Good story has us all ears
Tell a good story and you’re guaranteed a rapt audience. That simple premise maintained a legion of fans for Stuart McLean for years. Sadly, Canada has lost this much- beloved spinner of a good yarn.
People were heartbroken to hear Wednesday that McLean, the humourist, journalist, author, storyteller and radio broadcaster had died of the cancer he was battling.
When McLean announced in late 2015 he was stepping away from his popular CBC- Radio show The Vinyl Café, he described it as not a farewell. He expected to be back. He told the public about his treatment for melanoma, describing it as “just a bump in the road.”
Alas, most of us have had dealings with cancer, whether personally, or through the experiences of a loved one. Sometimes it doesn’t go the way we hope.
The widespread mourning for McLean – amid fond recollection of his legacy – is as we would expect. He was well known before The Vinyl Café for his contributions to CBC Radio’s Morningside and Sunday Morning.
But his Vinyl Café, which grew into a touring production in 1998, became a national treasure: its stories of Dave with his used record shop in Toronto, wife Morley and children Stephanie and Sam. You just never knew what predicament Dave would get himself into, usually some difficulty stemming from a lapse of judgment – you know, those kinds of things that happen to the best of us.
The travelling show was a mix of stories, live music and sometimes fun shenanigans involving audience members, all taking place in theatres and community centres in towns and cities across the country.
Local musicians from various regions would be part of the show. On the studio- recorded, non- live shows, featuring anecdotes and musical selections, McLean offered recordings of some of his favourites alongside submissions from acts across the country – a fine platform to help get voices heard. Can you imagine the thrill of an aspiring musician hearing Stuart McLean introduce his or her song on national radio?
People in this area may have attended the taping of his show in Truro at the CEC some years ago. McLean brought the tour to many other locales nearby, throughout the Maritimes and across the country. He also had a following in the United States and took The Vinyl Café there on occasion.
There was also that special down east connection. Dave, after all, often reflected back to his years growing up in the fictional Big Narrows, Cape Breton, where his mother still lived and where the family visited.
Fans of the show will remember that McLean had features on the program that invited listeners to send in their own account or recollection of something in their life. That was just one more piece of the magic. He knew everyone could tell a story and he wanted to encourage that.