Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – September 9, 2025: Part 1 – Songs and Conversation with author David Eisenstadt; Part 2 – Riding in My Car

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/595/71924.html

Part 1 – Songs and Conversation with author David Eisenstadt

The next three songs punctuated my conversation with David Eisenstadt, author of Jazz Musicians Under the Radar: 18 Notable Canadian Jewish Performers. Visit https://undertheradarbook.com/ for more information on David’s four Under the Radar books.

The Moe Koffman Quartette- The Swingin’ Shepherd Blues

The Swingin’ Shepherd Blues/Hambourg Bound (Quality)

Sophie Milman- No More Blues (Chega de Saudade)

In the Moonlight (Eone)

Nikki Yanofsky- West Coast Blues

Nikki By Starlight (MNRK Music Group)

Part 2 – Riding in My Car – featuring songs that have something or other to do with cars.

Woody Guthrie- Riding in My Car

Woody’s 20 Grow Big Songs (Rising Son)

Connie Kaldor- This Car

Wide Open Spaces (Coyote Entertainment)

David Mallett- Daddy’s Oldsmobile

Parallel Lives (Flying Fish)

Judy Mayhan- Morning and an Oldsmobile

Judy Mayhan (Decca)

Bruce Springsteen- Used Cars

Nebraska (Columbia)

Vance Gilbert- Cousin Shelly’s Station Wagon

Good Good Man (Disismye Music)

Joni Mitchell- Ray’s Dad’s Cadillac

Night Drive Home (Geffen)

Rosanne Cash- Black Cadillac

Black Cadillac (Capitol)

Eric Bibb- Pink Dream Cadillac

Blues People (Stony Plain)

The Blasters- Long White Cadillac

Mandatory: The Best of The Blasters (Liberation Hall)

Dropkick Murphys- Cadillac, Cadillac

This Machine Still Kills Fascists: Lyrics of Woody Guthrie (Dummy Luck Music)

The Beach Boys- Little Deuce Coupe

Fifty Big Ones: Greatest Hits (Capitol)

Asleep at the Wheel- Hot Rod Lincoln

Western Standard Time (Epic)

Chuck Berry- Jaguar and Thunderbird

Best of the Chess Years (Not Now Music)

Ray Harris- Big Old American Cars

Kinda Sets the Tone (Ray Harris)

Sass Jordan- Chevrolet

Bitches Blues (Stony Plain)

Victor Mecyssne- Ragtop Automobile

Personal Mercury (Villa Vee Music)

Hans Theessink- Mercury Blues

Songs from the Southland (Blue Groove)

Rod Abernathy- Just Get in the Car

Normal Isn’t Normal Anymore (Songs from Downstairs)

Next week: Songs of Townes Van Zandt.

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday March 7, 2023: Songs of Kris Kristofferson

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 recorded and can already be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/59628.html

Theme: Songs of Kris Kristofferson.

Kris Kristofferson performs at The International Folk Music Awards (2017)

Kris Kristofferson – who recently retired from performing and recording – had tremendous success as a singer and songwriter, and, as an actor. 

I met Kris a couple of times. In 2007, we spent an hour together onstage, and a few minutes chatting beforehand, when I moderated a panel discussion at the Ottawa Folk Festival on the enduring legacy of Woody Guthrie and Kris, along with Nora Guthrie and Jimmy LaFave, was one of the panelists. Then, in 2017, I was an award recipient at the International Folk Music Awards in Kansas City during the Folk Alliance International conference, and Kris was one of the artists who performed at the ceremony, and we had a nice chat at the reception. In both of my encounters with him, Kris couldn’t have been nicer or more humble.

Kris Kristofferson- To Beat the Devil

Me and Bobby McGee (Monument)

Gordon Lightfoot- Me and Bobby McGee

If You Could Read My Mind (Reprise)

Katie Moore- Sunday Morning Coming Down

Only Thing Worse (Borealis)

Johnny Cash- Just the Other Side of Nowhere

Cash Unearthed Volume 1: Who’s Gonna Cry (American)

The Little Willies- For the Good Times

For the Good Times (Milking Bull)

Kris Kristofferson- The Silver Tongued Devil and I

The Silver Tongued Devil and I (Monument)

I noted that Kris Kristofferson was a panelist in a discussion on the enduring influence of Woody Guthrie that I moderated at the Ottawa Folk Festival in 2007. At one point, we were talking about Woody Guthrie’s song, “Tom Joad,” which was essentially a synopsis of John Steinbeck’s book, The Grapes of Wrath, and I mentioned to Kris that one of the few parts of the book that Woody left out of his song was the scene that Kris described in his song, “Here Comes That Rainbow Again.”

Mike Regenstreif, Nora Guthrie, Kris Kristofferson & Jimmy LaFave (2007)

Anne Hills- Here Comes That Rainbow Again

Woman of a Calm Heart (Flying Fish)

Willie Nelson- The Legend

The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson (American Roots Publishing)

Marta Gómez- The Circle

The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson (American Roots Publishing)

Kris Kristofferson- Duvalier’s Dream

Me and Bobby McGee (Monument)

Jessica Chastain- Help Me Make It Through the Night

George & Tammy soundtrack (Sony Masterworks)

Roy Orbison- Something They Can’t Take Away from Me

For the Good Times: The Songs of Kris Kristofferson (Ace)

Joan Osborne- Please Don’t Tell Me How the Story Ends

Pretty Little Stranger (Vanguard)

Chris Hillman- The Taker

Morning Sky (Sugar Hill)

Kris Kristofferson- Jody and the Kid

The Silver Tongued Devil and I (Monument)

Kris Kristofferson- Broken Freedom Song

The Cedar Creek Sessions (KK)

Johnny Cash- Casey’s Last Ride

Cash Unearthed Volume 1: Who’s Gonna Cry (American)

Rosanne Cash- Lovin’ Him was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do Again)

The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson (American Roots Publishing)

Russell Crowe & The Ordinary Fear of God- Darby’s Castle

The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson (American Roots Publishing)

Kris Kristofferson- The Pilgrim: Chapter 33

The Silver Tongued Devil and I (Monument)

Janis Joplin- Me and Bobby McGee

Pearl (Columbia)

Next week: Gamblers.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Stranger Songs with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Tuesday August 2, 2022: The Legacy of Johnny Cash

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 be streamed on-demand by clicking on “Listen Now” at … https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/595/57120.html

Theme: The Legacy of Johnny Cash.

In my opinion, Johnny Cash – who died in 2003 at age 71 and who drew on folk music, blues and rockabilly influences – was the single greatest figure in country music history. On this show, we’ll hear a few of Johnny Cash’s recordings and some songs from his repertoire performed by other artists.

Johnny Cash- I Walk the Line
Classic Cash (Mercury)

Johnny Cash- Red Velvet
The Man in Black, 1963-1969, Plus (Bear Family)
Ian & Sylvia- Come in Stranger
Early Morning Rain (Vanguard)
Johnny Cash- Four Strong Winds
American V: A Hundred Highways (American Recordings)
Ian & Sylvia- Big River
Movin’ On 1967-1968 (Mercury)

Rosanne Cash- Tennessee Flat Top Box
King’s Record Shop (Columbia)
John Stewart- Get Rhythm
Airdream Believer (Shanachie)
Johnny Cash- W. Lee O’Daniel (and the Light Crust Dougboys)
Johnny Cash is Coming to Town (Mercury)
Fred Holstein- Folsom Prison Blues
Live at the Earl of Old Town (Holstein)

Johnny Cash- Veteran’s Day
Wounded Heart of America (Tom Russell Songs) (HighTone)
Tom Russell- Wreck of the Old 97
October in the Railroad Earth (Frontera)
Norah Jones- Cry, Cry, Cry
The Fall: Deluxe Edition (Blue Note)
Roy Forbes- I Still Miss Someone
Some Tunes for that Mother of Mine (AKA)

Johnny Cash- Joshua Gone Barbados
Johnny 99 (Columbia)
Brendan Nolan- The Forty Shades of Green
Live at the Side Door (Ould Segosha)
Emmylou Harris, Mary Chapin Carpenter & Sheryl Crow- Flesh and Blood
Kindred Spirits: A Tribute to the Songs of Johnny Cash (Lucky Dog)
Johnny Cash- If You Could Read My Mind
American V: A Hundred Highways (American Recordings)

Bob Dylan & Johnny Cash- Girl from the North Country
Travelin’ Thru: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 15, 1967-1969 (Columbia Legacy)
Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash- It Ain’t Me Babe

Bob Dylan: The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration (Columbia/Legacy)
Bob Dylan- Train of Love
Kindred Spirits: A Tribute to the Songs of Johnny Cash (Lucky Dog)
Bob Dylan & Johnny Cash- Guess Things Happen That Way
Travelin’ Thru: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 15, 1967-1969 (Columbia Legacy)

Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash- Jackson
The Legend of Johnny Cash (American Recordings)
Shel Silverstein- Boy Named Sue
Boy Named Sue and His Other Country Songs (Water)
Kris Kristofferson- Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down
Me and Bobby McGee (Monument)
Johnny Cash- Bird on a Wire
American Recordings (American Recordings)

Next week: “Acapella Stella” and other a cappella songs.

Find me on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Saturday Morning with Mike Regenstreif – CKCU – Saturday January 6, 2018

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

This episode of Saturday Morning can be streamed on-demand at https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/128/35625.html.

Extended feature – Songs from my Top 17 albums of 2017.

Herdman, Hills & Mangsen- At the Turning of the Year

At the Turning of the Year (Hand & Heart Music)

Crowes Pasture- Song to Woody

Rambling Round: A Woody Guthrie Tribute (Crowes Pasture)

Caroline Doctorow- Time Passes Slowly

Dreaming in Vinyl (Narrow Lane)

Sneezy Waters- I Threw It All Away

Sneezy Waters Live (Sneezy Waters)

Bob Dylan- Simple Twist of Fate

Blood on the Tracks (Columbia)

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

Wade Hemsworth with the Mountain City Four (Peter Weldon)

The LYNNeS- Cold Front

Heartbreak Song for the Radio (The LYNNeS)

Caroline Cotter- Home on the River

Home on the River (Caroline Cotter Music)

Bill Morrissey- Birches

The Essential Collection (Rounder)

John Gorka- Nazarene Guitar

True in Time (Red House)

---

Extended Feature: Songs from my Top 17 for 2017

#17

Julian Fauth- Casey Jones

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

#16

Duke Robillard & Madeleine Peyroux- Squeeze Me

Duke Robillard and his Dames of Rhythm (M.C.)

#15

Jim Kweskin- Spike Driver Blues

Unjugged (Hornbeam)

#14

Guy Davis & Fabrizio Poggi- Freight Train

Sonny & Brownie’s Last Train (M.C.)

#13

Bruce Cockburn- Stab at Matter

Bone On Bone (True North)

#12

Tom Paxton- A Daughter in Denver

Boat in the Water (Pax)

#11

Orit Shimoni- HaYavin

Songs for My Father (Orit Shimoni)

#10

Moore & McGregor- Back on the Farm

Dream with Me (Ivernia)

#9

Eric Bibb- Four Years, No Rain

Migration Blues (Stony Plain)

#8

Too Sad for the Public w/Suzzy Roche- Black River Falls

Oysters Ice Cream Lemonade: American Folk Fantasies Written and Arranged by Dick Connette (StorySound)

#7

Jayme Stone, Moira Smiley, Sumaia Jackson, Joe Phillips & Nick Fraser- Mwen Pas Danse

Jayme Stone’s Folklife (Borealis)

#6

The Klezmatics- Kermeshl in Ades (Party in Odessa)

Apikorsim/Heretics (World Village)

#5

Tom Russell- Wild Geese

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

#4

Barbara Higbie- Hitchhiker in the Rain

Tribute to the Travelin’ Lady Rosalie Sorrels (Tribute to Rosalie Sorrels)

Eilen Jewell & Nina Gerber- High Flyin’ Wonder

Tribute to the Travelin’ Lady Rosalie Sorrels (Tribute to Rosalie Sorrels)

#3

Amythyst Kiah w/Roy Andrade- Pretty Polly

Big Bend Killing: The Appalachian Ballad Tradition (Great Smoky Mountain Association)

Rosanne Cash- The Parting Glass

Big Bend Killing: The Appalachian Ballad Tradition (Great Smoky Mountain Association)

#2

Tom Russell- The Dram House Down in Gutter Lane

Folk Hotel (Frontera)

#1 

Tom Paxton- Pretty Boy Floyd

Woody Guthrie: The Tribute Concerts (Bear Family)

Country Joe McDonald, Arlo Guthrie, Jack Elliott & Pete Seeger- Goin’ Down the Road (Ain’t Gonna Be Treated This A-Way)

Woody Guthrie: The Tribute Concerts (Bear Family)

----

 

Ray Harris & Shannon Rose- Rain on Your Thunder (The Spanish Imposition)

Kinda Sets the Tone (Ray Harris)

Howard Gladstone & Laura Fernandez- Rider’s Song (Cordoba)

Hourglass (Sonic Peach)

Perla Batalla & David Hidalgo- Ballad of the Absent Mare

Bird on the Wire: The Songs of Leonard Cohen (Mechuda Music)

Ranky Tanky- Turtle Dove

Ranky Tanky (Resilience)

Kyle Carey- Sios Dhan an Abhainn

The Art of Forgetting (Riverboat)

Sneezy Waters- Walkin’ Round Town

Sneezy Waters Live (Sneezy Waters)

I’ll be hosting Saturday Morning next on February 3.

Find me on Twitter. @MikeRegenstreif

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif

Various Artists – Big Bend Killing: The Appalachian Ballad Tradition

VARIOUS ARTISTS

Big Bend Killing: The Appalachian Ballad Tradition

Great Smoky Mountain Association

smokiesinformation.org

While much of the attention in modern folk music circles is centered on contemporary singer-songwriters, traditional folk music rooted in ancient balladry remains a vital force in the music. And while there is much to be said for the argument that that the oral folk tradition through which these traditions were passed from generation to generation began to disappear with the advent of recording and mass media in the 20th century, there are still musical families in areas like the Appalachian mountains in the U.S. who continue to maintain their traditions of passing down songs, and traditional revivalists who have learned the music through contact with both source singers and recordings who have maintained and expanded the traditions.

Big Bend Killing: The Appalachian Ballad Tradition is a compelling 2-CD exploration of traditional folksongs found in the Appalachian Mountains – some of them well-known, some of them more obscure – performed by a range of artists, likewise some well-known and some not, including both contemporary members of traditional singing families and revivalists.

Each of the 32 performances – 31 of them previously unreleased and most recorded specifically for this project – on Big Bend Killing is performed with both reverence for tradition and compelling vitality.

The first CD includes 13 performances of songs that originated in the British Isles and that became staples of the traditional Appalachian repertoire. While most of the songs are performed by American artists, there are four tracks by artists from across the pond. Scottish ballad singer Archie Fisher turns in lovely versions of two long ballads, “Thomas the Rhymer” and “Tam Lin” in which the events described in the songs unfold vividly, while the British trio of Martin Simpson, Andy Cutting and Nancy Kerr offers equally gripping versions of “The Sheffield Apprentice” and “Willie Taylor.”

Other highlights on the first CD include versions of “Lord Thomas and Fair Ellender” by veteran Appalachian traditional singer Sheila Kay Adams and “Mathy Groves” by her younger cousin Donna Ray Norton; and two versions of “Barbara Allen” by Carol Elizabeth Jones and Rosanne Cash.

The 19 songs on the second CD include several distinctively Appalachian versions of British Isles ballads but centres mostly on ballads that were originally sung in the Appalachians – including “Tom Dula,” perhaps the best known Appalachian ballad thanks to its popularization as the Kingston Trio’s hit, “Tom Dooley.” The rendition here, sung sadly by Laura Boosinger with backing by the Krüger Brothers, draws the listener into the sad tale of the murder of Laura Foster.

Murder is a theme explored in many traditional ballads and other compelling performances of murder ballads on the second CD include “Pretty Polly,” sung by Amythyst Kiah with backing by Roy Andrade; “Omie Wise,” sung by Hasee Ciaccio with fiddler Kalia Yeagle; the familiar “Banks of the Ohio,” performed by Doyle Lawson; “Knoxville Girl,” sung by Kristi Hedtke and Corbin Hayslett; “Big Bend Killing,” a song I’d not heard before, performed by the great Alice Gerrard; and “Old Joe Dawson,” another one I’d not heard before, sung a cappella by Bobby McMillon.

Other highlights on the second CD include a great version of the well-known African American blues ballad, “John Henry,” by Amythyst Kiah with Roy Andrade; Elizabeth LaPrelle’s captivating version of “West Virginia Mine Disaster,” a contemporary ballad written by the late Jean Ritchie; and Rosanne Cash’s gorgeous, album-closing version of “The Parting Glass.”

And make no mistake, I could go on and on about the songs and singers that I haven’t mentioned.

The album was produced by Ted Olson, a professor of Appalachian studies and bluegrass, old-time, and country music studies at East Tennessee State University, who contributes essays on traditional Appalachian balladry and extensive notes on each of the songs to the album’s 74-page booklet.

Find me on Twitter. twitter.com/@mikeregenstreif

And on Facebook. facebook.com/mikeregenstreif

--Mike Regenstreif