Stranger Songs
Tuesday January 6th, 2026 with Mike Regenstreif
Remembering Tim Williams, Raul Malo, Steve Cropper and Joe Ely
The theme on this edition of Stranger Songs is Remembering Tim Williams, Raul Malo, Steve Cropper and Joe Ely.
Pictured: Tim Williams
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| fragment of The Stranger Song Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen - Columbia/Legacy 
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| Remembering Tim Williams (1948-2025)
Tim Williams – who died on November 28, at age 77, following a short battle with cancer – was born in California and had already recorded his first LP before he moved to Canada in 1970. He was based in Vancouver for several years before moving on to Alberta, where he worked for a time as a cowboy and then began a long career as an acoustic blues and folk artist based in Calgary. |
| Pallet on the Floor Tim Williams - Evenings Among Friends - Cayuse
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| Alberta In My Dreams Tim Williams - When I was a Cowboy - Cayuse
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| Trying to Rope the Wind Cindy Church - Just a Little Rain - Stony Plain
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| The Ones Who Made the Blues Tim Williams - Indigo Incidents - Cayuse
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| It's Enough to Be Remembered Tim Williams - Songster, Musicianer, Music Physicianer - Cayuse
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| Remembering Raul Malo (1965-2025)
Raul Malo – who died on December 8, at age 60, from cancer – was both a solo artist and the lead singer with The Mavericks. |
| Early Morning Rain Raul Malo - The Nashville Acoustic Sessions - CMH
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| You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go Raul Malo - The Nashville Acoustic Sessions - CMH |
| I Guess Things Happen That Way Raul Malo - Dressed in Black: A Tribute to Johnny Cash - Dualtone |
| fragment of The Stranger Song Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen - Columbia/Legacy
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| Remembering Steve Cropper (1941-2025)
Steve Cropper – who died on December 3, at age 84 – was a guitarist, songwriter and record producer and as the guitarist in Booker T. & The MGs, was probably the definitive guitarist of Memphis soul music. |
| Green Onions Booker T. & The MGs - Green Onions - Stax |
| In the Midnight Hour Wilson Pickett - In the Midnight Hour - Atlantic |
| The Weight The Staple Singers - Soul Folk In Action - Stax
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| (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay Otis Redding - The Dock of the Bay - Atco |
| Crop Dustin' Steve Cropper - With a Little Help From My Friends - Volt |
| Club Manhattan Jesse Winchester - Gentleman of Leisure - Sugar Hill
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| Remembering Joe Ely (1947-2025)
Joe Ely – who died on December 15, at age 78, from pneumonia after a battling Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia – was one of the great Texas singer-songwriters and song interpreters who recorded under his own name and as a member of the Flatlanders. |
| Because of the Wind Joe Ely & Joel Guzman - Live Cactus - Rack 'Em |
| Me and Billy the Kid Ramblin' Jack Elliott - Friends of Mine - HighTone |
| The Moonshiner/I’m a Rambler, I’m a Gambler The Chieftains & Joe Ely - Further Down the Old Plank Road - RCA |
| Indian Cowboy Tom Russell - Tonight We Ride: The Tom Russell Cowboy Anthology - Frontera |
| Gallo del Cielo Joe Ely - Letter to Laredo - MCA |
| Right Where I Belong The Flatlanders - Now Again - New West |
| W. Lee O’Daniel and the Light Crust Doughboys James Talley & Joe Ely - Touchstones - Cimarron |
| Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues Tom Russell & Joe Ely - Folk Hotel - Frontera |
| Ranches and Rivers Joe Ely & Joel Guzman - Live Cactus - Rack 'Em |
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Thanks Mike, these are fine remembrances. As we get older, it seems like there are more and more artists to memorialize. I really appreciated the reference to Steve Cropper from Jesse Winchester, who was himself one of the greatests.
4:16 PM, January 6th, 2026