On the September 6, 2020 episode of “Pop Life” Richard speaks to Rock and roll legend Randy Bachman. They discuss his connection with Les Paul, quitting school on the first day and why he isn’t a classical violinist.
Then the “Pop Life” panel, Bachman, singer Bif Naked and recording artist Chloe Charles, talk about idols and influences.
Film critic and pop culture historian Richard Crouse shares a toast with celebrity guests and entertainment pundits every week on CTV News Channel’s talk show POP LIFE.
Featuring in-depth discussion and debate on pop culture and modern life, POP LIFE features sit-down interviews with celebrities from across the entertainment world, including superstar jazz musician Diana Krall, legendary rock star Meatloaf, stand-up comedian and CNN host W. Kamau Bell, actor and best-selling author Chris Colfer, celebrity chef Jeremiah Tower, and many more.
Watch all new shows every Saturday at 8:30 pm on Saturday or 2:30 pm on Sunday on the CTV NessChannel! (channel 1501 on Bell Fibe, 62 on Rogers) AND on CTV midnight on Saturday nights. Also, check your listings for airings on Bravo and Gusto.
Music documentaries often veer into hagiography, looking back with rose coloured glasses at their subject. There are heaps of high praise in “Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind,” a new career retrospective from co-directors Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni, but right from the outset it displays an honesty rare in authorized bios.
After a few bars of his chauvinistic ’60s hit “For Lovin’ Me” Lightfoot, watching vintage footage, demands it be shut off. “That’s a very offensive song for a guy to write who was married with a couple of kids,” he says before adding, “I guess I don’t like who I am.”
It’s a startling beginning to a movie that uses his music and a series of celebrity talking heads like Steve Earle, Sarah McLachlan, Geddy Lee, Anne Murray and Alec Baldwin, who helpfully adds, “This was a guy who sang poems,” to tell the story. Traditionally Lightfoot’s enigmatic approach to his biography has left many questions unanswered in the media. That doesn’t change much here, although he seems to have allowed open access to his home and is occasionally candid in the contemporary interviews. “I regret a lot of things,” he says near the end of the film. “I caused emotional trauma in people, particularly some women, the women I was closest to. I feel very, very badly about it.”
“If You Could Read My Mind” doesn’t skip over sensitive biographical points. His relationship with Cathy Evelyn Smith, a woman he loved who was later accused of killing John Belushi and the infidelities that marred his personal life are examined, although with a light touch that respects his privacy.
Supporting the storytelling are interestingly curated images. From rare clips of his early performances on the CBC and on the stages of Yonge Street taverns and Yorkville coffee houses and archival photos of the legendary, star-studded parties he threw at his Rosedale home, to old footage of his parents and behind-the-scenes images of his acting debut in Desperado—“You’ll never win an Oscar,” said co-star Bruce Dern, “but you’re fun to work with.”—the doc offers a comprehensive visual essay of Canadiana, Gordon Lightfoot style.
Ultimately the best documentary of Lightfoot’s storied life is his work, tunes like “Sundown” and “Rainy Day People” that suggest everything he has to say is in his songs. “Your personal experience and your emotional stress,” he says, “finds its way in by way of your unconscious mind over into the mind of reality and translates itself into your lyrics. And you don’t even know that is happening.”
– Second season of POP LIFE to feature in-depth interviews with celebrities from across the entertainment world, including Randy Bachman, Jim Cuddy, Jann Arden, Danai Gurira, Scott Borchetta, Lena Waithe, and many more –
TORONTO (March 5, 2018) – Drinks and conversation are flowing at the POP LIFE bar as CTV News Channel presents another round of the pop culture talk show hosted by film critic and pop culture historian Richard Crouse. The second season of POP LIFE features Crouse hosting celebrity guests and entertainment pundits for in-depth interviews and discussions each and every week, premiering Saturday, March 10 at 8:30 p.m. ET on CTV News Channel. POP LIFE also airs Saturday nights at 12 midnight ET on CTV.
Season 2 sees celebrities and newsmakers from across the entertainment world open up to Crouse about their work, their lives on the road, the creative process, and more. This season’s feature interviews include Canadian music legend Randy Bachman explaining why his phonographic memory led him to trade in his violin for a guitar, singer-songwriters Jim Cuddy and Jann Arden on the creative process, Black Panther star Danai Gurira on role models, and international music mogul and co-creator of Bell Media’s THE LAUNCH, Scott Borchetta, on the value of music. The new season of POP LIFE also features interviews with Irene Sankoff and David Hein, the co-creators of smash musical hit Come From Away, EMMY® Award-winning screenwriter and actress Lena Waithe, celebrated British novelist Martin Amis, royal biographer Andrew Morton, and many more.
The second season of CTV News Channel’s POP LIFE features host Richard Crouse chatting with newsmakers from across the entertainment world, including Canadian singer-songwriter and Blue Rodeo frontman Jim Cuddy
Crouse moderates the show’s lively panel discussions – set in the POP LIFEbar – featuring actors, journalists, and entertainment personalities debating hot topics in pop culture and the arts.
“My first radio boss told me something I’ve never forgotten,” said Crouse. “People want to hear about people. It’s simple and true and that’s what we’ve brought to POP LIFE, the chance for some of the most interesting people from pop culture – actors, musicians, newsmakers and authors – to share their personal stories and opinions. We keep it conversational and you never know what people will say. I can’t wait to share this season with our viewers.”
Crouse is the resident film critic for CTV News Channel and CP24. His syndicated Saturday afternoon radio show, THE RICHARD CROUSE SHOW, originates on NEWSTALK 1010 in Toronto. He is also the author of nine books on pop culture history including Who Wrote the Book of Love, the best-selling The 100 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, its sequel The Son of the 100 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, the best-selling Raising Hell: Ken Russell and the Unmaking of The Devils and Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim is True. He also writes a weekly column for Metro newspaper.
In addition to airing Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. ET on CTV News Channel, POP LIFE also airs Saturday nights at 12 midnight ET on CTV and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. ET on CTV News Channel. Encore presentations of the show air Saturdays on Gusto (see local listings).
POP LIFE can also be seen on demand at the show’s official website, through Bell Fibe’s TV On Demand, and on the CTV NEWS GO mobile app (visit CTV.ca for local television listings).
On the September 6, 2020 episode of “Pop Life” Richard speaks to Rock and roll legend Randy Bachman. They discuss his connection with Les Paul, quitting school on the first day and why he isn’t a classical violinist.
