (Vanguard)

David Johansen and the Harry Smiths- James Alley Blues
David Johansen and the Harry Smiths (Chesky)
Last Forever- Duke of Earl
Trainfare Home (StorySound)
Rod Stewart- Man of Constant Sorrow
Handbags and Gladrags: The Essential Rod Stewart (Spectrum)
Original Sloth Band- Get a Job
Whoopee After Midnight (Sloth)

Ronnie Hawkins- John Henry
The Folk Ballads of Ronnie Hawkins (Edsel)

James Stephens, Finest Kind, Tao Rodriguez-Seeger & Mike Regenstreif (2009)

Finest Kind- Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?
Silks & Spices (Fallen Angle Music)
John Oates- My Creole Belle
Arkansas (PS)
Chaim Tannenbaum, Kate & Anna McGarrigle & Lily Lanken- Young Love
The McGarrigle Hour (Hannibal)

The Band- Ain’t No More Cane on the Brazos
The Band: 50th Anniversary Edition (Capitol)
Tom Rush- Too Much Monkey Business
Tom Rush/Take a Little Walk with Me (BGO)
Bruce Springsteen- Jacob’s Ladder
We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (Columbia)
Brooksie Wells- I’m a Believer
Stops Time (Down Home Dive)

The Beach Boys- Sloop John B
Fifty Big Ones: Greatest Hits (Capitol)
Jesse Winchester- Whispering Bells
A Reasonable Amount of Trouble (Appleseed)
Creedence Clearwater Revival- Cotton Fields
Willy and the Poor Boys (Fantasy)
Kathy & Carol- Searchin’
The Village Out West: The Lost Tapes of Alan Oakes – Field Recordings of the 1960s California Folk Music Scene (Smithsonian Folkways)

Mike Regenstreif & Mary McCaslin (1999)

Johnny Rivers- Long Time Man
Johnny Rivers Rocks the Folk (Imperial)
Doc Watson- Shake, Rattle and Roll
Docabilly (Sugar Hill)
Brook Benton- It Takes a Worried Man
The Boll Weevil Song (Mercury)
Mary McCaslin- Pinball Wizard
Old Friends (Philo)

Sting- Shallow Brown
Rogues’ Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys (Anti-)
Huxtable, Christensen & Hood- Mr. Blue
Melancholy Babies (Front Hall)

The Roches- Come Softly to Me
Another World (Warner Bros.)

Next week: Songs of Winter.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday January 1, 2022

Saturday Morning is an eclectic roots-oriented program on CKCU in Ottawa heard 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 Saturday Morning and base my programming on the Folk Roots/Folk Branches format I developed at CKUT in Montreal.

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

This episode of Saturday Morning was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/128/54724.html

Jennifer Cutting’s Ocean Orchestra & Windborne- The Turning Year: A New Year’s Toast
The Turning Year: Pandemic Sessions Unplugged (SunSign)

Joe Newberry & April Verch- First Day of the Year
On This Christmas Day (Slab Town)
Dean Friedman- New Lang Syne
Songs for Grownups (Real Life)
Herdman, Hills & Mangsen- At the Turning of the Year
At the Turning of the Year (Hand & Heart Music)

Ian Robb & James Stephens- Fare Thee Well Dearest Nancy
Declining …with thanks (Fallen Angle)
Bruce Cockburn- One Day I Walk
Greatest Hits (1970-2020) (True North)

Soweto Gospel Choir- Khumbaya
Blessed (Shanachie)

Mike Regenstreif & Scott Alarik (2013)

Scott Alarik- Border of Sorrows
-30- (Scott Alarik)
Michael Nesmith- Joanne
Infinite Tuesday: Autobiographical Riffs, The Music (Rhino)
J.D. Crowe & The New South- You Are What I Am
J.D. Crowe and The New South (Rounder)
Susie Burke & David Surette- Healing In This Night
Sometimes In the Evening (Madrina Music)

June Tabor- Hard Love
Angel Tiger (Cooking Vinyl)
Bob Franke- For Real
The Other Evening in Chicago (Waterbug)
Garnet Rogers- Hallelujah! The Great Storm is Over
Speaking Softly in the Dark (Snow Goose Songs)

The Confabulation- Mary Sue
Tunnels and Visions (Woodhead Music)

Danny Marks- Man on the Radio
Man on the Radio – single (Danny Marks)
Bruce Cockburn- Musical Friends
Greatest Hits (1970-2020) (True North)
Debi Smith- Forever Young
Then and Now (Degan Music)

Corey Harris- Twelve Gates to the City
The Insurrection Blues (M.C.)
Mr. O’Muck- Rev. Davis’ Maple Leaf Rag
Home Field Recordings: The Ancient Blues of Mr. O’Muck (Muck-O-Phone)
Reverend Gary Davis- I Will Do My Last Singing In This Land
Live at Newport (Vanguard)
Anya Hinkle- I Belong to the Band
Eden and Her Borderlands (Organic)

Mary Chapin Carpenter- John Doe No. 24
One Night Lonely (Lambent Light)
Last Forever- John Doe #24
Trainfare Home (StorySound)

Over the Moon- Darcy Farrow
Chinook Waltz (Borealis)
Linda Ronstadt & The Stone Poneys- Back on the Street Again
Evergreen Vol. 2 (Capitol)
Ian & Sylvia- Molly and Tenbrooks
Play One More (Vanguard)
Steve Gillette- Grapes on the Vine
The Ways of the World (Compass Rose)

Mike Regenstreif & Shawna Caspi (2015)

Shawna Caspi- Hold the Light
Hurricane Coming (Shawna Caspi)
Rhonda Vincent- I Ain’t Been Nowhere
Music is What I See (Upper Management Music)

Dave Clarke- Prairie Lullaby
The Healing Garden (Crossties)

Orit Shimoni- America
Lorem Ipsum (Orit Shimoni)
Corey Harris- Insurrection Blues (Chickens Come Home to Roost)
The Insurrection Blues (M.C.)
Guy Davis- Welcome to My World
Be Ready When I Call You (M.C.)
Ian Robb & James Stephens- God and The Orange Clown
Declining …with thanks (Fallen Angle Music)

Linda Ronstadt & Emmylou Harris- Sisters of Mercy
Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions (Asylum)
Roberta Flack- Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye
First Take: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Atlantic)
Perla Batalla- Bird on the Wire
Bird on the Wire: The Songs of Leonard Cohen (Mechuda Music)
Leonard Cohen with Cantor Gideon Zelermyer & The Shaar Hashomayim Choir- You Want It Darker
You Want It Darker (Columbia)

Mike Regenstreif & Bruce Cockburn (2017)

Judy Henske- Blues Chase Up a Rabbit
The Elektra Albums (Ace)
Steve Howell & The Mighty Men- Bad Luck Blues
Good as I Been to You (Out of the Past)
The Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring Jimmy Rushing- Evenin’
Brubeck & Rushing (Columbia)
Aretha Franklin- Today I Sing the Blues
Aretha (Columbia)
Bruce Cockburn & Kathryn Moses- Mama Just Wants to Barrelhouse All Night Long
Greatest Hits (1970-2020) (True North)

The Dave Brubeck Quartet- Unsquare Dance
Time Further Out (Columbia/Legacy)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on January 29. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday September 21, 2021: Relatively Speaking

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

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

This episode of Stranger Songs was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/53515.html

Theme: Relatively Speaking

Mike Regenstreif & Arlo Guthrie (1996)

Woody Guthrie- Ramblin’ Round
Woody at 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection (Smithsonian Folkways)
Arlo Guthrie- Pretty Boy Floyd
Here Come the Kids (Rising Son)
Sarah Lee Guthrie & Johnny Irion- Folksong
Folksong (RTE 8)
Annie GuthrieE- Packin’ Light
Dragonfly (Rising Son)
Folk Uke- California Stars
Starfucker (Folk Uke)
Willie Nelson- One More Song to Write
Ride Me Back Home (Legacy)

Tim Grimm- Down the Road
Heart Land Again (Vault)
Jackson Grimm- Katie Did Holler
Sober Again (Vault)

Doc & Merle Watson- Windy & Warm
Songs Doc Didn’t Sing (FLI)

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

Kate & Anna McGarrigle- My Town
Tell My Sister: Kate & Anna McGarrigle (Nonesuch)
Rufus Wainwright- Going to a Town
Vibrate: The Best of Rufus Wainwright (Interscope)
Martha Wainwright- Falaise de Malaise
Love Will Be Reborn (Peremone)
Sloan Wainwright- (I Love the Folks in) My Hometown
Bright Side of a Rainy Day (Sloan Wainwright)
Loudon Wainwright III- Older Than My Old Man Now
Older Than My Old Man Now (StorySound)
Suzzy Roche & Lucy Wainwright Roche- I Can Still Hear You
I Can Still Hear You (StorySound)
Maggie & Terre Roche- Malachy’s
Where Do I Come From: Selected Songs (StorySound)

Peter Yarrow- Tall Pine Trees
Peter (Warner Bros.)
Bethany & Rufus- 900 Miles
900 Miles (Hyena)

Short Sisters- Snow, Snow
A Planet Dancing Slow (Black Socks Press)
Pete Seeger- Old Devil Time
Singalong, Sanders Theatre, 1980 (Smithsonian Folkways)
Last Forever- Dillard Chandler
No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)
Mike Seeger- Freight Train
True Vine (Smithsonian Folkways)
Peggy Seeger- Gotta Get Home by Midnight
First Farewell (Red Grape Music)

James Taylor- Wandering
Gorilla (Warner Bros.)
Kate Taylor- (You Don’t Know) How Glad I Am
Why Wait! (Red House)
Livingston Taylor- Good Friends
The Best of Live: 50 Years of Livingston Taylor (Whistling Dog Music)

Next week: A Tribute to Louis Armstrong

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

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday June 15, 2021

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

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

This episode of Stranger Songs was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/52334.html

Theme: Working in the Coalmine – Coal mining, traditionally, has been one of the most environmentally destructive sources of fuel. As well, coal mining has been one of the most dangerous occupations with untold numbers of miners being killed over the decades in both large-scale disasters and smaller accidents. Coal mining has also been one of the most dangerous occupations in terms of long-term health effects in the way that coal dust eventually destroys the lungs of miners. As well, the coal industry has been one of the most exploitative of its workers. The songs on this show address those issues.

Allen Toussaint- Working in the Coalmine
From a Whisper to a Scream (Kent)

Mary Hott with The Carpenter Ants- They Built a Railroad
Devil in the Hills: Coal Country Reckoning (Mary Hott)
Last Forever- Pay Day at Coal Creek
No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)
Kronos Quartet with Lee Knight- Which Side Are You On?
Long Time Passing: Kronos Quartet & Friends Celebrate Pete Seeger (Smithsonian Folkways)
Frida’s Brow- Canary in a Coal Mine
Frida’s Brow (Frida’s Brow)

Fourtold- Ballad of Springhill
Fourtold (Appleseed)
Matt Anderson- Coal Mining Blues
Coal Mining Blues (Busted Flat)

Judy Collins- Red-Winged Blackbird
Judy Collins 3 & 4 (Wildflower)
Priscilla Herdman- The Coming of the Roads
Darkness into Light (Flying Fish)
Laurie MacAllister- Coal Tattoo
The Things I Choose to Do (Laurie MacAllister)

Tom Paxton- Dogs at Midnight
Tom Paxton 6 (Elektra)
The Friends of Fiddler's Green- Down in the Coalmine
This Side of the Ocean (FOFG)
Jez Lowe with The Bad Pennies- These Coal Town Days
Live at the Davy Lamp (Tantobie)

Joni Mitchell- Dark as a Dungeon
Archives – Volume 1: The Early Years (1963-1967) (Rhino)
Mose Scarlett with Ken Whiteley- Nine Pound Hammer
The Fundamental Things (Pyramid)
Oscar Brown, Jr..- Sixteen Tons
The Voice of Cool (Not Now Music)

Jim Ringer- Paradise
Waitin’ for the Hard Times to Go (Folk-Legacy)
Susie Glaze- West Virginia Mine Disaster
Dear Jean: Artists Celebrate Jean Ritchie (Compass)
Glen Reid- The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore
Wildcats Howlin’ (Royston Road Music)
Kathy Mattea- Blue Diamond Mines
Coal (Captain Potato)

Mary Hott with The Carpenter Ants- Annabelle Lee
Devil in the Hills: Coal Country Reckoning (Mary Hott)
Undertakin' Daddies- Pictou County Coal
Post Atomic Hillbilly (Caribou)
Andy & Judy- St. Paul Mine
Let Us Sing (Andy & Judy Daigle)
Annie Lou- Fire in the Hole
End Zone (Annie Lou)

Next week – Summer Songs

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

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday April 13, 2021

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

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

This episode of Stranger Songs – Episode #10 – was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/51586.html

Theme: Train Songs

Eve Goldberg- Waiting for a Train
Ever Brightening Day (Sweet Patootie)
James Talley- Hear That Lonesome Whistle
Journey – The Second Voyage (Cimarron)
Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee- Rock Island Line
Blues Masters, Vol. 5 (Storyville)
Preservation Hall Jazz Band & Ani DiFranco- Freight Train
Preservation (Preservation Hall)

Bill Garrett- Northshore Train
Bill Garrett (Borealis)
Happy & Artie Traum- Blow Your Whistle, Freight Train
Hard Times in the Country (Rounder)
Seldom Scene- Steel Rail Blues
Changes (Rounder)
Gordon Lightfoot- Canadian Railroad Trilogy
Songbook (Warner Archives/Rhino)

Craig Duncan- Take the A Train
Bluegrass Swing (Green Hill Productions)

Mike Regenstreif & Arlo Guthrie (1996)

Crowes Pasture- Hobo’s Lullaby
Crowes Pasture (Crowes Pasture)
Mountain City Four- Mean Old Frisco
Mountain City Four (Peter Weldon)
Last Forever- Old 97
No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)
Arlo Guthrie- City of New Orleans
Here Come the Kids (Rising Son)

Veronika Jackson- Morning Train
The Woman I Am (Acoustic with Heart Productions)
Rosalie Sorrels- Talkin’ Wolverine 14
Travelin’ Lady Rides Again (Green Linnet)
Andy Cohen- Talkin’ Casey
Tryin’ to Get Home (Earwig)

Anne Hills- I Rode ‘Em All
Tracks (Hand & Heart Music)
Louis Jordan- Choo Choo Ch’Boogie
The Later Years 1953-1957 (JSP)
Jackie Washington- When that Midnight Choo Choo Leaves for Alabam’
Midnight Choo Choo (Borealis)

Utah Phillips & Mike Regenstreif (2005)

Sue Foley- Cannonball Blues
The Ice Queen (Stony Plain)
Tom Rush- The Panama Limited
Tom Rush/Take a Little Walk with Me (BGO)
Utah Phillips- Wabash Cannonball/Tolono
Good Though! (Philo)

Bruce Cockburn- Train in the Rain
Speechless (True North)

Next week – Celebrating Spring

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

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday April 10, 2021

Saturday Morning is an eclectic roots-oriented program on CKCU in Ottawa heard live on Saturday mornings from 7 until 10 am (Eastern time) and then available for on-demand streaming. I am one of the four rotating hosts of Saturday Morning and base my programming on the Folk Roots/Folk Branches format I developed at CKUT in Montreal.

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

This episode of Saturday Morning was prerecorded at home and can already be streamed on-demand at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/128/51567.html

Note: I was subbing for Stephen Neale on this edition of Saturday Morning. I will be back in my regular Saturday Morning slot on April 24. Steve should be back in his next slot in the rotation on May 8.

The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem- Early Morning Rain
The Bold Fenian Men (Columbia)

Marc Nerenberg- I Wish I was a Mole in the Ground
On the Street Again (Marc Nerenberg)
Hannah Shira Naiman- Train On the Island
Know the Mountain (Merriweather)
Joachim Cooder- Over That Road I’m Bound to Go
Over That Road I’m Bound: The Songs of Uncle Dave Macon (Nonesuch)

Reggie Harris- My Working Bones
On Solid Ground (Reggie Harris Music)
Crys Matthews- Exactly Where You Are
Changemakers (Crys Matthews)
Tret Fure- Monuments
Stone by Stone (Tomboy girl Records)
Noel Paul Stookey- In These Times
Just Causes (Neworld)
Tim Grimm- A Dream
Gone (Vault)

Michael J. Miles- Mississippi Overture
Mississippi River Suite/Which Side Are You On? (Right Turn On Red Music)
Leon Bibb- Ol’ Man River
Praising Peace: A Tribute to Paul Robeson (Stony Plain)
Michael J. Miles featuring Zahra Glenda Baker- Mississippi River Suite, Part 1
Mississippi River Suite/Which Side Are You On? (Right Turn On Red Music)
Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring Jimmy Rushing- River Stay ‘Way From My Door
Brubeck & Rushing (Columbia)
Michael J. Miles featuring Zahra Glenda Baker- Mississippi River Suite, Part 2
Mississippi River Suite/Which Side Are You On? (Right Turn On Red Music)
Tom Russell & Iris DeMent- Big Water
The Long Way Around (HighTone)

Anne Hills- Golden Arms
Accidental August (Hand & Heart Music)
Katie Oates- Here in Gastonia
We Go On: Si Kahn’s Songs of Hope in Hard Times (Hollow Reed Arts Recordings)
Dave Clarke- A Thousand Days Like This
The Healing Garden (Crossties)
Steel Rail- The Last Time
Coming Home (Crossties)

Peggy Seeger- How I Long for Peace
First Farewell (Red Grape Music)
Frank London with Cantor Yaakov 'Yanky' Lemmer- Oseh Shalom
Ghetto Songs (Felmay)
Christopher Mark Jones- Call Back Your Soldiers
Looking for the Light (Small Batch Music)
Eliza Gilkyson, Patty Griffin, Mary Chapin Carpenter & Iris DeMent- Peace Call
Land of Milk and Honey (Red House)
Reggie Harris- On Solid Ground
On Solid Ground (Reggie Harris Music)

Dave Alvin- Bus Station
King of California (HighTone)
David Francey- Ankle Tattoo
The Waking Hour (Jericho Beach Music)
Michael Jerome Browne- Somebody Have Mercy
That’s Where It’s At! (Borealis)

Maria Dunn- Waltzing with the Angels
Joyful Banner Blazing (Distant Whisper)
Willie Dunn- Peruvian Dream (Part 1)
Creation Never Sleeps, Creation Never Dies: The Willie Dunn Anthology (Light in the Attic)
Anna Elizabeth Laube- Jardim da Estrela
Annamania (Continental Song City)

Mike Regenstreif & David Amram (2004) photo: Ron Petronko

David Amram & Ramblin' Jack Elliott- Going North
No More Walls (Flying Fish)

Last Forever- Buddy’s Blues
No Place Like Home/Last Forever (2nd Story Sound)
Wynton Marsalis & Catherine Russell- Buddy’s Horn
Bolden: Music from the Original Soundtrack (Blue Engine)
Bill Morrissey- Buddy Bolden’s Blues
Something I Saw or Thought I Saw (Philo)

Maria Muldaur with Tuba Skinny- I Like You Best of All
Let’s Get Happy Together (Stony Plain)
Annabelle Chvostek- Belleville rendez-vous
String of Pearls (Annabelle Chvostek)
The Slowlinks- I Ain’t Got Nobody
Stay With Me Awhile (weewerk)
Samoa Wilson with The Jim Kweskin Band- Me, Myself and I
I Just Want to Be Horizontal (Kingswood)
Le Chat Mort- Bye Bye Baby Bye
Roses (Le Chat Mort)

Laura Smith & Mike Regenstreif (2013)

Rachelle Garniez- Don’t You Know
Gone to Glory (StorySound)
Laura Smith- I’m a Beauty
As Long As I’m Dreaming (Borealis)

David Broza- Night Dawn (Silver Dollar)
Night Dawn: The Unpublished Poetry of Townes Van Zandt (S-Curve)
Bob Jensen- Colorado Girl
For the Sake of the Song (Bob Jensen)
Matthew Barber & Jill Barber- If I Needed You
The Family Album (Outside)
Townes Van Zandt- Snowin’ On Raton
At My Window (Sugar Hill)
Orit Shimoni- Song for Townes
Strange and Beautiful Things (Orit Shimoni)

Shtreiml- Sirba Amen Sela
Har Meron (I.J. Rosenblatt)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on April 24. I also host Stranger Songs on CKCU every Tuesday from 3:30-5 pm.

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

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Too Sad for the Public – Vol. 1 – Oysters Ice Cream Lemonade: American Folk Fantasies Written and Arranged by Dick Connette

TOO SAD FOR THE PUBLIC

Vol. 1 – Oysters Ice Cream Lemonade: American Folk Fantasies Written and Arranged by Dick Connette

StorySound Records

dickconnette.com

storysoundrecords.com

For 20 years, since the release of the first CD by Last Forever, I’ve greatly admired the work of composer/songwriter/producer Dick Connette. In Last Forever, he teamed with the late vocalist Sonya Cohen to produce several albums of completely reimagined traditional songs and original songs steeped in tradition. I continue to find great musical riches whenever I return to the Last Forever albums – which I have done often.

Much of the material on Vol. 1 – Oysters Ice Cream Lemonade: American Folk Fantasies Written and Arranged by Dick Connette, his new project – recorded under the group name ‘Too Sad for the Public’ – continues in the vein of Last Forever with original songs based on traditional themes and a couple of fascinating covers of pop songs. The lead vocals are in the capable hands of Suzzy Roche (four songs), Rachelle Garniez (one song), Ana Egge (two songs) and Gabriel Kahane (one song).

All of the vocal songs on the album are entirely praiseworthy. Perhaps my favorite, if I had to pick just one, is “Black River Falls,” sung by Suzzy. The melody and chorus are based on Karen Dalton’s version of the traditional folksong “Same Old Man,” and the verses, each of which stands on its own, are based on Michael Lesy’s book. Wisconsin Death Trap.

Other favorites include “Old Alabama,” sung by Ana, which takes its inspiration from several traditional songs, most notably “Old Country Rock,” a country blues first recorded by William Moore in 1928 (the group name, Too Sad for the Public, comes from a repeated line in this song); and “Orphée in Opelousas,” sung by Gabriel, Dick’s reimagination of the Orpheus legend from Greek mythology which he sets in Louisiana to a score based on traditional Cajun songs.

I also love what he’s done with the two covers. “He’s a Bad Boy,” sung by Suzzy, was written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin in the early-1960s. As John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers (and Sonya Cohen’s father) pointed out to Dick, the song is a teenage variation on “Stagger Lee.”

“Young Loves to Love,” sung by Ana, is a medley of two early Van Morrison songs – “Brown Eyed Girl” and “Sweet Thing.” The latter song came from Astral Weeks (my second favorite Morrison album) and the arrangement is reminiscent of it – and prominently features the nylon-string guitar playing of Jay Berliner, whose playing was a key component of Astral Weeks.  

The other theme that runs through the album is a tribute to the late Chuck Brown, a Washington, D.C. guitarist who was known as “The Godfather of Go-Go,” a form of funk music. This is first heard in “Liberty City,” a Jaco Pastorius tune that Brown quoted in one his own tunes. Dick offers three short passages from “Liberty City” as strategic interludes during the album. Then, as the penultimate track, there is the 12-minute go-go instrumental “Chuck Baby,” a direct tribute to Brown, whose intensity never stops swirling and building.

While the go-go tracks might initially seem an odd coupling with the folk-inspired material, Dick Connette and the musicians of Too Sad for the Public bring it all together in a way that just seems right.

Dick variously plays harmonium, piano, bass and bass drum throughout the album. In addition to the singers, he is joined by a core group of five musicians – including Chaim Tannenbaum on harmonica –and 12 other contributing musicians. Dick’s arrangements are masterful from the opening notes of the first track until the end of the album.

Find me on Twitter. twitter.com/@mikeregenstreif

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif