Some publicity photos of Marsden during his CKEY days, courtesy of Doug Thompson. Here he is on the right, wearing his trademark shiny jacket, along with the rest of the 580 Good Guys.



Marsden's on the far left in this one.



And he even turned up on the TTC, as part of a CKEY busback ad.

 Broadcast Dialogue says Marsden passed away as a result of injuries sustained in a fall. 

Sadly, falls are one of the major traumas suffered by people in their 80s and 90s that too often lead to their demise. It happened to both my mother and my aunt. And it's the same tragedy that appears to have taken Marsden away from us. 

Marsden's website, where he re-created the old CFNY, will continue to operate online. 

Meanwhile, Buffalo's PBS will be rerunning the full length Spirit Of Radio special at 8PM on October 10th. 

The V.P. of Durham Radio, which owns The Rock 94.9, is mourning the passing of Marsden. The legendary jock worked there doing an overnight show for over 10 years, where he was allowed to pretty much play whatever he wanted.

"We were extremely lucky to have two time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee David Marsden to work with us for over a decade,” said Doug Elliott, Program Director of 94.9 The Rock. “His legacy is everlasting, as was his ear for alternative new music.”

His final appearance at the station was on Christmas Eve 2014. 

The final curtain closes on The Marsden Theatre

They couldn't be more different but Muskoka's Bay 88.7 claims David Marsden did a lot to shape the way the station operates. 

"Marsden proved that radio doesn't have to be predictable to be beloved. He proved that listeners are smart, that local personality matters, and that a radio station should reflect real human taste rather than a pre-packaged corporate strategy."

Remembering David Marsden: How "The Spirit of Radio" Shaped the Soul of The Bay 88.7

RadioActive wrote:

The V.P. of Durham Radio, which owns The Rock 94.9, is mourning the passing of Marsden. The legendary jock worked there doing an overnight show for over 10 years, where he was allowed to pretty much play whatever he wanted.

"We were extremely lucky to have two time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee David Marsden to work with us for over a decade,” said Doug Elliott, Program Director of 94.9 The Rock. “His legacy is everlasting, as was his ear for alternative new music.”

His final appearance at the station was on Christmas Eve 2014. 

The final curtain closes on The Marsden Theatre

 
Living in the east end of Toronto, I picked up The Rock very clearly from Oshawa and enjoyed listening to The Marsden Theatre. He would mix the most unlikely songs together and make it all work amazingly. I think that his final appearance happened a week earlier than it was scheduled to in 2014 and I remember being pretty disappointed that he was not doing his show anymore.

He was a Canadian broadcasting icon. Rest in peace, Mr. Marsden.

Alan Cross was on CBC Radio's As It Happens remembering his late former boss and longtime friend. But perhaps the highlight of the story is the embedded video - an impossibly young Marsden as Dave Mickie co-hosting a Sock Hop show on CBC TV, introducing a then relatively unknown singer. His name? Gordon Lightfoot. 

You can see the video from the CBC archives here. 

Some shoddy work in that CBC archives article:

"He began his radio career as "Dave Mickie," a fast-talking CHUM-FM DJ in the early '60s. He made such an impression that renowned media scholar Marshall McLuhan referenced his speedy patter in his landmark book, Understanding Media".

Also as Mr Marsden himself shared right here. CKEY was not even his first radio gig.

Last edited by Fitz (September 29, 2026 8:40 pm)

How did he get into alternative rock?

"I Am What I Play" was conceived and produced by Roger King. His father was on the air in Detroit. Roger has been in Canada for years, was part of Democrats Abroad, and has been the owner of non-union voice agency PNA (Performers Network Agency) with offices in Toronto, Montreal and New York City, as well as non-union voice agency Etnic Voice Talent.