ROCKOLLECTIONS: SALUTE TO RADIO- THE FALL OF FM Anyone who has ever listened to my show knows that I do not have any rules about what I am going to play. Heres the inside scoop on how I work it- most times doing a Theme, the Opening or the Last Song comes to me, sometimes both. After that, I think of every song I can on the topic and make a list. Then the most important part- I play them! And while one is playing, the song that should come next becomes apparent to me- its either there beside me or I go get it. Thats how its done- no playlist, nobody tells me what I can or can’t play. And believe me, I am very aware of how lucky I am. However, there was a brief time when that was an accepted way of doing Radio. For example, we had two Commercial Free-Form Stations here in New York- WABC-FM/WPLJ and WNEW-FM...plus to a certain degree WCBS-FM when they started, before they became an Oldies Station after about 2 years. At WABC-FM they fumbled also, their Free-Form format lasted less than 3 years, 1968-71. But Scott Muni, bless him, fought the good fight at WNEW-FM from 1967, as Program Director and just because he was the way he was, keeping autonomy for himself and all the other DJ’s until 1981!!! If you detect some lingering animosity and bitterness on my part, you are correct. Now, I will go after those Sleazy Beancounters who changed all that. In this Chapter, the highlight is an Epic Poem. The centerpiece of not only this Episode but the whole Series! If you have never heard it, you are in for a treat and will never forget it. If you have heard it, it is like a fine brandy, taken out on special occasions and savored. In any case, it captures what 1960’s radio was like better than I ever could. It is just a BRILLIANT piece of work! There’s Magic in the Radio, Enchantment in the Ether! Come join me for a listen to how good the Radio was and still COULD be, if it would DARE! Here are the links to go back to FM Rock Radio at its most shameful, and it continues largely to this day, at Mike Pell Rockollections: At Podomatic: radiopell.podomatic/entry/2013-11-06T01_36_55-08_00 At Soundcloud: soundcloud/radiopell/08-salute-to-radio-2013 Mike
Posted on: Wed, 06 Nov 2013 13:37:10 +0000
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