Sugar Camp Music
The Radio Program with Steve Fruitman
Sugar Camp 68 - June 12, 2013
25 Years @ CIUT
Live recordings of The Early Years - 1988-92
Hear the Piecast
M3u files
The Playlist:1 JEAN CARIGNAN: Devil's Dream
2 RON SEXSMITH: The Boatman
3 NORM HACKING: Stubborn Ghost
4 ERIC ANDERSEN: Six Senses of Darkness
5 TROUT FISHING IN AMERICA: When I Was A Dinosaur
6 BOB SNIDER: Parkette
7 DON FREED: I Am A Folksinger
8 JOHN ALLAN CAMERON: I'm My Own Grandpa
9 DICK NOLAN: No More Little Boats
10 ROY PAYNE: Grandpas and Kids
11 GEOFF BUTLER: Newfoundland Tunes
12 JAMIE SNIDER & BRIAN TAHENY: When I First Went To Caledonia
13 STEVE FRUITMAN: Turkey In The Straw
14 WASHBOARD HANK: Honky Tonk Donkey
15 JACKSON DELTA TRIO: Junco Partner
16 AL CROMWELL: The Outskirts of Town
17 STEVE STARCHEV: Bouree
18 TEX KONIG: My Cousin
19 WALTER OSTANEK: PolkaNote of historical importance: I've had 4 programs at CIUT over the years:
Mariposa Radio Folkwaves June 1988 - July 1989
The Great North Wind August 1989 - June 18, 1999
Back To The Sugar Camp October 1999 - February 2012
Sugar Camp Music February 2012 -MRF aired at 10 pm Mondays following Alan Baekeland's Twistin' Postman
GNW aired at that time till it moved to 8 pm Mondays followed by Rick Fielding's Acoustic Workshop program. In its last two years it aired 8 pm Thursdays as a 2 hour program.
BTSC was Thursdays at 6 pm
SCM was originally Thursdays 3 pm and later moved to its present spot after Steve Pritchard's Radio Boogie at 5 pm Wednesdays1 From Mariposa Radio Folkwaves show #1 - as I was so unsure that I could do a weekly program, I shared MRF hosting duties with Axleman John McIntyre for the first few months - one week on, one week off. Our first guest was Mariposa Folk Foundation president Lynn Hurry on show #1 since the original intention of the program was to be a Mariposa FF platform. The first cut we played was:
JEAN CARIGNAN: The Devil's Dream (Trad)
Jean Carignan b. Levis QC Dec 7, 1916 – Feb 16, 1988
French Canadian Fiddle Songs: Legacy - LEG 120
Levis, QC
Producer Unknown
Aired June 13, 19882 My first guest to play live on air. He was just starting to hang around open stages and I was tipped off by CKLN's Joel Wortsman to check him out at Sneaky Dee's in Toronto. He was about 20 and sounded like he was 35. He sang two songs on the program, one he wrote and the other (below) he didn't.
RON SEXSMITH: The Boatman (?)
Ron Sexsmith b. St Catherines ON Jan 8, 1964
Aired Live on Mariposa Radio Folkwaves Sept 5, 19883 Why aren't people singing Norm's songs anymore?
NORM HACKING: Stubborn Ghost (N Hacking)
with Dyan Maracle & Kevin Bell
b. Scarborough ON Aug 1, 1950 – d. Nov 25, 2007
Aired live on Mariposa Radio Folkwaves Oct 24, 19884 Eric Andersen was touring to promote his new LP Ghosts Upon The Road (1988). He was living in Sweden and I had the opportunity to discuss Lord Buckley with him (among other things). Right near the end of his performance, if you listen really carefully, you can hear a vehicle zeooming past 91 St. George St which was a normal thing in those days at CIUT.
ERIC ANDERSEN: Six Senses of Darkness (E Andersen)
b. Pittsburgh PENN Feb 14, 1943
Aired live on Mariposa Radio Folkwaves 19895 I went to see Trout Fishing In America at Crooks on Front St one Sunday night and asked: "Are you guys doing anything tomorrow night? Would you like to come on the radio?"
TROUT FISHING IN AMERICA: When I Was A Dinosaur (K Grimwood)
Keith Grimwood – Houston TX & Ezra Idlet – San Antonio TX
Aired live on The Great North Wind Summer 19906 I used to see Bob Snider at open stages in the city and he was always one of the best. This was just after he released the Bobby Wiseman produced cassette You.
BOB SNIDER: Parkette (B Snider)
b. Toronto ON now lives Bear River NS
Aired live on The Great North Wind 19917 Here it is: The song that mentions both Richard Flohil and Dan Hill as well as the word 'fucking'. The melody is Sweet Betsie From Pike, an old, well-used tune that was perfect for many 3/4 time folk songs.
DON FREED: I Am A Folksinger (D Freed)
b New Westminster BC 1949 – raised Saskatoon
Rick Fielding (guitar) & Steve Fruitman (Maid-Rite Washboard)
Aired live on The Great North Wind Summer 918 John Allan Cameron was such a gracious guest! I had him on the program twice. He brought his 12-string along with him so after hamming it up as a DJ on the radio, he played this song:
JOHN ALLAN CAMERON: I’m My Own Grandpa (D Latham / M Jaffe)
b Cape Breton Is Dec 16, 1938 – d. Nov 22, 2006
Aired live on Mariposa Radio Folkwaves 1989
9 Having Dick Nolan on the program was a blast. He claimed that this was the first and only time that he'd been featured on a program for a whole hour and loved being there. Known mostly for his song "Aunt Martha's Sheep".
DICK NOLAN: No More Little Boats (R Payne)
b Corner Brook NL Feb 4, 1939 d. Dec 13, 2005
Aired live on The Great North Wind Feb 9210 "Hey, you just had my buddy Dick Nolan on your radio program. Any chance I could get on?" That was a phone call I received from one of Canada's best singer-songwriters, Roy Payne. Thing is, you never know what you're gonna get with Roy. This show could have been a disaster but is wasn't. It was great. There's a thin line in there somewhere. Stevedore Steve Foote described Roy Payne like this: "A rusty pipe coming out of a rock, pouring the sweetest spring water." He just wrote Grandpas and Kids and this was his first public performance of it.
ROY PAYNE: Grandpa’s & Kids (R Payne)
b. 1939 Trout River NL – Now living in Mattawa ON
Aired live on The Great North Wind March 199211 Former member of Figgy Duff, accordion player Geoff Butler was living out in Brandon MB, playing with the Dust Poets.
GEOFF BUTLER: Newfoundland Tunes
b. Newfoundland & Labrador
Aired live on The Great North Wind Fall 199212 Two TIP Splinter players came in and blew us away! Jamie had played in Newfoundland's Wonderful Grand Band and is still widely admired in that province. Brian emigrated from Ireland in 1988; he and his wife, Loretto Reid, joined TIP Splinter circa 1990.
JAMIE SNIDER & BRIAN TAHENY: When First I Came to Caledonia (from the collection of Amby Thomas)
Jamie Snider (fiddle) ON & Brian Taheny (guitar) b Sligo Ireland
Aired live on The Great North Wind Fall 199113 They made me do it! I had Larry Chaddok whom I had met at an old tyme fiddle club, giving me harmonica lessons on air. Rick Fielding goads me on.
STEVE FRUITMAN: Turkey In The Straw (Trad)
Rick Fielding (goading) and Larry Chaddok (prodding)
Aired live on The Great North Wind early 199114 Washboard Hank. Them's the only two words I need to say.
WASHBOARD HANK: Honky Tonk Donkey (H Fisher)
Peterborough ON
Hank Fisher (guitar) – Steve Fruitman (washboard)
Aired live on The Great North Wind 199215 Fresh out of the Jackson Delta in Peterborough, this was the Trio's first Toronto radio appearance. This was to support their gig at The Diamond club, their first big show.
JACKSON DELTA TRIO: Junco Partner (trad)
Rick Fines (guitar) Allan Black (bass drum, snare & Harmonica) Gary Peebles (guitar) w Steve Fruitman (washboard)
Peterborough ON
Aired live on Mariposa Radio Folkwaves Mar 27, 198916 Al Cromwell made quite a name for himself playing blues in Toronto in the 1960s, then for personal reasons, he quit the scene. I think it was Rick Fielding who found him washing windows on Queen Street West and got him into the studio. He was nervous, sweating, but as soon as the music took over, he was the coolest. He recorded a song for Live at Grossman's Vol 1 but apart from some YouTube video, this might be one of his last recordings.
AL CROMWELL: The Outskirts Of Town (WW Weldon / R Jordan)
d. Toronto 1995
Rick Fielding (guitar) & Steve Fruitman (jug)
Aired on Rick Fielding's Acoustic Workship 199017 Like many people, I met Steve Starchev through his hurdy-gurdy duo, Celtique. His day job was working the sound boards at CBC radio. He later went on to do a great world music radio program at CIUT. He brought the hurdy-gurdy into the studio to play some bourees.
STEVE STARCHEV: Bouree (trad)
b 1955 d Toronto Feb 22, 2006
Aired live on The Great North Wind Oct 23 198918 The first time I saw him was on a stage at the Tranzac with Norm Hacking - heavy! The first time I met him was at Dyan Myers apartment; he answered the door in an undershirt holding a frying pan dripping of suds. The last time I spoke to him he called me: "Boobala, did you hear that" so and so had died. I did three programs with him, discussing the voice of Ken Nordine, his time in The Village and about folk songs. I miss Tex Konig.
TEX KONIG: DI GRINE KUZINE (The Greenhorn Cousin) (A Schwartz / J Leiserowitz / H Prizant)
b Brooklyn NY - d Toronto July 3, 1999
Aired live on The Great North Wind 199119 He's a 3x Grammy Award winning artist (but has never won a Juno) and was crowned Canada's Polka King by none other than America's Polka King Frankie Yankovic. He's recorded dozens of polka albums and is loved across Canada and the US. At his party to celebrate 35 years in the music business in Kitchener, he had 3,000 people, most of whom bussed in from Cleveland, Milwaukee, Chicago, Cincinnati etc., bus loads of 'em. Miron Florin (from the Lawrence Welk Show) was there; Frankie was there. And so was I. He got me to interview Frankie backstage. He came all the way with his accordion from St. Catherines to appear on my program.
WALTER OSTANEK: ? Polka
Walter Ostanek b Duparquet QC April 30 1935
St Catherines ON
Aired live on The Great North Wind Dec 1992
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