Folk Roots

Let me tell you a story. Better yet, let Bob Dylan, Stan Rogers, Richard Thompson, Fred Eaglesmith, Joni Mitchell, Phil Ochs, Ani DiFranco or any of the other master singer/songwriters sing you a tale or two. In the end, the song's the thing. From the stars of the oldtime coffeehouses to a new generation's cutting-edge roots sounds, you'll find plenty of tradition and food for thought. So kick off your shoes and get lost in the power of a great song...or kick up your feet and dance to a good ol' kitchen party! (Note: Bluegrass & Traditional is featured every Sunday from 10am - 1pm E).

Roch Parisien believes that all the world’s problems have a musical solution. Devouring music since a precocious age, he has invested what would amount to the Gross National Product of several small countries into his music collection. His long-suffering wife is not convinced this is a good thing.

Roch lives by the adage that “those who can’t do, teach, and those who can’t do or teach, critique.” Devoid of talent for creating music himself, he thrives on assessing the work of others, and has served on juries for the Junos, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards, the Polaris Music Prize, the Canadian Folk Music Awards, and the Northern Ontario Music and Film Awards.

Where does he get off on this? Well, Roch began his career while still in his teens at Ottawa’s CKCU-FM campus radio station where he created and hosted many specialty music programs. He was a music writer for a major daily newspaper and a pioneer of music journalism on the Internet. His reviews are laced throughout the various print and online editions of the All-Music Guide. He hosted music programs on local TV and produced radio specials for the CBC. And he has worked with the Canadian Museum of Civilization and the National Archives of Canada to develop their collections of popular music artifacts. His writing and production work have earned him three international music journalism awards.

His broad knowledge puts him in demand as a consultant and commentator, and he does his very best to have an opinion on just about anything and everything. In his ample spare time, he manages two companies – Rocon Communications (music industry consulting) and Consult Ink Limited (communications consulting and editorial services).

Roch has produced and programmed Galaxie’s Folk/Roots Channel since its inception in 1998 (can it be that long already??). Give him a world problem to solve, and he will find the perfect song for the occasion.