Radio Waves Podcast #236

Radio: September 28, 2018

You probably don’t know the name Bob Goodman. But you should ... he is the host of a program called Whole “Nuther Thing, a program you might call a flashback to the early days of FM radio heard locally on KCSN’s (88.5 FM) HD2 digital stream as well as on line at ksbr.org, via the TuneIn app, on iTunes, Mixcloud, and at Podomatic.Com.

Goodman hails from New York City and cut his teeth on early FM. His program aired on the former KSBR since 1984; last year when Saddleback College’s KSBR merged with Cal State Northridge’s KCSN, the program was moved - along with the rest of KSBR’s programming - to the simulcast’s digital HD2 stream, which means you have to have a special HD radio to hear t over the air. Indeed, it is one of the reasons to buy an HD radio.

But as with so much of radio today, online is where its at, and Goodman says that he’s averaging 2000 downloads and plays each week on Podomatic alone, placing the program in the top-200 out of the service’s tens of thousands of available programs. In the category of “freeform,” he is often number one.

“My show is true ‘free-form’ radio,” Goodman explained to me recently. “All genres of music are featured in hand-mixed sets. I refer to it as ‘radio the way it ought to be.’”

A recent show featured songs from William Devaughn, War, Earth Wind & Fire, Dave Brubeck, Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers, Graham Parker, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ram Jam, ZZ Top, Billy Squire, Mark Knopfler, Chris Isaak, Garland Jeffreys, Procol Harum, Rod Stewart & The Faces, The Eagles, Pat Metheny, Neil Young, George Harrison, Lovin' Spoonful, and many more. Eclectic? Absolutely.

Goodman’s voice is reminiscent of early FM freeform or underground radio as well. In fact, he sounds like he could be found on any of the stations that set the stage for FM’s success: KMPX and KSAN in San Francisco, KPPC and KMET here in Los Angeles.

His early radio work was in New York City as General Manager of Hunter College’s campus station. From there he moved to Long Island’s WCRN as Music Director, eventually making the trip out West to the former KSRF (now KDLD, 103.1 FM), back to New York and then finally Philadelphia ... all during the 1960s when FM radio was experimenting with formats trying to attract an audience in the days of AM dominance.

The program is a wonderful mix of musical styles that is thoroughly enjoyable to hear. You can listen to each show live every Saturday from 3-7 p.m. or download/stream the podcasts at your leisure; Goodman says that archives go back six months on TuneIn and MixCloud; three years at https://bobksbr.podomatic.com.

“I've got listeners all over the world with an especially large following in UK,” Goodman told me. If you haven’t listened yet, give it a whirl and let me know what you think. I think it’s great. I’m not sure why KCSN’s Sky Daniels hasn’t put it on the main signal for 88.5 FM, but for now, it’s worth the trouble to find.

Ring of Honor

Longtime (Spanish) voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers Jaime Jarrin has been inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor, the 12th person to be inducted and the second broadcaster as he joins Vin Scully in the Ring.

Jarrin will have his name permanently affixed to Dodger Stadium.

The longtime broadcaster has been with the Dodgers since 1959, and will be with them at least through 2020 ... his contract was just renewed last week. He is as beloved by his audience as is Vin Scully, who retired in 2016.

Radio: September 21, 2018

Real 92.3 (KRRL) morning man Big Boy -- aka Kurt Alexander -- and a friend escaped serious injury due to the effectiveness of their seatbelts when they were hit from behind at a red light.

"I heard a screech, but not long ... and everything from the back of the car went to the front," Big Boy told KABC-TV’s Eyewitness News.

At first Big Boy suspected that the driver of the car that hit them was using a cell phone. He was shocked to discover that the driver was drunk ... and still drinking.

"As we were sitting here talking to him, he gets his bottle of vodka and he's just sitting there. Just dazing, just drinking," he said.

While the seatbelts helped save their lives, being hit may have saved the lives of others, as the area they were stopped at was near a school, and the accident could have been far worse had a pedestrian been hit.

The other driver was identified as an on-leave employee with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Video shows him drinking from his vodka bottle while still in the car after the accident.

That story caused me to flash back to my own high school days when my friend Dean and I were waiting at a light in my super-cool 1974 Chevy Vega GT hatchback. We heard a screech and suddenly - bam - a motorcycle hit the back of my car and the driver landed on my hood. No damage to the Vega, though the front forks of the motorcycle were bent.

The driver of the motorcycle -- a student at my school -- said later that it had to be our fault, even though we were stopped for a red light. “I wasn’t drunk of stoned or anything” he told us, “that morning.”

Mr. October Radio

Reggie Jackson -- yes, that Reggie Jackson -- has returned to SiriusXM to host a new show on Mad Dog Sports Radio, Channel 82. Called “Swing Away with Reggie Jackson,” the show made its debut on September 15th in time for the 10th anniversary of the channel and will air Saturdays from 8 to 9 a.m. local time.

A member of the baseball Hall of Fame, Jackson says his show will cover more than baseball, as he is a lover of all things sport. “Like many fans out there, I’ve had a passion for all sports my entire life. I’ve also had a lot of great experiences in college and professional sports. So I’m excited to dive in each week and drive a discussion on anything and everything from around the sports landscape, share my thoughts on things, and talk to many of the great sports figures I’ve met along the way,” he said in a press release.

Jackson’s baseball career spanned over 21 seasons, and he was an All-Star for four different teams: Athletics, Orioles, Yankees and Angels. At an early age he excelled in baseball, as one would suspect, but he also was known for his accomplishments in football, basketball and track & field as well. 

He was recruited by numerous colleges for football and he accepted a scholarship to play at Arizona State University. While there he was asked to join the baseball team and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Sold

Reports have surfaced that Entercom has sold the property at 5901 Venice Blvd in Los Angeles that once served as the transmitter site for the legendary KHJ (930 AM) and later, the studios for KHJ, KRTH (101.1 FM), and most recently, Jack-FM (KCBS-FM, 93.1) and KROQ (106.7 FM). The part of the property where the old KHJ broadcast towers were located was sold in 2013 and now features single-family houses in the area where Boss Radio once made its way into the airwaves.

Jack and KROQ will now join the rest of the former CBS-owned cluster on Wilshire.