re:  14 YEARS OF FORGOTTEN HITS:

>>>Last week marked the 14th Anniversary of Forgotten Hits ... due to a number of things going on here behind the scenes, we elected to celebrate without much fanfare ... but I did want to thank ALL of you for your continued support ... it truly does mean a lot. (kk)  

Kent - 
First of all, thank you for all you do! 14 Years ... what a great labor of love! Been reading for about 4 years and enjoy it all.  
Happy 14th MAN! 
Mike De Martino  
President of the Lovejoy Music Club  

Well, Kent ... if you won't do the fanfare, I will!!!!!!

I have been with Forgotten Hits since Day 1, when you were the 60's Shop. I found the site through a buddy, and am forever thankful that I did!!! In 14 years, you have amassed quite a large following BECAUSE you provide great information, honest and heartfelt opinions, let the people express their views, and provide the people who were the instruments in bringing the Music we love or (hate)  LOL  into the forefront. I am always amazed at some of the music you find ... some songs that I haven't heard in 40 years or better!!!! As you know, I was in Radio for 20 years, and it has always been my passion. The old Jocks you bring to the table bring back so MANY great memories on how great Radio WAS!!!!!!!!! I always prided myself in my knowledge of music, and you never cease to blow my mind with YOUR knowledge of music and the business and your great ability to find the people and the music. I hope that you continue to entertain and educate me, and the many THOUSANDS of people of enjoy this site for many years to come. The radio of yesterday is quickly fading, BUT you keep the fires burning, and I am forever thankful for all of your hard work!! Hopefully, one day I can give you a big ol' handshake and bear hug to say thanks in person!!!

Keep up the GREAT work, and thanks for this 14 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

Pete Garrison  
Thank you, Pete ... that means a lot. 
We share a great love of this music and the industry that, at one time, so ably brought it to us.

I believe I can speak for all of us here when I say we will NEVER forget the passion.  (kk) 

For most of the past fourteen years, we celebrated our Forgotten Hits Anniversary as simply "Thanksgiving Weekend, 1999" ... but now, thanks to Perpetual Calendar, we know for certain that our very first newsletter went out via email (to a subscriber list of just 35 oldies music fans, collected from the AOL Oldies Music Room) on Friday, November 26, 1999 ... making our OFFICIAL Fourteenth Anniversary last Tuesday.

Some might say it was born out of boredom ... many of us would meet nightly in The Music Oldies Room, where we then typically talked music, played trivia games and generally just embraced these great songs and artists of another era.  Back then, I was still known only as The60sShop, so those earliest newsletters ... all of which were sent via email until we FINALLY launched a website in 2008 (by which time we had grown so large in readers it was virtually impossible to email anymore) ... came addressed that way.

It was through the urging of many of the disc jockeys on the list ... (and Scott Shannon in particular) ... whose shows I was now appearing on as a guest, that we simplify things a bit.  Scott told me, "It's too confusing ... you call the thing "Forgotten Hits" ... but you send everything out as "The 60sShop" ... you should just call it Forgotten Hits and leave it at that ... set up a website where people can go to read your stuff and let the rest of the oldies world discover what you do ... as you provide a great service that needs to be shared."  And it has continued to grow from there.

When I think back, I'm sometimes amazed ... it all started innocently enough ... a few days prior to sending out our first official "Forgotten Hits" Mailing, I had asked both in the oldies room and via email: 

"You know there are SO many great songs and artists that radio doesn't play anymore ...

The play lists have gotten SO tight that they seem to only feature the same 200-300 songs over and over and over again.

If I wrote about some of these songs and these artists ... would you read it?"

(Wow!  I could ask virtually the exact same question today!!!)

When I got a resounding "Yes", Forgotten Hits was born and it has been growing ever since, now part of the daily routine of thousands of oldies music fans ... and artists ... who regularly read and participate with our publication.  It is something that I've worked very hard to achieve ... and something that means a great deal to me.  I've said it a thousand times in the past fourteen years ... I am still ... and will always be ... a fan first ... and knowing that we have since created some of our OWN "fans" (including many of these artists), I've got to tell you that I've never been prouder of what we've accomplished here.  And I say "we" because it truly does take the input from ALL of us to make this whole thing work.  Our team of experts ... and die-hard fans ... puts us second to none ... and for this I am truly grateful.  Our passion for this great music shows every day and, as a result, Forgotten Hits has become a reliable, trustworthy source of information ... our constant pursuit of "The Most Accurate Truth" has helped to insure this.  We tend to dig a little deeper trying to get the REAL answers.  Over the years, we've debunked a number of myths that are continually repeated as circulated as "facts" ... and have provided the artists with the forum to fix some of these misnomers.

So I want to pause again for just a moment in order to thank you ALL for your continued support.  Who EVER thought that we'd now be going into our 15th year of doing this?!?!  (Seems like I should have been rich and famous by now, doesn't it?!?!?)  I sincerely appreciate it.  I simply couldn't ... and WOULDN'T ... do this without you. 
kk 
Kent Kotal 
Forgotten Hits

TRIVIA:  That very first song ever featured? C'mon, most of you know it by now ... we've re-saluted it on most of our anniversaries since then ...
It was "Shape Of Things To Come" by Max Frost and the Troopers!