Radio Waves Podcast #263

 Country stars Luke Bryan and John Langston are coming to a radio near you

Luke Bryan and John Langston will be hosting the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. midday shift on Go Country (105.1 FM). Bryan and Langston will be heard weekdays starting Monday and running through Sept. 25.

Expect a lot of stories … both are known for storytelling in their music and my hunch is they will be entertaining as DJs spinning their favorite country tunes.

Go Country station manager Michael Levine says, “We couldn’t be more excited … They have such a loyal following in Southern California, and I know listeners will be thrilled to hear them on the station each day!”

More Sports

There’s a brand-new station in town. Well, almost in town. And almost brand new.

Flamethrower station XEPRS (1090 AM) — the onetime home of Wolfman Jack — was sports-formatted The Mighty 1090 when it abruptly went off the air over a year ago in April of 2019.

Bill Hagen of Out the Window Advertising put together a business plan to get the format back on the air. Now known as The Mightier 1090, there are no studios … everything is done from home studios and “the cloud,” but listeners won’t be able to tell due to the magic of modern technology. Besides, due to Covid-19, most stations are doing essentially the same thing.
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On the air weekdays as of August 17 is The Morning After with Ariel Epstein and Jared Smith (6 a.m. – 9 a.m.); Rich Eisen (9 a.m. – noon); Coast to Coast with Scott Ferrall (1 p.m. – 3 p.m.); Scott Kaplan and Crew (3p.m. – 7 p.m.); On the Bench with Scott Ferrall (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.); Into the Night with Tony Bruno and Harry Mays (9 p.m. – midnight); SportsRage Late Night with Gabe Morency (midnight – 2 a.m.); Bagels and Bad Beats with Scott Wetzel (2 a.m. – 4 a.m.) and The Early Line with Kevin Walsh and Dane Martinez (4 a.m. – 6 a.m.).

Weekends include Mike Blewett, George Kurtz, Joe Lisi, Kevin Walsh, Dane Martinez, Elissa Walker Campbell, Jake Asman, John Michaels and many more.

I am impressed that they have programming 24-hours per day without repeats, but come on … Scott Ferrall twice a day? That’s just torture.

Top-40 Responses

No, I’m not going to count them down. But I am impressed that you so quickly sent your additions to my list of “the best” top-40 stations of all time … keeping in mind there is absolutely no way to create such a list.

And I am also aware that there are numerous other stations that can be recognized as well, both current and in the past, from different formats. That will happen in later editions of this very column.

A sampling so far:

Russ from Glendale: “Richard, here in no particular order, is my list of favorite Top 40 radio stations: KFWB, KHJ. KRLA, KKDJ, KGBS, KTNQ, KMGG, KROQ (when it was an AM station), KIQQ, KEZY KFMB” By the way, KGBS is in a league of its own for various reasons, I want too highlight the one-time daytime station in the near future.

Rick Shafarman of Santa Clarita: “To me, as a kid growing up in the NYC suburbs, the gold standard was always WABC in NYC. Dan Ingram, Cousin Brucie, Chuck Leonard, these guys were the greatest. I’d walk around with a little transistor radio listening. I distinctly remember as a 9-year-old, one wintry Sunday night, watching the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, going to bed listening to WABC, and waking up the next morning listening to WABeatleC. They really embraced the Beatles. It was from listening to WABC that I yearned to be a DJ.”

Mike Weyhrich: “I wanted to add a favorite to your list. It is a station that is often overlooked in the powerhouses you noted. It is the “Mighty 1290 KOIL” in Omaha, Nebraska. If you look at its history it was the launching point of so many top 40 names like the real Don Steele, Robert W. Morgan, Gary Owens, Fred Winston at WLS and more.

“By the time I made it out to Orange Country in the late 70’s, the great LA top 40 stations were fading. I got attached to KFI because of Lohman and Barkley. It was only a couple more years and mostly all the AM top 40 world was gone.”

Steve Portias: “KFXM, which was an AM mainstay from the late 1950s through the ’70s bringing bands like Dick Dale, Beach Boys, Elvis and others’ concerts were broadcasted live on their station. Then the most important one was KMEN, out of San Bernardino from the 1960’s though 2015 … bringing the Rolling Stones for their very first American performance which was at the Swing Auditorium, San Bernardino, as well as other bands like Sonny & Cher, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Janice Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Dylan, Donavon, Canned Heat, and dozens more. All these concerts were broadcast live.“They also featured Hall of Fame DJ’s like Chuck Clements, Bill Watson, William F Williams who  were all inducted into the Crusin’ Hall of Fame around 2004; These stations had promotional contest and give-aways of new Corvettes and other muscle cars…cash prizes, concert tickets, parties, and more.”More letters … next week. In the meantime, stay tuned to this very newspaper.

Radio Waves Podcast #262

Radio August 23, 2020

    I didn’t see it until earlier this month, but in August of 2017, Radio Ink (radioink.com) ran a story on the “greatest top-40 radio stations of all time.” You can read it yourself at tinyurl.com/rw0823.

    It’s an interesting read, though in my opinion it is an impossible list to create. Even the two “programming experts” — Lee Abrams and Randy Michaels — didn’t agree. I myself have some ideas, but I am in no way qualified to find the “greatest” simply because I have not heard them all.

    Nor can I use my formative years as the basis for the list, as early top-40 stations (before my time) that set the standard were working from a different starting place yet still influenced the industry as much or more than the later stations generally credited with being the most influential. KHJ, for example.

    What makes the list viable, though, is the idea of what would put a station onto the list itself. Abrams details what he looks for: 15 elements including such aspects as on-air production, music, personalities, swagger/vibe, audience respect, the ability to influence record sales, and more. His choice for the top station? KHJ. Michaels top-pick? KIIS (alluding to both the AM and FM versions). The station chosen by readers of the piece? CKLW/Windsor-Detroit.

    Again, my perspective is somewhat limited. I was born in 1963 so early stations were often gone by the time I started listening to the radio. And I am limited to Southern California, as I have lived here all my life, plus recordings I hear via sites like ReelRadio.Com and YouTube. But if I were to come up with a list, I would use basically the same criteria as Abrams, with a focus on the on-air presentation, the stations vibe, and the excitement generated by all elements of programming, from the personalities, to the contests, to the breaking of new music.

    In no particular order, then, are stations that I would place on such a list, and the reasons why.

    • KRLA/Los Angeles. They knocked KFWB out of the top-spot and brought the Beatles to Los Angeles. They also launched the careers of many television stars, as well as Casey Kasem who went on to count down American Top-40.

    • KHJ/Los Angeles. No list can be complete without KHJ, arguably the most imitated station ever. In its prime, it was flawless. Exciting promotions, great DJs, excellent news coverage, special events and concerts for listeners, and engineers who could get the best sound and distance one could get from a little 5000 watt transmitter.

    • KFRC/San Francisco. When KHJ was at its prime, it was flawless. So was KFRC, and KFRC was at its prime more often than was KHJ, which suffered from a revolving door of programmers in the 1970s and a resulting inconsistent sound. KFRC, on the other hand, maintained its sound throughout its history and actually held ion to the format — and top-ratings — about five years longer than did KHJ. On the other hand, KHJ got screwed by owner RKO when the decisions as made to go country … had Chuck Martin continued as programmer in the 1980s, it might be a different story.

    • WCFL/Chicago. Purists will say that competitor WLS was the winner, and indeed it did often beat WCFL in the ratings. But to my ears, WCFL — owned by the Chicago Federation of Labor — was more exciting. But that’s why this is in no particular order.

    • WLS/Chicago. Realistically, you cannot include WCFL without also including WLS. Many of the personalities worked at both stations, and WLS had a flamethrower signal that in the 1980s make it to Southern California — cleanly — at night. The competition between the two stations was intense and made both of them better.

    •KCBQ/San Diego. One of my earliest listens. The same elements as with the local Drake/Boss station KGB, but even more polished and even more creative.
 
    •KFMB-FM/San Diego. Better known as B-100, this is the station that knocked KCBQ out off the top-spot, and was the first top-rated FM top-40 station, not only in San Diego, b ut nationwide.

    • KIIS-FM/Los Angeles. Not the early days … when former KKDJ became the FM simulcast of KIIS (AM), it was OK. But the killer KIIS-FM came during the early 1980s when the experts said top-40 was dead. That “dead” format (using the WLS jingles, by the way) went on to dominate the city just as KHJ had done 17 years prior. And to give credit where credit is due, the format is still running today (though the current version would be an honorable mention due to lack of anything setting it apart from the crowd).

    KEZY/Anaheim. The big-sounding station from the small town in Orange County. It was highly respected for its presentation, and many DJS from KEZY could write their own tickets after working there. One of the most exciting small stations anywhere.

    KTNQ/Los Angeles. Just when KHJ was going through one of its bad eras, Ten-Q came out hard and (other than the payola-based lame songs they added to the playlist) for a short time just dominated the city. Exciting, vibrant … kind of like KCBQ when it dethroned KGB.

    KGB/San Diego. But not for the era everyone thinks. The early days were great, admittedly, but when KGB became really exciting was in the later stages as 13-K … going top-40 just when so many other stations were leaving the format in the mid-late 1970s. Ot was a time when it went from being a has-been to a truly competitive station with great personalities, eclipsing AOR-formatted KGB-FM for a time.
 
    Honorable mentions: KKDJ/Los Angeles, for being a great top-40 FM only to be prevented from making inroads due to AM’s continued dominance at the time (and being squeezed by K-100); KIQQ/Los Angeles post K-100, when it was breaking new music even faster than KROQ; XETRA/Tijuana as The Mighty 690 making AM music relevant just a little longer; KFI/Los Angeles during the John Rook Hitparade era; KRIZ/Phoenix which went off the air while still number one in town when the owners just wanted to sell.

    What are your favorites? Let me know and I’ll get them on to the “list.”

    Short Takes

    Music will return to weekends on the former MusicRadio WABC/New York. “Cousin Brucie” Bruce Morrow has left SiriusXM’s 60s on 6 and will return to the station where he spun records in the 1960s, every Saturday from 6-9 p.m. Eastern, beginning September 5th.
 
    The Hollywood Bowl may be closed down due to the Covid scare, but KCRW (89.9 FM) is presenting recorded performances from the Bowl every Sunday from 6:30 - 8 p.m. through October 11.

    A variety of artists will be featured; go to kcrw.com for full details.

Radio Waves EXTRA: Ken Levine

 A "career spanning" interview with Ken Levine (aka on the radio as Beaver Cleaver)

Ken's blog:  http://kenlevine.blogspot.com/

Ken's podcast: https://hollywoodandlevine.libsyn.com/

Radio Waves Podcast #261

This radio website has the hit song chart information you used to get at record stores

If you grew up in the 1960s and ‘70s, one of the things you would pick up at your local Music City, Sears, Penny’s, Wards, Licorice Pizza, Wherehouse or Music Plus when you went to buy your favorite 45 RPM records was the local radio station music surveys.

In the early days, the lists were more akin to station newsletters. The KRLA Beat, for example, had station, artist and music news presented in a newspaper style. The later surveys such as the KHJ Boss 30 lists included a list of the top hits of the week — “hitbounds” (that were often not) — a little blurb on one of the DJs and perhaps some info on the latest contest.

Essentially they were cheap promotions for a station, and they were a great way to keep up on the latest hits during an era when so much music was available, an “oldie” was anything more than a few months old … today music even a few years old is considered “new.”

Reader Marilyn Kirkpatrick of Covina remembers. “I’ve never seen you mention this in one of your columns, but, for those people who might have listened to local L.A.  stations in the past, there is a web site — oldiesloon.com — that has weekly lists of charted songs for the following stations: KRLA (1959-1966), KFWB (1958-1967), KHJ (1965-1975) and KFI (1979-1980). These are the weekly lists that used to be available in record stores. Although I realize that these are mere lists, they are a really nice reminder of the music that a lot of us grew up with. They have also been invaluable as resources for class reunions, such as the top songs for the week when we graduated from high school.”

Absolutely. And it’s an interesting way to find songs you haven’t heard for years, as many of the top songs of a station were not necessarily popular nationwide, or for whatever reason just are not played today.

In addition to oldies loon, I found another site that has the actual scans of the surveys from KHJ in addition to a ton of station information focussing on the early years Boss Radio, 1965 through 1973. You can see what they have to offer at https://93khj.blogspot.com.

Mess around

Entercom is making a mess of mornings … with a new morning show on Amp Radio (KAMP, 97.1 FM). As you read about in Kelli Skye Fadroski’s piece on the Morning Mess crew, the new show with Joey Boy, Aneesh Ratan, Jeana Shepard, and Karla Hernandez started August 3rd and runs weekday mornings from 5-10 a.m.

In a press release, Entercom Regional President Jeff Federman said that “Joey Boy and The Morning Mess are a true reflection of Southern California. They are diverse, dynamic, socially responsible and completely transparent.”

They are not, however, in Southern California. The Morning Mash is a morning show out of sister station KALV-FM/Phoenix, with a bit of local content added in order so it seems like it’s a local show.

It’s not.

As reported extensively over the past few months by InsideMusicMedia.Com‘s Jerry Del Colliano, Entercom is in the process of reducing its talent payroll by position cuts, salary cuts, and plan to syndicate talent around the country rather than having local programs. “The plan would give the company a chance to syndicate what they consider their top-rated (and paid) talent so they can fire largely morning hosts in other markets,” he wrote on July 22nd, and it appears Del Colliano is right on the money.

In my opinion, a major, full-power station in Los Angeles using a syndicated morning program is an embarrassment; there is absolutely no excuse for the cuts Entercom CEO David Field is making, which seems designed to run the company — and all of its stations —  into the ground.

At least, host Joey Boy was grew up in Los Angeles, while Ratan and Shepard were raised in the Valley. Hernandez is a native of Napa. And honestly, I have nothing against the show itself nor any of the hosts; they are seemingly great people. I’ll do a full review of the show in a few weeks, once I give them a fair shake and let them get used to doing a show for here even if it isn’t done here.

My only complaint has to do with the idea itself: Radio is local and should have local shows. Phoenix is not local, sorry.

Radio Waves Podcast #260

Radio: August 9, 2020

    Entercom is making a Mess of mornings … with a new morning show on Amp Radio (KAMP, 97.1 FM).

    It started August 3rd and runs weekday mornings from 5 - 10 a.m., with Joey Boy, Aneesh Ratan, Jeana Shepard, and Karla Hernandez presenting The Morning Mess.
 
    In a press release, Entercom Regional President Jeff Federman said that “Joey Boy and The Morning Mess are a true reflection of Southern California. They are diverse, dynamic, socially responsible and completely transparent.”

    They also are not in Southern California. Keeping with Entercom’s corporate mandate to do everything on the cheap, the Morning Mash is actually nothing more than a morning show out of sister station KALV-FM/Phoenix, with a bit of local content added in order for them to be able to pretend it’s a local show.

    It’s not.

    As reported extensively over the past few months by InsideMusicMedia.Com's Jerry Del Colliano, Entercom is in the process of reducing its talent payroll by position cuts, salary cuts, and plan to syndicate talent around the country rather than having local programs. “The plan would give the company a chance to syndicate what they consider their top rated (and paid) talent so they can fire largely morning hosts in other markets,” he wrote on July 22nd.
 
    It appears Del Colliano is right on the money.

    For a major, full-power station in Los Angeles to use a syndicated morning program is an embarrassment, and an indictment of the leadership of Entercom itself, including CEO David Field. There is absolutely no excuse for the cuts he is making, other than the fact that he is running the company — and all of its stations —  into the ground.

    There is, at least, a tie to Los Angeles for the team: Ringleader Joey Boy — aka Nachoo — was raised in los Angeles, while Ratan and Shepard were raised in the Valley. Hernandez is a native of Napa. And honestly, I have nothing against the show itself nor any of the hosts … they are seemingly great people. I will also do a full review of the show in a few weeks, once I give them a fair shake. My only complaint has to do with the idea itself - radio is local, and should have local shows. Phoenix is not local. Sorry.

    Feeding LA

    While Entercom is destroying the radio industry, it is trying to be a good neighbor. The company has teamed up with the Los Angeles Unified School District to raise money and help feed needy children and families.

    All Entercom Los Angeles radio stations — Amp, Jack-FM (93.1), The Wave (94.7 FM), KRTH (101.1 FM), KNX (1070 AM) and KROQ (106.7 FM) — are participating. From August 3rd to the 28th, stations will encourage listeners to donate by texting “NEED” to 76278. The money generated will bring meals to those in need throughout the region through the school district’s Grab and Go program.

    More than 50 million meals have been provided via 62 Grab and Go Food Centers since the program began in March, according to LAUSD’s Superintendent Austin Beutner. About one-third are adults hard hit by the COVID shutdowns.

    Donations can also be made by visiting need.givesmart.com, and you can get more information on the program by heading to radio.com/feedourfamilies.

    Help Request

    The special interview that KNXFM93.Com ran a short time ago with Carly Simon brought in some nice emails, many oof which mentioned interviews they remember from years past as heard win the original KNX-FM (now Jack-FM). The problem, explains net station volunteer and production director Douglas Brown, is that no one has the tapes. The Simon interview just happened to be in Christopher Ames’ garage. Others are MIA.

    So I thought I’d ask you … if you have, or if you know people who have, original interviews with any of the artists, signers and songwriters as originally run on KNX-FM, let me know and I’ll connect you with the right people. In fact, if you have any from any station, including KHJ’s (930 AM) Special of the Month, let me know that as well.

    Elvis Tribute

    Elvis: A Three Hour Special tribute show is set to air via the net on August 16 — the day Elvis died at the age of 42 — at noon, and again at 6pm.
 
    The show was produced at Drake-Chenault beginning on the day Elvis died in 1977, and was shipped to clients just two days later … airing that weekend. “Our competitors were shocked and astounded at how quickly we were able to get such a high caliber program on the air in such a short time, said Hank Landsberg who worked at the company back in the 1970s.  He explains how it all came together. Much of it was luck in timing!

    “The second week of August, 1977, we had just begun production of  a new edition of The History Of Rock And Roll,” which originally aired on KHJ in 1969.  “The show would be a 52 hour 'blockbuster' that documented the birth and development of rock and roll music. Hours three and four were already planned to chronicle the life and music of Elvis Presley.”

    Basically, the team decided to pull the material already planned for HRR, and use it for a tribute to Elvis’ life and career. Explains Landsberg: “The ‘Elvis hours’ scripts were already written, music was researched and pulled, instrumental tracks for voiceover backing were ready, interviews and other actualities had been edited and were ready for final production by studio engineer Mark Ford.

    “We had everything ready to go when Elvis died on Tuesday, August 16!  HRR writer Gary Thoreau made some last-minute script revisions;  Bill Drake came in Tuesday afternoon and began recording the voice tracks for the show.  We all pulled an 'all-nighter'...staying thru the night while Mark did the studio production. I believe he finished about 10 a.m. the following day.
 
    “The master tapes went into duplication, and we had station copies ready to ship Wednesday afternoon.  They went via UPS-2 Day, and arrived at the stations on Friday, for air that weekend.”

    Elvis: A Three Hour Special will be presented without commercial interruption, and will run about 2 1/2 hours. Listen at:  https://la2.indexcom.com/player/6

Radio Waves Podcast #259

Radio: July 31, 2020

Special Guest:  Douglas C Brown

    A controversy of sorts is being played out on Don Barrett’s LARadio.Com: What is the origin of the term “boss radio?”

    If you grew up in 1960s Los Angeles, you know the term “Boss Radio” was used to describe the  programming on KHJ (930 AM). Boss Hitbounds, Boss Angeles, the Boss Jocks. The word was everywhere, which is somewhat ironic because the term “boss” itself was dated. The precursor to “cool” or “bitchin’,” “boss” was on the way out as far as teen slang went.

    But KHJ was most definitely not the first station to use the term. KHJ consultant Bill Drake worked at KYA in San Francisco when they were known as “The Boss of the Bay.” And the term predated even him in the very early 1960s.
 
    Letters on LARadio.Com confirm the early use. But does that mean then-KHJ General manager Ken DeVaney lied when he insists in Ron Jacob’s book, Inside Boss Radio, that he was the one who initiated the name?

    Not necessarily. Being the Boss of the Bay and Boss Radio can actually be two different things, and I am not sure that much thought was put into either. The Boss of the Bay could very well have been using the term as it is used today … meaning leader. I honestly don’t know that, but it’s plausible. Boss Radio was meant to be “cool” or ”bitchin’” radio. Unfortunately, most of the architects of that era of radio are gone, so we may never know the answer. But it’s fun to look back.

    Online Issues

    One of the best ways to listen to radio today is through a good-sounding smart speaker. You can place them throughout your house and play stations individually, or have the same station throughout. And for the most part, once you figure out the station (i.e. “Hey Siri, play KNX-FM 93” works; “Hey Siri, play KNX-FM 93.com" does not) the system is solid. Sound quality is great — AM stations truly shine —  you can easily tune into stations, and you can control it with your voice.

    The problem arises when stations don’t monitor their own stream. For example, if you happen to tune in to Rush Limbaugh on KEIB (1150 AM), the sound drops out. I thought it was a problem with there awful iHeartRadio system that provides audio for the station, and it may well be, but the reason has more to do with programming details.

    You see, there are extra costs in some cases for commercials that air on internet streams (as used by smart speakers), so stations will often substitute alternative programming during some advertisements unless the advertiser specifically pays for the spot. In the case of KEIB, though, the speaker just goes silent for a time. Usually it will pick up when the show comes back on, but not always. Regardless, the listening experience is greatly diminished.

    I think smart speakers and the future evolution of the idea may be the future of radio, especially AM radio. But it requires attention to detail that is sorely lacking, at least on KEIB. I have not noticed the issue on other stations, including the small independents I listen to from across the country.

    K-Mozart Update

    By now Saul Levine’s K-Mozart (105.1 HD4, kmozart.com) was supposed to have gone through a full re-launch, bringing back air personalities and features to better compete against KUSC (91.5 FM). Alas, the Covid pandemic continues to delay the plan.

    But Levine loves classical music, so he’s helped the music on the station going regardless, and he’s initiated a “soft-re-launch” bringing back Susanna Guzman and Nick Tyler. As time goes on, Levine plans many more additions, as he plays “the world’s best classical music 24-7.”

    “I am proud of the fact that I have programmed Classical for 62 years,” Levine told me. “Probably a world record. I have a vision for KMOZART that will incorporate that experience. There are many Classical works that are accessible and beautiful … I know what they are and we will be playing them.
 
    “The same with Opera. Many people consider Opera boring but it need not be. Light Opera will also be presented. I have a rendition of Fidler On The Roof, in Yiddish. It will be played as well!”

    Levine added that The LA Chamber Orchestra and the American Youth Symphony are being very supportive of the station.

Radio Waves Podcast #258

Radio: July 24, 2020

    One of the joys of the Summer — and it has been even more apparent during the COVID shutdowns and restrictions — is the ability to tune in to the recreation of the Mellow Sound as heard on KNX-FM (now KCBS-FM, 93.1) on the internet, via online streaming, a smart phone, or a smart speaker.

    Full disclosure: There are actual two recreations with a slightly different feel, one at knxfm.com and another at knxfm93.com. Both are worthy, but in this instance I am referring to the latter.

    Back in the 1970s, the original KNX-FM would occasionally produce showcase specials on some of the artists played. In July of 1978, the station was able to score a rare, sit-down interview with Carly Simon, one of the big stars of the day and one of the Mellow Sound’s core artists.

    Says Douglas Brown, one of the volunteers who makes knxfm93.com tick, “Lucky for us today, the show’s writer and host Christopher Ames saved the tape! So we are going to play it exactly 42 years later!”

    It’s called An Evening with Carly Simon, an hour-long program of Simon’s words and music, presented with no commercials. It will air on knxfm93.com at 5 p.m. Monday, July 27. If you miss it on the actual 42-year anniversary date, you can hear it on the repeat: July 31 at 5 p.m.

    It’s funny that this happened to come up when it did. I recently happened to be listening to a recording of Mark Elliot on KHJ (930 AM) from about the same year, and one of the promos was for the KHJ Special of the Month, which also spotlighted artists special to the audience. I will bring these back when I buy my station … but I digress.

    If you were a fan of the Mellow Sound or of Simon, this is required listening. And if you find yourself feeling down with everything that is happening in the world, give the station a listen. It definitely lifts my mood.

    Overload

    I haven’t noticed it here yet, but according to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, ratings for news and talk stations in Dallas-Fort Worth are down 25 percent. The reason? “People are just overwhelmed,” according to podcaster Jody Dean.

    News and talk stations are down, says the newspaper, while music stations are up.
    (https://www.star-telegram.com/opinion/bud-kennedy/article244177012.html)

    Mailbag

    “I have a recommendation for you after discovering this station a few weeks ago while running in Palm Springs with my little Sony radio: Q102.3 Classic Rock (KRHQ/Palm Desert)

    “Best radio station that I have heard since The Sound went to Christian Radio. It is awesome. Give it a try - you might discover a new favorite. — Tish Husak

    In the interest of honesty, Tish sent me this letter over a year ago and I found it when clearing out my email boxes. But the station is indeed still on the air, and you can hear it at q102classicrock.com.

    The playlist is typical classic rock but it’s a good mix: songs I heard while sampling include Caught Up in You (.38 Special), Rebel Rebel (David Bowie), Running on Empty (Jackson Brown), Locomotive Breath (Jethro Tull), Fool for the City (Foghat), Black Betty (Ram Jam), My Sharona (The Knack), and Breakdown (Tom Petty).

    Like most good stations I have found over the past few years, the station is locally owned.

    “Just wanted to email you to thank you for the Radio columns I the Register. As a guy who grew up in 60’s Los Angeles listening to KHJ and occasionally KRLA, it’s somewhat rival, it is always great to read about the history and personalities of the era as well as the other locations not only in Southern California (KLAC with Bill Balance and Jim Healy at 5:30) but also around the country. I went to school n the East Coast and really enjoyed WNEW out of NYC in the 80’s.

    “Keep up the great work. Thank you for the news and unfortunately blues of the theater of the mind.” — Paul Reza

    This is why I do it. I love radio, and I love promoting what I consider good radio. The industry is going through a challenging time, but as the large companies get broken up either by legislative action as they should, or by economic realities as they are, I fully believe the industry will come back stronger. My son even asked to borrow a radio he can listen to … the first time he has done so in at least a decade. That must mean something …