This week on A Prairie Home Companion This week on A Prairie Home Companion, we revisit the first complete live broadcast performance from 2012, with special guests, country star Brad Paisley a nd men’s vocal ensemble Cantus. Also with us, the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell and Sue Scott; t he Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band; vocalist Andra Suchy; and the latest News from Lake Wobegon. Join us Saturday for a listen via our Facebook page at 5 p.m. CT (or click the link below). Listen to the Show >>>Like our Facebook page >>>
More about this week’s featured guests
When Brad Paisley was about eight, his grandfather gave him a guitar and a piece of advice: “Anything that’s going wrong in your life, you can pick this guitar up and it’ll go away.” Seems grandpa was right. At 12, Paisley wrote his first song. He was invited to perform it at a Rotary Club meeting, and that’s when a radio program director asked Brad to appear on WWVA’s Jamboree USA. Brad was a hit, and he hasn’t stopped wowing music moguls and fans alike. He is a multiple Grammy winner and inductee into the Grand Ole Opry, among many other accolades.
“Life is Like a Mountain Railroad” >>>Available Music >>>
Based in the Twin Cities, Cantus is recognized as one of America’s finest professional male vocal ensembles. The artist-led group is known for adventurous programming spanning many periods and genres — chant to spirituals, art song to folk song, Bach to the Beatles. The Washington Post described their sound as having both “exalting finesse” and “expressive power.”
“This is My Song” >>>Available Music >>>
Andra Suchy spent her childhood on a farm near Mandan, North Dakota, the daughter of two talented singers. By the time she was in grade school, she was traveling around, doing concerts and festivals with her family. She has performed with several groups in the Twin Cities area, and you might have recognized her voice on commercials for White Castle, Target, and more.
As a bonus, this week we provide the lyrics to the sketch “Mouthwash,” which tells the story of our favorite morning ritual and why it’s so important to singers, plus a classical music moment on the show!
If you would like to sing in the choir
There’s just one thing that we require
One rule: we use a mouthwash every day.
Use a rinse or a spray
So when you sing and make a forceful sound
You don’t knock someone down.
We sing Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach
If we sing loud, we use mouthwash.
People sitting in the mezzanine
Know that our breath is clean
And from our point of view
We say to you:
You ought to use it too.
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