Although Roy’s Record Room is celebrating 20 years on CKUA airwaves, the show encompasses a lifetime of collecting, curation, and discovery. According to the man himself, the roots of Triple R Radio can be traced all the way back to Innisfail, Alberta, in 1979.
“I was going all over the place in Canada, a little bit down into the US, and everywhere I’d go, I’d bring home records,” Roy Forbes recalls. At that time, he was known as Bim, an emerging singer-songwriter touring on the strength of his third full-length, Thistles. In addition to performing, Forbes was already making time to hunt for vinyl and shellac wherever he stopped.
“I’d get to junk stores, record stores, you know, whatever. Even at that time, I had quite the collection of records.”
A trip to an Innisfail junk store in 1979 saw Forbes pick up a 45 from The S’Quires, the trailblazing band that helped kickstart Calgary’s rock and roll scene in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The record’s B-side, a little-known instrumental titled “Electrocution,” became the very first song played on Roy’s Record Room on April 10, 2006.
Forbes’ history with CKUA goes back even further. In 1973, a 20-year-old Forbes found himself at The Hovel in Edmonton for a coffeehouse gig. He was approached by Holger Petersen (already a fixture at CKUA), who invited him to the Alberta Block studios to record an episode of the legendary ACME Sausage Company show. As the years passed, Forbes became a regular guest on Petersen’s shows.
“Whenever I was in Edmonton to do a show, I’d bring records with me, and I’d get together with Holger on the air…we’d spin records and talk about music we love,” Forbes recalls. “We were all figuring stuff out in those days, and the doors at CKUA were open for me.”
The doors remained open for Forbes throughout his performing career, as he picked up a handful of West Coast Music Awards, two JUNO Award nominations, and even an induction into the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame. But in the early 2000s, CKUA’s Lark Clark and Peter North got Forbes thinking about sharing his now-massive record collection with CKUA listeners.
“I had been doing a thing for CBC called Snap Crackle Pop…either Peter or Lark said, ‘maybe you should do something for CKUA.’”
Forbes was immediately enthralled with the idea. “I thought, ‘wow! It would almost be like coming home.’”
By 2006, Roy’s Record Room was on the air, with Forbes bringing his unique perspective as both a performer and a record collector to the airwaves. “The idea was, you know, here’s this musician. He’s on tour, national profile, whatever. And I would just play my records and maybe talk about where I found them and all of that.”
The show was a hit with listeners who appreciated Forbes’ vast musical knowledge and willingness to stray from the beaten path.
“I have always thought [CKUA] is a place where people discover music,” Forbes says. “I might play a B-side, or maybe the original version of a big hit or something…it’s an honour and a delight [to have] a space to play all these records for people.”
Forbes’ relationship with his audience has always been strong, with listeners frequently reaching out with stories about songs played on Triple R.
“Two or three years ago, I finally got around to playing this record by George Sauer & His Northern Ramblers,” Forbes recalls. The record itself has quite the story, with Sauer and his Ramblers driving all the way from Athabasca to Vancouver for a single session in 1956. It’s likely the only recording the group ever made.
“I played it on the air and said, ‘if anybody knows anything, let me know.’ I heard from a woman in Lethbridge who I believe was George’s great grandniece.”
Forbes was able to pass along these recordings to Sauer’s relatives, some of whom were able to hear his music for the very first time.
“We talk about CKUA community and connection,” Forbes says. “That is the power of CKUA and Triple R: I could get that music out there and end up having it go back to the family.”
These days, Forbes continues to seek out obscure and hidden gems to share with CKUA listeners. Since losing his sight in 2015, he’s enlisted the help of his good friend Gordon and his “sweetheart Lydia” to help him sort through records.
Forbes remains able to digitize and preserve his collection, even without his sight. He still has his trusty Technics 1200 turntable (“if you hit the switches a certain way, it’ll go to 78 speed”), a collection of specialty needles and preamps, and a version of Sound Forge recording software specially designed for the visually impaired. For him, making hidden gems accessible for CKUA’s audience is still as rewarding as it was when he first started.
“I [realized] that there was this whole trove of music that I didn’t know anything about, but that all my heroes who were older than me had listened to. So I started going back and digging, digging around, finding the roots of everything.”
“And, still, that’s kind of what I do, revolving and revealing. It’s digging, digging in, finding the roots of all the music that we listen to now.”
Thank you, Roy, for 20 remarkable years of Roy’s Record Room, and for a lifetime spent digging to unearth music that continues to delight and inspire CKUA listeners.
Celebrate Roy Forbes with CKUA
Join us throughout the month of April as we celebrate 20 years of Roy’s Record Room on CKUA.
Tune in all day on Friday, April 3 for messages, tributes, and special programming from across the CKUA community! Submit your own well-wishes for Roy through the text-to-booth line at 1-800-494-2582, Open Mic on the CKUA app, or by email at feedback@ckua.com.
Friday, April 3’s edition of This Just In will feature a conversation between Amy van Keeken and Roy Forbes, centred around Roy’s life and pivotal music picks.
Sunday, April 5 marks the 20th anniversary of Roy’s Record Room! Tune in at 2pm MT as Roy celebrates the Triple R community of record collectors and fans, as well as folks who have either sold or gifted him with records that have featured on the show over the past 20 years.
Roy Forbes will be live in Edmonton on Sunday, April 26 for a live broadcast of Roy’s Record Room from the Beresh Arts Den as part of CKUA’s 2026 Spring Fundraiser! Roy will be joined by co-host Lark Clark for two hours of live radio from 2-4pm MT. Then, starting at 4pm, enjoy live music with Dave Babcock and the Nightkeepers!
Save the date! The Spring Fundraiser kicks off on Friday, April 17. It’s thanks to donors like you that Roy’s Record Room is celebrating today.
Why not make your Fundraiser donation now? If you love Roy Forbes’ original programming, this is a great way to show it.
