REEL TOP 40 RADIO REPOSITORY
A graduate of New York's Valhalla public High School in 1969, Peter's ongoing education and working involvement with radio and media spans decades, beginning with his position as Music Researcher and Assistant to Program Director
Peter has researched Pop Music Charts and media history for various book, radio, motion picture and television projects. He holds the unique distinction of having been called the "Undertaker of AM Radio" for New York radio stations. In 1999, Peter became involved with the production of WABC Rewound, a program presented annually for several years on WABC. The program won the 2002 AIR Award for Best Documentary produced for the New York City market.
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The Repository thanks Media Preservation Foundation and Peter Kanze for sharing! |
[Description Author Listed With Exhibit]
TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (12 Khz)
. . . Spend Spring '63 with the fun-loving Smart Set, on K-HOG in Fayetteville . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] Welcome to Fayetteville, Arkansas! Paul Milam pulls double-duty as morning newsman and host of Coffee Cup Capers on KHOG-AM (1440 kHz). Only four reportable musical performances are featured in this agriculturally-aware rarity. Pat Boone's K-HOG Classic featuring Mel Blanc, now considered to be offensive to Mexican-Americans, follows the ten-minute newscast. And would you be surprised to learn the second tune is from Patsy Cline? This exhibit is an excellent example of locally-programmed radio in conservative small-market America, circa 1963. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Bill Vancil, KSTT Davenport IA, June 13, 1963 (42:56)
. . . The Quint Cities Popularity Plus Station . . .
[Description by Uncle Ricky]
 Bill Vancil back in the day, wondering why he hasn't been on REELRADIO before 2012. KSTT was an ABC affiliate. This aircheck includes a Paul Harvey news program with a particularly personal and convincing endorsement of shaving cream. It's all alive in this nostalgia-stuffed tribute to mid-1963 middle America, right down to the super-subtle time-tone (listen carefully) and a VERY careful blend of music that will not upset Mom or Dad. Of course, the unfortunate story of a farmer thrown into his own brush cutter was just news of the day. Most "Top 40" fans will recognize only two of the seven songs played in the 40 miracle minutes of this rare recording. The mysterious crosstalk doesn't distract, not any more than the tape rewinding during the first song. You think things change quickly these days? 22 years after the day which will live in infamy, what's the Number One song? In the Summer of 1963, along with the KSTT Picnic Wagon, Drewry's Beer and yes, an Ice Cream Social for young people — this was the last summer of innocence. And look! It's Rosemary Clooney! Graduates of KSTT in this era include Ken Draper (Draper-Blore and WCFL) |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Terry Knight as Jack The Bellboy, WJBK Detroit, July 11, 1963 (32:28)
 Terry Knight was Jack The BellBoy Thanks to David Carson, "Rockin' Down The Dial" [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze] Terry Knight continued the tradition of Jack The Bellboy on WJBK, as demonstrated by this remarkable, hi-fidelity aircheck from July 11, 1963. The Allan Thayer newscast reminds us that civil rights for Americans of African descent was an almost overwhelming issue in 1963, with President John Kennedy encouraging employment by racial profile. How the world has changed since Jim Gordon succeeded Henry Ford II as the President of the AMA! Remember when Clint Eastwood was best known for his work on Rawhide? I wonder if Clint and Wishbone were buddies years later, after Eastwood hit it big. The Bellboy Battle is exciting, three interesting (and unknown) contenders, but Knight doesn't identify the artists! Can you? |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Robert E. Lee, WJBK Detroit MI, July 11, 1963 (29:33)
. . . Outstanding, AND he is Wild . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
It's Fender Bender Jumper Bumper Time with Lee, PAMS jingles and some decidedly Detroit Soul classics from The King Pins and The Olympics in this PM drive hour from The Motor City in July, 1963. The unscoped version of this exhibit features a full newscast reported by Allan Thayer. | |||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (13 Khz)
Wake Up Show, WHBB Selma Alabama, June 24, 1964 (32:30)
. . . is like trying to speed up the train with the whistle . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
This recording of The Wake Up Show on WHBB in Selma, Alabama, is quite polite and proper, an appropriate show and station to feature Paul Harvey News. The Wake Up Show is on until 9, when they join ABC for Don McNeill's Breakfast Club. The music, presented properly and politely, includes several national Top 40 Hits, mixed with the always proper and polite Pat Boone. Blindfolded, you might not even know you were listening to a radio station in the deep south, until the Dixie Dateline news update which concludes this rare half-hour. All I knew about Selma, Alabama before hearing this aircheck wasn't very nice - it was the scene of much injustice and violence during the early years of the civil rights movement. In 1964, Selma was yet to appear on Barry McGuire's Eve of Destruction, and on this morning in June, 1964, the growing discontent was behind the polite and proper facade of The Wake Up Show. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Gentleman Jim, KLSI Salina Kansas, July 9, 1964 (31:14)
. . . Here's a message . . . for the mothers of youngsters who own guns . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] If you think you've heard that "happy, pukey" Top-40 style taken to the limit, wait until you hear Gentleman Jim on Classy — KLSI-AM in Salina, Kansas, circa 1964. Jim sounds so happy he must have been drooling. He's certainly giggling and singing. Successful radio programming consultant Todd Wallace was also at KLSI in 1964. Wonder if he had that "happy" sound, too? |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Gary Edens, WKIX Raleigh, NC August 1964 (31:14)
. . . one of America's great radio stations, it's bound to be, it's the only one we ever mention . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
Maybe Gary can tell us something about how and why this aircheck ended up in New York. But it really doesn't matter, because this exhibit is THE REEL THING featuring classic PAMS jingles, spots for Pepsi, the Yellow Pages and a sponsored time and temperature feature (twice!) And what better name for an Exterminator than "Kill-O"?
A full newscast and "The Kill-O Bulletin Board" is included in both the 'scoped and unscoped versions of this exhibit. This is total Carolina! The station ID after the news is amazing... I don't know how to write phonetically what is substituted for the letter "I" in | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (12 Khz)
Mike Reineri, WKIX Raleigh, NC August 1964 (32:24)
. . . he just went to get a short cup of coffee . . .
[Description by Uncle Ricky]
After The Peter Kanze Collection presented the rare aircheck of Gary Edens on WKIX, we received several serious requests for an aircheck of the late Gary wrote a bit about Mike's radio career. "He was really the first personality to host the WKIX morning show. He left WKIX for co-owned WPDQ, Jacksonsville, then went to Cleveland's WIXY, and finally to Miami, where he spent the rest of his career as a talk show host on WIOD and other stations." Gary also wrote that Mike was a participant in the September, 2001, WPTF broadcast of the WKIX reunion. "That is the last time most of the 'KIX Alums talked with Mike. He passed away in January of 2003." Despite Reineri's flawless performance here, this recording was technically challenged, which is why it wasn't an earlier choice for exhibition. It *is* an "off-the-board" recording, but it was recorded pre-processing, and the high-frequency distortion is unfortunate. Be assured a few hours were devoted to making it an effective online presentation, but the distortion remains on some program elements. Fortunately, all of Reineri's work was spared the splatter. At least two great Beer spots are featured, several PAMS jingles, and Jerry Kearns delivers news of the infamous Gulf of Tonkin incident. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Jim Briggs, WONE Dayton, Ohio August 26, 1964 (31:01)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (18:16)
. . .
Tony and Bryant are accused of rustling four cows and a calf
. . .
[Description by Uncle Ricky] This rare studio recording of WONE & WONE-FM in Dayton, Ohio was initially so buried in hum that it was considered unusable. With extensive filtering, most of the hum was removed, but the higher frequency harmonics remained as a lower-mid-range buzz. The buzz couldn't be banished without damaging the audio. Obviously, WONE wasn't accustomed to requests for airchecks! It's The Jim Briggs Show, which also includes eight seconds of dead air, following the last spot in the opening newscast by Al Francis. The late Ed Krahling (d. 1998) is featured with sports. There are a couple of PAMS jingles, classic Beer spots for Rolling Rock and Carling Black Label, and, best of all — a short ten-second jingle from the Lively Companion series promoting portable radios. It sounds as though Dayton and WONE might been a bit slow merging rock 'n' roll into their playlist. The music you'll hear sounds pretty tame for the time, and Mr. Briggs introduces one song by Steve Lawrence, only to backsell the same song as performed by Dean Martin. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Tom Hatala, WJVA South Bend Indiana, August 1964 (26:07)
. . . Beat'um on the Tom Tom, Here Come Tall Tom . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] This exhibit opens with the great Van Deventer at the close of a Mutual newscast. (What a memory jogger!) Then, it sounds like Tom Hatala and his late morning party on WJVA (1580 Khz) in lovely South Bend, Indiana. It's August of 1964, and Tom has a few knee-slappers for you. He's a funny guy and these are the Modern Sounds, up until 11:15, when the Oldies Show starts. I've never been to Indiana, but on this morning, they were going to freeze some poor girl alive in a block of ice at the local drive-in theatre (or so we are told.) Hey, at least it was genuine LOCAL radio. Tom was a real local citizen, and if you didn't like his jokes, chances are it wouldn't be difficult to speak to him in person about it. Note that Dick Biondi had appeared at a recent WJVA promotion. Biondi was known from his time at WLS, of course, but this was before he moved to Los Angeles for a short run at KRLA. Wait until you hear the hot up-and-comers who played at that Notre Dame dance - they are gone and forgotten, even as our treasure chest closes on this sweet 60's sample from South Bend. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Danny Wilson, KTEO San Angelo TX August 1964 (26:19)
. . . from the entertainment capital of west Texas . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] Danny Wilson undoubtedly took a few of those Ironized Yeast Tablets to crank up his delivery on San Angelo's KTEO, aka K-T radio. You may need a Jax Beer to calm yourself if you're not ready for Wilson's highly refluxed presentation. Funnyman Alan Sherman is featured with a recording made in May, 1964 on The Tonight Show, (starring Johnny Carson .) And somewhere northwest of San Antonio, San Angelo (The Wool Capital) is still there, although it appears as though KTEO is not. As for Danny Wilson, how far could he get on sheepback? |
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TOP STREAM 44 Kbps (14 Khz)
Sandy Shore, KIOA Des Moines, Iowa, September 30, 1964 (30:30)
. . . this is the sleepy Sandy Shore radio program . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
Another unbelievable aircheck with more tasty nuggets than you could ever bag at a drive-in,
And how much talent could they afford to pay at KIOA in those days? Newscaster We might provide a 'scoped version of this in the future, but the overall fidelity and the refreshing music selection is just too good to cut. (Gotta love The Impressions!) Every minute should be savored, this was undoubtedly among the very best of Mid-America Medium Market Top 40. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Hal Moore, KIOA Des Moines, Iowa, September 30, 1964 (32:28)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (18:59)
. . . ah, Jumpin' Jim, the leader of the Imperalist Forces, nine to one tonight . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] And here's Hal Moore in afternoon drive on KIOA in Des Moines. A promo is included for the KIOA Good Guys, along with a local newscast featuring Woody Woodward. There's also a delightful variety of music and several excellent spots. Altogether, fans of classic Top 40 will cherish this 32 minutes. Hal Moore started his radio career in 1958 at KSO in Des Moines, moved on from KIOA to KIMN/Denver, WHK and WKYC in Cleveland, and KHOW, KECW, KCKK, KXKL in Denver, and the Jones Radio Network. As of 2008, he was in mornings at KRWZ/Denver. Don't miss Godzilla vs The Thing! Three songs were restored. |
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TOP STREAM 44 Kbps (14 Khz)
Jack Gale as Fenway, WMEX Boston, September 30, 1964 (31:00)
. . . a couple of breakdowns in the right lane - women drivers, as usual . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] There's no question that the Sales Manager felt good sending this one to the agency. Sure, everything heard on this aircheck was played in dayparts over the years, on genuine Top 40 stations — but this one, with Al Martino and Frank Sinatra in the same quarter-hour? Perhaps WMEX was heavily dayparted in 1964. WRKO had yet to be Boss and "WIMMEX" could play turntable felt and still make money. Still, musically, this is better for beddy-bye than breakfast. The best part of this aircheck is the handsome, hard-working, award-winning AND flawless Jack Gale, who is playing the part of Fenway. This exhibit is a showcase for Gale's personable commercial delivery. They loaded him up with live spots for this "special" half-hour. No question that WMEX was on the "full-service" side of Top 40 in 1964 - Dick Levithan and Len Lawrence are included with news, as is Joe Malone with sports commentary. This is an exceptionally rare sample of Boston radio history, and the fidelity is astounding for a recording of such vintage. Our thanks to contributor Peter Kanze. And, our best wishes to the one and only Jack Gale with the debut of this exhibit on his 80th birthday, November 13, 2005. Happy Birthday, Jack! |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Big Buddy Lowe, WILD Boston, 1965 (20:09)
. . . Serving New England with One Thousand Watts of Soul In All Directions . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] We had to ask around to get the name of this authentic "Soul" jock from 1965. Big Buddy Lowe made me laugh, several times - Look out, now! I really enjoyed this aircheck of WILD. It's very honest, genuine history, and there's a "style" to it - unique to Top 40 R&B stations of my youth. And consider that this was a successful commercial enterprise, conducting commerce in the community they served. This was possible despite old-fashioned "public interest" limits on license ownership! Amazing. How did radio ever work when you couldn't move all the stations into one building? The few reportable music performances in this short 20 minutes are wonderful, our license won't let us list them, so listen and enjoy. Thanks to Curt Lundgren for the title of any recording that we are not suggesting you will hear in this exhibit. Otherwise, you're gonna LOVE the custom jingle for the WILD Weatherman at the end, it's just Too Cool. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Emperor 'Hap' (William A.) Hopkins, KROY Sacramento, May 1965 (32:57)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (13:35)[Description by Uncle Ricky] Before Emperor "Hap" Hopkins' successful 1961-1965 run at 1240 KROY/Sacramento, William A. Hopkins was heard on WSAI/Cincinnati, WING/Dayton, and KYA/San Francisco. After KROY, Hopkins went on to KXOK/St. Louis and WNBC/New York. What a great Top40 resume! Listening to this rarity reveals that midday jock and Production Director Mark Ford has sprained his ankle and won't follow the Emperor on this show. Ford was a major Production Guru for Drake-Chenault fifteen years later. Jerry Stevens is featured with KROY news and a few cool stagings, otherwise, no bells and whistles. You'll hear some great spots, a much more relaxed presentation than the KROY of the '70's, and a wide variety in the playlist. A few tired tunes, but there's a Stones LP cut AND Steve Alaimo .. and more you never heard before and may never hear again. In this May 1965 aircheck, Hopkins is ready to Spring forward. His talent and enthusiasm is genuine and he makes it work. Little Sacramento was lucky to have such a class act in morning drive. Before the year was over, Hopkins was off to St. Louis. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Tommy Vance, KOL Seattle, June 25, 1965 (31:41)
. . . Let's shut up and play more music . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] British-styled Tommy Vance (one of the Magnificent Seven) was the afternoon host on Seattle's Colorful KOL in June of 1965. This was space-age radio! It may have been the height of the British Invasion, but we're treated to Hollywood's Liverpool Five and Seattle's own Sir Raleigh And The Coupons as Tommy counts down the latest KOL Tunedex.
PAMS jingles, Brenda Holloway, The Strangeloves, Patti Page, a couple of short headline newscasts (with Ray Hutchinson) and a music movie spot voiced by Bruce Morrow are among the goodies in this delightfully eclectic half-hour, taped right off the station's console. Note the crystal-clarity of the microphones and jingles, a pleasant contrast to the gritty, grungy vinyl singles. | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (11 Khz)
Duke Of Earl, KYOK Houston, TX July 1965 (23:17)
. . . These wigs can do you harm . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
Yikes! This SuperSonic Sound is a bit distorted! And the records are badly worn! And they're selling Winston cigarettes and Mohawk luncheon meats! And if we could only get Sinclair gasoline today, and listen to the Duke on our local radio station — well, everything would be all right. The Duke Of Earl is working the Fabulous 59 Sound Survey for KYOK in Houston, sometime in July, 1965. The KYOK Money Mustang was parking in front of pink houses and this station did not run down at sundown! We get a sneak peak of The Crown Prince on the tail. |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
J.J. Valley, KOL Seattle, July 1965 (27:57)
. . . Hold Me, Kiss Me, Tell me I'm on Federal relief . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
There are quite a few references to "Hullabalooers", but there's no Dave Hull to explain it. Obviously, the entire west coast was hullaballooing in the Summer of 1965. | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Fat Daddy, WWIN Baltimore, MD. July 14, 1966 (21:24)
. . . Sock your soul to 'em, Fat Daddy, sock your soul to 'em . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
If you ever wondered where John Waters got the feeling for Hairspray — this is it! I considered this to be a type of "Free Form" Hit Music radio. Despite all the format and structure, Fat Daddy just talked over the vocals as he pleased. Damn, what a glorious time it was!
I asked contributor
STAGING IS EVERYTHING.
I'll add that we didn't need one corporation to own eight stations in a market to have this kind of "diversity" on the air in 1966. | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Hot Rod Hulbert Rocketship Show, WWIN Baltimore, MD. July 14, 1966 (27:01)
. . . Got to go with the lovely, delightful, exquisite cookies - crazy pants dance! . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky]
 Hot Rod Hulbert And with this introduction, Hot Rod Hulbert presents himself, and welcomes us to this all-too-short half-hour of his afternoon drive program on Baltimore's WWIN. As contributor Peter Kanze noted regarding the previous WWIN exhibit, it's all about STAGING. It's a full four minutes into this aircheck before Hot Rod plays a record - and that four minutes is all introduction! You gotta love this studio capture of genuine Baltimore in the Summer of 1966. Grungy 45's, feedback, clicks, pops, and The Supremes for Coca-Cola - Hit it! |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Jim Davis, WTRY Troy NY August 3, 1966 (29:23)
. . . Dusty Springfield, better known to her close friends as 'dirty rifle' . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky for contributor Peter Kanze] When this exhibit was introduced on December 25, 2005, it was a Christmas Mystery. We didn't know the identity of this polished up-tempo jock for certain until January 4, 2006.
There are some tape problems, too, at a few points, but it can't diminish joy of that familiar Gwinsound jingle into the cue-burned Dusty Springfield. What a moment! (And then the tape drops out!) Plus the Stan Freburg Tea spot, Fortunes for Coca-Cola, and other great spots and EFX of the era. This station was making money. And they were playing Hey, Joe and 7 And 7 Is! There you go, some of the best of August 1966 radio in Albany-Troy, New York. All the formatics and foolery, and the DJ never said his name. At least he identified himself nearly 40 years later! | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (10 Khz)
Johnny Mitchell, KBTR Denver, CO. August 3, 1966 (29:34)
. . . Whoopee! . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky] Here's Johnny Mitchell on short-timer KBTR, a GREAT Top 40 station in the PAMS/WABC/Non-Drake Tradition (East Coast Top 40?) circa 1966. Musically, the British have landed, and they own nearly all the music in this half-hour. Yes, there was at least more than one Johnny Mitchell in the History of Top 40 Radio, so who knows if THIS one went on to bigger and better things, or if he was just a Denver guy who adopted the name? On the other hand, he sure was having fun being on 710 KBTR Radio - The First and Last Word in Music. Gotta love those PAMS. KBTR had Chickenman, too. There's a promo for the corporate owner who explains they are programming to young people - anyone catch the name? George Michael is selling a Daisy Sonic Boom Rifle that uses no ammunition but knocks down targets 15 feet away... Contributor Peter Kanze was excited about the Danny Clayton exhibit, which was the first to debut in this Collection. But I think this one is just as exciting! Listen to the wonderful production at the top of the hour, (newsout into second record) in the promos, the abundance of jingles! This was a HOT Top 40 East Coast radio station - in Denver! |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Danny Clayton, KBTR Denver, CO. August 4, 1966 (30:15)
. . . It must be great, everybody is copying it . . . [Description by Peter Kanze]
Here's an aircheck from a totally forgotten radio station (it was only a rocker for a short time). The jock is not especially well known either. BUT....when you listen to this recording, everything that you rate an aircheck by, rates a "10". DJ compatability with the format, production, music selection, news (featuring a headline "Lenny Bruce found dead"), and contests... just everything comes up super. I've had this tape in my car for months and never get tired of hearing it either. Be sure to check out the great PAMS commercial spots, especially the O'Mara Ford jingle to the tune of "O Danny Boy". This is The Sixties Channel, long before there was a need for a need for nostaligia. | ||
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Jerry Kaye, WING Dayton Ohio, August 9, 1966 (31:15)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (10:41). . . Constantly More Music, comin' along . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze]
We do wonder what WING's competitor was doing, because Kaye remarks a couple of times that the music is "complete and uncut", even pointing out that he has played the entire 2 minutes and 40 seconds of Dirty Water! High Flyin' WING had some nice PAMS jingles and Roy Dittman is heard with both headlines and a full edition of Dayton Newswatch. | |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (14 Khz)
Jay Reynolds, WIFE Indianapolis, August 10, 1966 (29:28)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (15:28). . . on a wailin' Wednesday afternoon . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze]
The static doesn't seem to distract Jay, however — he's got one of those big mushy grins that was part of the "personality" of many Top 40 jocks of the era. Great spots include attempted humor for a Ford dealer that would be considered politically-incorrect today, a forgotten Jerry Lewis movie, and Ray Charles for Coca-Cola. They're mostly using acapellas, but the best jingle is a classic PAMS "Winner" jingle. There is a one-minute news update, and six reportable music performances in this half-hour. | |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (12 Khz)
Rudy Runnels, WOL Washington D.C. August 1966 (23:40)
. . . The Tall Tan Texan . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze]
Wow. WOL, Soul Radio in Washington, D.C. and The Tall Tan Texan, from 1966. This almost-half of the 5PM hour is impressive. The production and presentation are flawless. If only the reproduction were better... But how fortunate we are to hear this, Pepper jingles and all! I have no explanation for the horrid Go Ahead And Cry record by The Righteous Brothers at the end. Maybe there was "promotional support" involved?
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (12 Khz)
Johnny Hill, WCOL Columbus OH August 1966
(26:15)
. . . Boss dynamite, alright! . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze] The NEW WCOL worked hard to meet obligations for their community of license, as you will hear in this half-hour of Johnny Hill on morning drive radio in Columbus, Ohio, circa 1966. But it was still big-time show-biz — Mike Brown of The Left Banke is heard with a custom promo, along with the Voice of Information and Columbus Speaks. And how about those pipes on newsman Joe Stamper! Are you ready to seek the sign of the whirling satellite? Perhaps only after due respect for the Star-Spangled Salute to a local marine. There's an alert for a news-tip award, R&B, Pop and Country music (must be that crazy Top 40 format! All this DIVERSITY and the radio stations weren't all owned by a few mega-corporations! They just called it "Variety". Imagine...) This particular tape lost a few inches over the years, demonstrated by missing split-seconds here and there. And then there are the dropouts. It's far from a perfect recording, but it's 100% REEL. Here's Top 40 from the heartland! |
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TOP STREAM 32 Kbps (11 Khz)
George Erwin, KFJZ Fort Worth TX April 1967
(45:47)
. . . we seem to have a malfunction of the inboard framistan . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze] We hope to learn more about the affable George Erwin. Somehow, he faces the technical problems in the 8AM hour of his KFJZ morning show and still comes across like a genuine "good old boy". You gotta love the way he says "pie" when reading the public school lunch menu. Welcome to Texas! This aircheck is overflowing with classic advertising of the time, much of it specific to the Lone Star state. The PAMS jingles were made just a few miles away in Dallas, but the hot movies weren't westerns. Those who enjoy "authentic" recordings will appreciate the gritty distortion of cheap plastic 45s that were played over and over. There are only 7 full songs in this exhibit, and a couple sound like they were played with an ice pick. Ouch! At least one of the cart machines is sick. National spots in this one time correctly, so any musical speed issues are "the way it was", and not a recording anomaly. There's even "tape echo" on the Camel cigarettes spot, and George liked to leave his microphone open, so you'll hear him knocking around sometimes. I'm pretty sure he identifies the station as "KRJZ" at 23:50. Yep, that's the way it was! |
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TOP STREAM 44 Kbps (10 Khz)
Mike O'Brien, KISN Portland OR October 1967
(25:02)
This Exhibit 'SCOPED (13:49)
. . . the only thing separating you and me, is air . . . [Description by Uncle Ricky, contributed by Peter Kanze] We get two more school lunch menus from Mike O'Brien on legendary KISN in Portland, Oregon, sometime in October, 1967. Both sound tasty. This aircheck required a little work for professional presentation by REELRADIO. The five musical performances were restored, because they sounded so seriously bad on the original recording. A "20/20" newscast is promoted, but was not included. A couple of spots were edited, but fortunately, most were not. Something that sounds like a noisy tube turns up about halfway through, but fades away before the end. Hopefully, our visitors can tell us more about Mike O'Brien, and his career in Portland radio. KISN was well-established by this time, so Mr. O'Brien should have gone on to bigger and better things. | ||
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This Exhibit 'SCOPED (08:49)
No music for you! Other material may have also been edited. 
