Blast from Your Past - Book 1, Excerpt 5: DJ Ken Chase aka Mike Korgan

[LR note 04/29/15: With heavy heart we report the ascent of Jack Ely to Rock & Roll Heaven, Monday, April 27, 2015. He was lead singer of The Kingsmen, whose song, "Louie Louie" became a legendary party song. BFYP DJ Ken Chase produced the record in 1963. His 1950s story is below. Party on, Jack!]

Every April 11^th is “International ‘Louie Louie’ Day”! There are no raucous parties (that I know of) happening (unless at your place, and you didn't call me!), or even a link on the Brownielocks site that lists it as a special commemoration day.

But at BFYP it deserves distinct recognition because Ken Chase (aka Mike Korgan), one of our pioneering Rock & Roll DJs, produced the iconic song by The Kingsmen in April 1963. “Louie Louie” rose to the top of the charts and by November, and for all time, became the “ultimate party song.”

Granted, 1963 is out of the purview of BFYP Book 1 (1954-1959), but Mike’s tenure at the mic began well before “Louie Louie’s” bouncy beat hit the airwaves.

Rock on in Excerpt #5 from Book 1, Blast from Your Past! Rock & Roll Radio DJs: the First Five Years 1954-1959. Enjoy the moments … again!(TM)

Welcome to 2015 ~ Rock On!

Hooray! We made it to 2015 - that sounded SO SciFi 50 years ago! 

Happy New Year Rockers! As we look forward to 2015, take a moment to reflect on the past ... rejoice with the present ... and rejuvenate for the future. 

At BFYP we love to reminisce ... life 50 years ago this month (with This Day in Rock/History): 1965 … a golden year of musical extremes and rebel dreams …

Does it bring back personal memories that are entwined with the music of the day? Or are you just curious about the era ... here, let me help! 

Throughout the year we'll explore 1965 through our 50 years ago trivia, and the best Rockin' years, 1954-1979, reporting on behind-the-mic lives of Rock Radio DJs, yesterday and today.

Like DJ Lee Gray (pictured w/The Beatles at WTRY / New York, July 16, 1965), who enjoyed the pseudo-title of "5th Beatle" with other DJs of the era - did you have a "Ticket to Ride"?

Blast from Your Past - Book 1, Excerpt 1: DJ Ron Riley

Beginning with this article I'll periodically post excerpts from Book 1 (1954-1959) of the Blast from Your Past series. I'm hoping this will inspire me (more) to finish Book 2 and inspire you to read and relive the best days of Rock & Roll Radio. ~ Enjoy the moment ... again! LR 

Chapter 1 excerpt from Blast from Your Past! Book 1

Rock & RollRadio DJs: the First Five Years 1954-1959

Oh, my papa, to me he was so wonderful

Oh, my papa, to me he was so good

                “Oh, My Pa-Pa,” Eddie Fisher’s #1 hit, January 1954

Not quite Rockin’ & Rollin’ yet!

(Read this fast and loud!) I’m Rockin’ Rochelle coming to you from BFYP-FM (Blast from Your Past-Full Moon), broadcasting to the world from sunny Cal-i-forn-i-A!

We’re spreading music and mayhem throughout the land, with lively behind-the-mic tales of your favorite Rock & Roll Radio DJs from yesteryear!

Poodle skirts, saddle shoes, bobby sox and ducktail hair, hiphuggers and peace signs – we’re ready to ROCK!

Let’s go trippin’ down mem’ry lane and check out those wild-n-crazy guys and gals who kissed your ears with Rock & Roll music for the souuulllll!

First up for your platter-spinning pleasure … a real Midwest Rock & Roll DJ treasure.

Ron Riley

Best known at WLS/Chicago, Illinois

Ron Riley … or did you know him as “Ron ‘Ringo’ Riley”? How about “Smiley Riley”? With stints at WLS-Chicago, Milwaukee’s WOKY (pronounced “walky”), and even his own Bowling for Dollars TV show, Ron never wanted to be anything other than a deejay.

“Come on-a My House,” Rosie Clooney crooned to the impressionable, adolescent teen. It was the early 1950s and Ron Riley headed to downtown Chicago often, eager to watch the guys in the fishbowl radio studios spin Rosie’s platters.

“I just knew that was what I wanted to do,” Riley said, reminiscing. A child of the ‘40s, “there wasn’t a lot … well, not really any, Rock & Roll music then, so I grew up appreciating all types of music – big band, mostly. When not selling insurance, dad’s greatest fun was playing sax and clarinet with local dance bands on weekends. There was always music in our house.”

Young Ron realized that even the disc jockeys didn’t know what to do with Rock & Roll. How do you introduce something so feisty and unpredictable to a radio world previously ruled by big bands, boozy ballads and smooth talkin’ gentleman announcers?

Feeling the Beat – Is it Getting Fainter?

Classic, Oldies Rock & Roll take hits as stations disappear from your radio dial and we lose key pioneer artists. (Rushed? Skip the diatribe to scroll below for lists of terrestrial and Internet Oldies and Classic Rock radio!)

I vividly remember when The Beatles essentially took over the Earth without firing a shot. Do you? We chanted, “Long live Rock & Roll!” and “It’s gotta be Rock & Roll music if ya wanna dance with me!”! 1964 was pure magic in music.

Well, it may not die, but it’s definitely headed for an old folks’ home …

In the early Sixties one or two radio stations persisted in a Big Band format to placate the “old folks.”  I listened to my dance instructor mother, Florence, lament the loss of variety to enjoy strains of Swing and Strings.

We teens cared not. The powerhouse stations picked up on the popular wave of Rock & Roll and the world would never be the same.

Our once youthful exuberance and lack of fear is no match for Father Time, though. Rock & Roll, however mighty, is apparently not invincible.

At the time, my offhand attitude about the trend irritated and frustrated my mother. “Really, mom, no one listens to that anymore!” No one – meaning no one my age.

New Web Home - Throwin' a Party!

Hello! Thank you for visiting BlastFromYourPast.net. We have a new home which is always exciting. It's party time at Blast from Your Past! (Isn't it always? Heehee.)

However, it also takes time to settle in ... sigh ... please bear with me as I establish our fresh new site on a different system and hopefully make it better than ever!

The following information also pertains to:

     – PenchantForPenning.com
     – 39AndHoldingClub.com
     – WomenWritersWorldwide.com

No, you are not in the wrong place. Yes, things, they are a-changin’. One thing that is constant, is change, right?

And EVERYTHING is ch-ch-ch-changing for me this year, including the moving and upgrading of my websites.

I am undertaking a monumental job – rebuilding ALL of my websites – at the same time. Call me crazy (and many do), but when my last webhost company’s servers crashed for five days, I had to take matters into my own non-techie hands. 

If you were looking for something specific, want to check my schedule for an appearance, or excited to chat about early Rock & Roll Radio DJs, feel free to contact me via email or phone (in California), 858-292-5288. (And note - the email address is not yet re-set for LinDee@BlastFromYourPast.net. In the meantime, use the address linked here.)

Otherwise, look for this site to be rebuilt (new, fun, fresh!) asap. Have suggestions? Tell me! I hope you’ll return and enjoy our achievements in change.

Rock On!