CJSW blues host remembered for ‘rooting for the little guy’
Campus and community radio station CJSW has moved into its new digs — and the final song played in the old basement space paid tribute to a colourful and celebrated host who died just before the station started broadcasting upstairs.
Ronald Predika — better known as Reverend Ron — hosted The Blues Witness on CJSW for almost 20 years and died November 12 from cancer. The next day CJSW station manager Chad Saunders broadcast Reverend Ron’s theme song “Down on Easy Street” before turning out the lights and heading up to the station’s new third-floor space at the University of Calgary’s MacEwan Hall.
Reverend Ron “was always rooting for the little guy” and freely spoke his mind recalls Saunders. “I remember being program director in the late ’90s and pulling my car over at certain times to make sure I heard what I thought I heard about certain aldermen that Reverend Ron had chosen to single out.”
Calgary International Blues Festival producer Maurice Ginzer remembers Reverend Ron as a “wonderful prince of a guy” and a strong supporter of the blues. “He was a real believer in small clubs and the smaller scene” says Ginzer. “He knew that that’s where it all came from.”
