Rock Radio NOVEMBER 1972 Believing in Music

Gratitude for You ... Do You Believe in Music? I Do.

Well, here we are, like it or not—smack-dab—swingin’ in the middle of the Holiday Season. A time for believing in faith, family, self ... and music!

November’s Thanksgiving is a poignant reminder that gratitude is not always easily given, and often difficult to accept. So let me just say ... THANK YOU ... for stopping by, and I humbly hope you enjoy your stay.

November 1972’s Rock Radio music mania starts and ends with gratitude for the music that will never die, and the pioneering DJs who brought it to us through our tinny transistor radios. There’s still a little more info and some polish needed on this month, but we can get Rockin’ now ... 50 Years Ago this Month ...

♪ Then & Now Rockin’ News & Views 

Remember when concert tickets were $3.00?! No? Well, I’m not blowin’ smoke, darlin’. It’s true. And we have the KROQ/Los Angeles, November 12-18, 1972, radio chart ad to prove it!
       The November 25^th L.A. Coliseum concert ad on the back cover of “L.A.’s Hot ROQ” boasted an all-star lineup: Stevie Wonder, the Raspberries, Sly and the Family Stone, Chuck Berry, Bee Gees, Eagles and Marjoe—all for three bucks. Sigh. Those were the days.

> NOVEMBER 1972 Rockin’ News Then …
Robin and Maurice Gibbs of the Bee Gees joined the crazy ROQ dudes for a cover pic with the newly arrived Charlie Tuna (aka Arthur W. Ferguson). Why “Tuna” you ask? Why not Shark or Swordfish?
       Like radio stations and DJs were wont to do, it’s all in the name of the game. When he began a 1966 gig at KOMA radio in Oklahoma City, Arthur hadn’t yet found his name niche. KOMA’s DJ Chuck Riley created the name and used it only once, a week before Arthur’s arrival. Waste not, want not!
       Taking advantage of “Charlie the Tuna’s” Star-Kist fame, “Charlie Tuna” was spawned and Arthur never swam back. (Sorry, couldn’t resist those fishy puns!) The name change served him well, with a Hollywood Walk of Fame star (January 1990) and more accolades than fish in the sea!

> ♪ On Your Tinny Transistor Radio   

 “I Can See Clearly Now,” by Johnny Nash hit #1 a week apart on both KROQ/L.A. (November 12^th) and KIMN/Denver (November 18^th). They were a tad ahead of Chicago where it hadn’t quite hit the top ten, at #12, November 4^th at WCFL. Its Reggae-Soul-Pop sound resonated with music lovers, as did Nash’s “Stir It Up,” following close on its heels.
       Ever wonder what top songs the Brits were listening to? WCFL/Chicago’s November 11, 1972 chart lists “England’s Top 10,” starting appropriately for Thanksgiving month, with #1: “Mouldy Old Dough” by Lieutenant Pigeon. (Seriously.) The “Pub rock” instrumental struts a fun back story.
       I’ve said it before and it bears repeating ... our current decade is an eerie reflection of the 1970s ... rebellion, global turmoil, with an underlying dose of love. And it’s all reflected in the music ... and our ...

Monthly Song of Note ♪
After seeing a headline portending winter weather wearies, I toyed with climate tunes like Albert Hammond’s “It Never Rains in Southern California,” and another weathered wonder, “Summer Breeze” by Seals & Croft. But this month’s Song of Note ♪ is just that ... “I Believe in Music“ by short-lived band, Gallery.
        ♪ As long as I’m makin’ my music | ain’t gonna do nobody no harm ... I, I believe in music | Oh, oh, I, I believe in love ... ♪
      Written by the venerable Mac Davis a couple of years earlier, he didn’t originally make much of a splash with it. But Gallery gave the song wings, hitting this month’s KROQ/L.A. survey at #5. It eventually became Mac’s signature song, because ... well because that’s how he feels! (You too?)

Quirky Band Names 

Plucked from the NOVEMBER 1972 charts ... something a little different this month. November, in all its harvest and Thanksgiving glory, is all about food and our gratitude for the loving hands that provide it. So let’s feature foody band names!
       We saw them earlier in the year, but they’re still makin’ music. Savor the scent and lick your lips for ...
       Bread (pumpkin bread) / (Chuck) Berry (spiced cranberry sauce) / the Raspberries (raspberry-apple pie) / The Main Ingredient (sweet & smokey turkey). There ya go – recipes for half of your Thanksgiving dinner. Don’t forget to set up a stack of oldies on your vintage phonograph and enjoy!

NOVEMBER 2022 Rockin’ News Now …
This month, we give thanks to what was, what is, and what could be.

November 23^rd: The calendars note National Jukebox Day but without a hosting link. Well, as a site dedicated to Oldies music, that just won’t do. From the 1940s through at least the 1980s, vinyl records still filled the popular music machines in nearly every bar and diner in America. When the digital revolution took over, did they go away? Heck no! Smart jukebox manufacturers simply updated their technology and the music kept playing ... ♪ put another dime in the jukebox, baby  ♪ ... if only they were still a dime!
       Curious about the once-ubiquitous record machine? A fun, go-to history of the jukebox. Ready to buy a bona fide vintage jukebox or collectible replica? There ya go ... Rock On!

November 24^th: Of course, it’s Thanksgiving! And we have just the radio chart for your dinner table conversation. Nostalgia and gratitude go hand-in-hand this time of year. Get them chatting about the good ol’ days ... “KIMN gives Denver the bird,” with a tasty turkey on its back cover, telling fans to “Tune-in for ‘fowl’ details”! 50 Years Ago this Month ... and follow it up with inclusive plans for all in the New Year. Happy Thanksgiving!

♪ BFYP Featured Radio Survey 
NOVEMBER 12, 1972 ~ KROQ/Los Angeles, California, made a big deal of welcoming Charlie Tuna to its popular disk jockey staff, complete with Bee Gees brothers, Robin and Maurice, to push their bubbling under tunes, “Paper Mache” and “Alive,” up the chart ladder ♪ … 50 Years Ago this Month in Rock & Roll Radio! Where were you that groovy day when your radio played … 

Let’s Celebrate NOVEMBER 1972 and … Rock On!  ♪  

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LinDee Rochelle is a writer and editor by trade, and author by way of Rock & Roll. Two books (of three) are published in her Blast from Your Past series, available on Amazon (eBook and print): Book 1 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The First Five Years 1954-1959; and Book 2 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The Swinging Sixties. Coming soon … The Psychedelic Seventies!

Note: FYI – All links in the BFYP site are personally visited, verified, and vetted. Most are linked to commonly accessed sites of reputable note. Occasionally, since I often feature real people and/or singular sources there may be an unsecured link. As with everything cyber-security, use at your own discretion and risk. No compensation is received for any mentions of businesses, products, or other commercial interests. *All holiday and special event days are found at Brownielocks.com’s calendar site. Enjoy! 

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