CBC Podcasts

Get out your pots and pans and grab something drumstick-like the boys of Elliott Brood are going to be in the Drive studio, and they love it when people crash along to their songs with homemade percussion! The constantly touring trio serve us up some laughs and great tunes you won’t want to miss.

20 years ago, a little Toronto band helped start the alt-country revolution in this country. We’re talking about Skydiggers, who alongside Cowboy Junkies and Blue Rodeo really gave the Canadian music scene the roots-rock injection it needed, and helped pave the way for the slew of alt-country bands that came after – most of who […]

You name it, he plays it. Michael Jerome Brown is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and teacher – comfortable writing and playing acoustic or electric blues, old-time country or Cajun. You can’t just pigeonhole him as a bluesman…he’s got it all covered – his soulful voice, incredible guitar playing, and the from-the-heart lyrics written by his wife […]

A Royal Wood song is romantic and sweet, but with a tinge of melancholy. We just adore him, and we’ve got the Drive studio piano all tuned up for him as he drops by to play us some new songs from the recently released Lost and Found EP and chat about all things Royal.

It’s the last day of Live Times Five and we decided that fun was the only way to close out the week. That’s where Rich’s old pal Joel Plaskett comes in! Joel has a way of making everyone feel like they’re his old pal too. His solo performance of songs from his new album Three […]

Thursday, a woman who accused Rich of looking at her new album-cover with “Photoshop eyes” – the incredible Neko Case, who made such an impression when she strode into the Drive studio and let out that killer voice.

Today, we showcase the man that caused the entire Drive crew to crowd around like a bunch of groupies…songwriter and producer extraordinaire Daniel Lanois.

Today, we have The Great Lake Swimmers, a band that has been serving up gorgeous, lush alt-country for several years now, and are a mainstay on the R2 Drive play list. They brought us all to a state of quiet reverence as they played songs from their new album Lost Channels.

We begin with Melissa McClelland. It’s Victoria Day, her new album is called Victoria Day, and coincidentally, it’s her 30th birthday as well. Seems the perfect place to start.

The BC born and raised musician has been hailed as “our generation’s funkier Billy Holiday” and her blues based music isn’t limited to the genre – somewhere between jazz and soul, folk and chanson, you’ll find Ndidi. On the tail of a cross-Canada tour and about to head to Europe, Nididi Onukwulu drops by the […]

The man was in the Drive studio with a live set-up – Sartosh Naidu playing Tablas and Congas, Thomas D’arcy (of the band Small Sins) on bass, Steve Krecklo (also of Small Sins) on guitar, and K-OS at the mic and on keys. They gave us two incredibly unique versions of “4321” and “Burning Bridges” […]

It’s the director’s cut of ReVision Quest! On this final episode of the season, host Darrell Dennis shares the comedy sketches and songs that had our test audiences rolling in the aisle. It’s your chance to hear some of the funny you may have missed, or might just want to hear again. But wait, there’s […]

In the final episode of Alien Nation, host and mother Judith Mackin describes where the journey into teenage worlds has taken her. Is she any closer to her son? Does she have a better grip on the teenage world he lives in? In this show, many teens speak out about why they believe their generation […]

We Canadians are learning Aboriginal words all the time. Words like Canada, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Trickster. On Revision Quest, host Darrell Dennis talks with language experts, and Sesame Street’s Grover, and travels through time, to find out if Aboriginal languages have any application in the modern world. Along the way he discovers interesting uses for […]

In this episode, teens talk about their search for meaning, their attitudes toward spirituality in a consumer-based, secular culture.. Some have strong relationships with their church and their god. Others don’t know, don’t care and don’t want any part of organized religion. We also meet Fareeda who very much defines herself in terms of a […]

Native Canadians get everything for free. Or, so the myth goes. This week on ReVision Quest, host Darrell Dennis puts that theory to the test. Can he really get free glasses, free tuition, or even a free truck just for being Aboriginal. And if not, where did people get the idea in the first place? […]

In this episode Host and Mother Judith Mackin asks herself and other parents how much responsibility they can take for the successes and failures of their teens. We hear from parents who’ve done everything in their power to help their children succeed. And while some of those teens find their way easily, others are inexplicably […]

Aboriginal people enjoy special hunting and fishing rights, based on their traditional practices. Have they exploited those rights, or have they had to fight to protect them? With the help of a guide (okay, a lawyer), host Darrell Dennis hunts through history and fishes for facts. He revisits a notorious fishing feud and learns Arctic […]

Host and mother Judith Mackin and her teenage son start their lives over in a new house with Judith’s new partner. They hope to avoid the problems that broke up their last blended family but they are well aware that the new arrangement comes with no guarantees. Listeners also meet Shaun, a teenager who reinvents […]

Revision Quest is the show that looks back on Canada’s native history in order to kick some assumptions about the present. This week on the show: Gambling on gambling. Can legalized gambling pull the Rez out of the cycle of poverty and despair, or will it just replace the old cycle with a new one? […]

This show is a heart-stopping sampling of teenage thoughts about sex and love, desire and heartache. Host and mother Judith Mackin asks teens how they’re affected by the flood of erotica and soft porn that spills from magazines, billboards, television and the internet. Teens talk about the death of dating and the pressure on girls […]

Broadcast Date: July 26, 2008 (Originally Aired June 14, 2007)

If you focus on news reports, it’s easy to get the impression that reserves in this country are all parceled lands of poverty, inequity, and vice, run by incompetent, corrupt Aboriginals. Darrell Dennis knows the truth is a little more complicated than that. After all, he grew up on a reserve in B.C. And this […]

Alien Nation Host Judith Mackin wonders at the high-tech world occupied by her teenage son and his friends. It’s a world where teens appear to lose time, perspective and a sense of responsibility. Judith’s son, Robyn and class mate Drew talk about their cyber bullying experience which has an unpredictable ending. Other students talk about […]

Revision Quest is the show that looks back on Canada’s native history in order to kick some assumptions about the present. And this week, the show takes a kick at one of the biggies: the idea that native Canadians are just transplanted Russians who hiked across the Bering land bridge. Here are a couple of […]

In this episode of Alien Nation, Host Judith Mackin speaks candidly about her experience as part of a blended family in crisis. She also listens to teens who weigh in on what it’s like to find themselves in a blended family, with parents and siblings they didn’t choose and sometimes don’t like. And then there’s […]

At every link in the food chain, from growing, to selling, to consuming, food can spoil or be thrown out rather than chowed down. Apples rotting on trees, leftovers left for dead, dumpster diving for dinner… and calling on Wal-Mart for food distribution salvation. Good food gone bad: on this episode of Diet for a […]

Why is it when Irish people drink, it’s cute…but when Aboriginal people drink, they’re alcoholics who can’t handle their liquor? Darrell Dennis explores the myths and realities behind alcohol and the Aboriginal community with surprising results. It’s a tough subject to examine. And even tougher to poke fun at…but Revision Quest does it. Join Darrell […]

Host and Mother of a teenage son, Judith Mackin, deals with the fact that like many teenagers, her son has experienced depression and experimented with street drugs. Given this generation’s incredible access to drugs, from acid to ecstasy, Judith — in an attempt to understand the challenges faced by self-medicating teens — listens to their […]

As an Aboriginal actor, Darrell Dennis is curious about the Hollywood image of the Native American Indian. In particular, he wonders about the wild savage dressed in buckskin and beads, and the Indian princess with the pure heart and the long, straight hair. This week on ReVision Quest Darrell finds out where these images come […]

Author Michael Pollan serves up a buffet of food wrongs as he walks us down the supermarket aisles. For him, knowing what to eat comes down to some fundamental rules. Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much. And he explains why that’s not as easy as it sounds.

Host and mother Judith Mackin goes into the drama-filled world of high school where teens are typecast by gossip, rumours and superficial impressions. But for all its social perils, Judith values a high school education and wants to spare her son from the lifelong struggles that come with failing to get a diploma. In this […]

Host Darrell Dennis goes to work on “work”. From high unemployment to low expectations, he looks at the harsh realities and persistent misconceptions that greet aboriginal people in the workforce. Always on the job, Darrell learns about the pre-contact work ethic and the difficulties facing aboriginal entrepreneurs. He meets a tough-talking Chief with no patience […]

Sixteen-year-old Robyn Mackin runs away from home, pushing his mother to the brink of a meltdown. His decision to bolt from the house tops a long list of defiant acts that began around puberty. That’s according to Robyn’s mother, Judith Mackin, host of Alien Nation. Instead of giving up, Judith sets out to better understand […]

From food sold for fuel, to food prices fueling a food crisis. Be it corn or wheat or rice, too few staples cause too much concern over who gets to eat, what gets eaten, and how much it should cost. How cash crops have us going for broke, today, on Diet for a Hungry Planet.