Friday, May 1, 2015

50 Years Ago this Month - Timing Everything for Real Don Steele



Radio in the West would never have been the same without fast-talkin’, slow-walkin’ “Real” Don Steele (1936-1997).

Beginning with KBUC/Corona in 1960, the California pioneering DJ tested a half-dozen markets from California to Washington, before heading back to his native Hollywood.

Steele’s fortuitous timing teamed him up with popular KHJ/Los Angeles a few weeks before debuting its “ultra hip” Top 40 Boss Radio format, May 3, 1965. It set the standard popular music format for nearly a decade. Yep, timing is everything (more)

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Rock & Roll Never Forgets – Record Store Day!


Say hi to Jack in Wayne City IL!

It’s Record Store Day! Boomers – back in the day, what did you do when you heard a great new song on the radio? Hot-footed it down to your corner record store to buy it, of course. Do you know where your vinyl records are?
Yep-they're '70s radios!

Hunt them up, play them reverently. There’s nothing like vinyl for soul-catching layered sound. If you’re missing a fave, it might be a little more difficult to find a local record store, but there must be one – go dig in the secondhand bins for a long-lost treasure!

Have an unforgettable record memory from days of yore? Share it! I recall the first time I heard Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love” in headphones … oh, the ecstasy as its multi-leveled riffs buzzed in one ear and out the other like a psychotic bee on steroids!

And for those into new music, yep – they’re still making vinyl records. The reports of the death of those black spinning platters was greatly exaggerated!

The Record Store Day site is teeming with names of stores around the country participating in new exclusive releases and re-release specials, all weekend long.

“Best thing to do?” they say? “Follow your local store(s) on their social media(s) or give them a shout, or head on in in advance to find out what’s on the dancecard. There are parties being planned Saturday. It’s gonna be awesome.”

So put on your dancin’ shoes and boogie down to your closest record store; or jump-jive at home – set a stack of ol’ 45s on the turntable, and Rock On!

 







Monday, April 13, 2015

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 11th 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)

Friday, April 10, 2015

Rock the Party Bus April 11, 2015 with "Louie Louie"!





Well, we’re ten days into the month and I’m just now posting the 50 Years Ago this Month trivia. My how time flies when you’re havin’ fun – in Vegas, Baby! 

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Car Radios Blaring Louder than Ever



Sixty years ago, radio was thought to be gasping its last breath as the "boob tube" took over the airwaves ... and then along came Rock & Roll!

March 10, 1965, The Temptations’ #1 hit “My Girl” popped out of your car radio as my groovy new nephew, Steven, popped out singin’ a louder tune for my brother & his wife. 

Like our kids, radio grew, matured, & dared to find its way in a reinvented world. 50 years later it’s still #1 says RAMP"In-Dash Radio Doohickey Still Rules"!

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Cupid Missed ~ Valentine's Day 1965


Transistor radios were creative in '60s/'70s

It’s time to bare our hearts for February 1965 …
 
Oh! The temptations of LUV! WRIT* / Milwaukee DJs plucked our heartstrings in their cute cowboy hats for the Feb 7th song survey

Listeners quickly felt the foibles of crushed love to start the month of romance moaning “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feelin’” (Righteous Brothers). What other station dodged Cupid’s arrow?

Friday, January 2, 2015

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"?

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Blast from Your Past, Book 1 – Excerpt 4: Your New Year’s Toast!

Black-and-White ... newspaper or news? Both, of course. And isn't it interesting that we find ourselves back in the race issue after fifty years of protests and politics ... but taking it back even another ten years, we find one of the ways all cultures connect ... music. Rock on in Excerpt #4 from Blast from Your Past, Book 1. 

In addition to three published excerpts from BFYP-Book 1, 1954-1959, see new #4 below! 

Blastfrom Your Past-Book 1 Excerpt #3 
Blast from Your Past-Book 1 Excerpt #2 
Blast from Your Past-Book 1 Excerpt #1

A retro look back through a medley of news and music notes for 1955 ... 60 years down Memory Lane, from 2015. I think you’ll find some surprising similarities between then and now. Enjoy the moments … again!(TM)

1955 & the Music of Our Times | BFYP Excerpt #4, Snippet #1:
“Before Black artists made their own names in Rock & Roll music, their 'tell it like it is' bouncy tunes were pasteurized and milkified by White performers, for the White audiences.
Pat Boone covered Fats Domino’s 'Ain’t That a Shame' in 1955; and they both charted with it. Good thing Pat didn’t get his way on a title revision to 'Isn’t That a Shame' – it simply doesn’t have the same flow.