Producer Picks: A punk rock mystery, a gossipy podcast about literary greats and more

This week we're airing one of our favourite episodes from October 2023.

To make this show, our team listens through hours upon hours of audio. But sometimes, a few great shows will slip through the cracks.

This week, Leah is joined by the Podcast Playlist crew to share some amazing podcasts that you may have missed.

Like Once upon a time...at Bennington College. Our senior producer Kate Evans likes it because listening feels like "a summer page turner, but for a podcast." The show shares the history of the unique liberal arts college where authors Brett Easton Ellis, Jonathan Lethem and Donna Tartt all went to school together. 

Plus, Producer Julian Uzielli shares a heartfelt podcast about a group of Armenian soliders who survived months of being trapped behind enemy lines.

That and more, this week on Podcast Playlist.

Once Upon a Time...at Bennington College (Kate's pick):   "Bennington. Autumn, 1982. Donna, Jonathan and Bret arrive on the campus of the school nicknamed 'The Little Red Whorehouse on the Hill.' One of them comes with a steamer trunk. One of them comes with a Kangol cap. One of them comes with a 'suitcase full of drugs.'"

Freeway Phantom (Leah's pick): "On April 25th, 1971, 13-year-old Carol Spinks mysteriously disappeared from her neighborhood in southeast Washington D.C. Six days later, her body was discovered off a nearby freeway. Investigators assumed this was a one-off murder. Little did they know, Carol was the first victim of D.C.'s first serial killer."

The Ballad of Billy Balls (Kelsey's pick): "It's 1982, and a man bursts into an East Village storefront apartment and shoots punk musician Billy Balls. Author and activist iO Tillett Wright and Crimetown producer Austin Mitchell unravel a mystery of love and loss, the tender binds of family, and the stories we tell ourselves just to survive."

Country of Dust (Julian's pick): "This podcast from a multinational team of producers tells the stories of a changing Armenia. A lot has been happening here: revolution, war, immigration, a shifting economy and so much more. We capture what life is like here right now and explore the odd, inspiring and sometimes perplexing ways in which this country keeps going, despite the odds."

Is there a podcast you think we should know about? Email us at podcastplaylist@cbc.ca. Or find us on Facebook. For more great podcasts, check out CBC's podcast portal, and subscribe for free in Apple Podcasts.