Chris Carter knows just about everything there
is to know about the Beatles. As host of Breakfast With The Beatles, heard every
Sunday from 9 a.m. to noon on KLOS (95.5 FM), he has to.
It’s not something you can fake; it has to be in
your heart. And it is definitely in Carter’s heart.
He has been hosting the show since 2001 when he
took over following the death of original host, Dierdre O’Donoghue, who launched
the program in November of 1983. What started as an idea to just play some
Beatles records as a fun diversion on Sunday mornings (originally on KMET, now
KTWV 94.7 FM) has evolved into the longest-running Beatles program anywhere,
playing not just a few records but rarities ... and the stories and trivia
behind the songs, the band, and the fans.
Carter has taken the program and made it his
own, though he doesn’t quite see it that way. “I’m just the host of the program,
much like Jay Leno and now Jimmy Fallen are hosts of The Tonight Show on
NBC-TV,” he says humbly.
Yet under his guidance, the program has expanded
its scope to include rare records, bootlegs, interviews and much more, as
opposed to the original focus on playing commercial releases. He does the
program live every Sunday and shows no signs of being burned out on the
concept.
“I take the songs and put them into
perspective,” he tells me after I ask him how he keeps the program fresh. “Using
the music, I try to tell a story, follow a theme, place the music into a certain
context, and keep it timely.”
Trivia and fascinating facts tied to people,
places and dates in history are a huge part of the program’s appeal, something
which Carter says he enjoys.
This week’s program will be particularly
interesting on that front, as Breakfast celebrates the 50th anniversary
of the arrival of the Beatles in the United States to appear on CBS Television’s
Ed Sullivan Show February 9th. In fact, Breakfast this Sunday will
feature audio from the entire Sullivan show of February 9th, 1964 ... including
commercials. “Commercials help keep the historical perspective accurate,” Carter
says.
Fascinating facts regarding the appearance?
Turns out that the performance on Sullivan was coincidentally the three-year
anniversary of The Beatles’ first live concert at the Cavern Club in Liverpool,
February 9th, 1961. And the third appearance on Sullivan later in 1964
was actually the first one performed ... it was a taped recording of the
afternoon dress-rehearsal at CBS studios in New York.
Carter has every Beatles album -- including
those released on real to real tape -- ever made. Commercial releases, bootlegs,
imports ... all. Multiple copies in most cases, part of his collection of music
from all artists that includes vinyl records numbering close to 7000. And that’s
after he cleaned out the duds. His collection of Beatles records began in
earnest when he owned a record store in Wayne, New Jersey.
But The Beatles are not his only interest. He’s
been in a band himself, one that KROQ (106.7 FM) and Alt 98.7 FM fans will know:
Dramarama. Their alternative hit Anything Anything is still popular 28
years after its 1986 release. He produced a critically-acclaimed film that told
the story of KROQ personality Rodney Bingenheimer, The Mayor of Sunset
Strip. He’s managed bands. But from what I can tell, his first love is The
Beatles.
“My first album I bought, when I was about
seven, was Rubber Soul.” In an interview with Riprense.com, he
explained how at every birthday, every holiday, he would ask for another Beatles
album. From there, he says, it just took off.
Carter’s version of Breakfast With The
Beatles is good enough to have Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney as listeners
and contributors: both have called in to the show in the past. And the program
has now been around long enough to out-live two of the three stations on which
it has been carried: KMET where it originated, and KLSX (now KAMP, 97.1 FM)
where it moved in 1987. KLOS has been running the program since
2006.
In addition to Breakfast, Carter has a
program on SiriusXM’s Underground Garage (Channel 21) focussing on the music
from the more general British Invasion. Hear that program at 6 a.m. --
rebroadcast at 9 p.m. -- Sundays.
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