Saturday, April 13, 2019

The Weekend Comments

From the little bit that I heard, it sounded like a pretty weak tribute to WLS yesterday on what was their 95th Anniversary of first signing on the air.

Sure, they played the obvious tapes (like the Hindenburg broadcast) but the era that defined the station as one of the biggest and best Top 40 stations in the country was barely acknowledged at all.  (For one thing, this wasn't like the WLS Reunion Shows of the good old days where much of the on-air staff reunited to reminisce about the glory days, filling air time with great behind-the-scenes stories.)  This time, other than John Landecker, the surface was barely scratched at all.  (Maybe it got better later on ... but two hours into Mancow's show ... an effort to listen to on even the best day ... I was already off to other things!)

And apparently I wasn't alone. 

Some reaction from Robert Feder's board ... and our own Forgotten Hits Readers ...


>>>I don’t see Dick Biondi’s name on this list of WLS celebs stopping by … which is just PURE insanity!!! Dick’s been with the station nearly every one of those 95 years!!!  (kk)
Sadly, Dick's health is not good.
Victor Drescher
 
I imagine they could have at least asked him to do some pre-recorded material that could have been done at his own pace.  Is Clark Weber still alive and, if so, is he capable of contributing some memorable moments to the WLS anniversary? What about his old frenemy Ron Riley? They, along with Biondi and many others, made WLS the rock-radio powerhouse of many a Boomer's memory. 
Nina D. Gaspich
 
I am having a hard time believing that these were the only people they could track down? I suppose it is possible that others just didn't want to be interviewed or participate at all ... but this is it? I know, part of it is they only have two live slots left in the day (something like this brings that into sharp focus) ... but some of these people I haven't even heard of. 
Eric Lorenz
 
And what of Chuck Buell and Dex Card?
Gustaf Rand
 
Heck, I believe Brant Miller is in the same building..."hey, can you come over for a few minutes and talk with us?"
Eric Lorenz  
 
I don't think there was enough notice (or effort ... or promotion) to entice anybody to participate with this 95th anniversary celebration ... actually, if you've been listening, it's hardly been acknowledged as a momentous occasion at all. WLS Talk Radio is barely a shadow of the greatness the station achieved during its 60s and 70s heyday.
For the record (and for the benefit of any new readers reading Forgotten Hits for the very first time), Clark Weber IS still alive ... as is Ron Riley ... I contacted both of them (along with Dex Card, Tommy Edwards, Bob SIrott, Bob Hale, Fred Winston, Chuck Buell and Kris Erik Stevens) to let them know what WLS was doing today ... as I doubt that anybody else cared enough to do so. 
Many of these jocks still participate with Forgotten Hits on a regular basis, talking about the fond memories and enjoyable time they spent on The Big 89.
A more full-blown, dedicated and devoted reunion special would have been more appropriate ... like they used to do in the past.  THIS is the kind of programming the people who grew up with the station plugged in their ear, 24/7, want to hear and remember and enjoy again.

Frankly, they blew it ... big time.  And now, if we wait until the station's 100th anniversary, we'll likely have an even smaller pool of talent to pick from! 
(By the way, if there are any Dick Biondi fans out there unaware, a documentary on Dick is in the works and near completion. There is a fund raiser coming up later this month ... April 28th ... where a trailer for the film will be shown.)
More information can be found right here on the Forgotten Hits website by typing Dick Biondi fundraiser into the search engine at the top of the page ... or visit 
https://www.dickbiondifilm.com/goodtimesfundraiser for complete details.  (kk)   

I just saw your list of personalities participating in today's WLS anniversary special and NO ONE was of interest but Landecker.  Just another reason why WLS today sucks and internet radio is NOT for me, basically.  If I have to have some "app," I don't need them.
Clark Besch 

>>>WLS Radio celebrates 95 years on the air (kk) 
Well, their “Celebrity” Lineup, with only a couple (read: two) exceptions, is pretty sad.
While WLS had several notable and respected broadcast epochs throughout its ninety decades of radio notoriety, one of the Biggest, Most Successful, Best Representative Big 89 Eras was the mid-1960s through mid-1970s, after which, beginning with a small glimmering spark that quickly ignited and burst into the station’s well-documented, 50,000 watt, full-blown flameout.
Even before those tumultuous years, where was a representation of Dick Biondi?!  Does today’s ‘LS no longer have the modern technology of obtaining “pre-recorded” soundbites from Mr. WLS Icon himself?
What about Ron Riley?  Or Clark Weber, who is still right in their backyard!  Was the crack investigative news department on North City Front Plaza not skilled enough to uncover a local phone number for Weber?!
How about former nighttime teen heartthrob Kris Erik Stevens?!
Where were Honorable Mentions via even brief segments from highly obtainable airchecks of Larry Lujack, Art Roberts, Joel Sebastian, Gary Gears, Chuck Knapp, Yvonne Daniels, the first Bill Baily, and others who all, during one historical Big 89 moment in time, truly defined the Personality of WLS? 
95 years to Celebrate ... and they chose one tiny pinhole to focus on?
SORRY ...
JUST ME VENTING TO YOU CUZ I THINK YOU MIGHT GET IT
Chuck Buell
It was a pathetic representation honoring a one-of-a-kind radio station that dominated the airwaves during their hey-day.  (At night, you could pick up WLS in 40 states ... even some foreign countries reported getting the signal!!!)
Obviously, this fell WAY short of the typical reunion shows they have done in the past.  (Heck, WE could put on a better reunion show right now than they did ... and we SHOULD!!!  Dick Biondi, Clark Weber, Ron Riley, Dex Card, John Landecker, Bob Sirott, Bob Hale, Fred Winston, Tommy Edwards and, of course, you and Kris Erik Stevens have all been valuable contributors to Forgotten Hits for YEARS now!  Couple with vintage on-air recordings of the legends you mention above would make for a weekend full of nostalgia marking the greatest era in modern-day radio. (By the way, WLS-AM came in at 22nd place in the latest ratings book with a share of 1.7 ... a FAR cry from the ratings they used to achieve in their glory days.  There are four other station in town offering some format of talk that rank higher ... so straying from the formula could only have helped their cause.  Seriously, why do a tribute at all if thiwas all of the effort you were going to put into it.)  kk  

Congratulations in order for former Y103.9 Morning Man Jim Shea, who has now completed all of his studies and been decorated as a doctor of podiatry!!!

Jim sent us this update a year and a half ago ...  

Hey Kent, 
Thought I'd check in and give up an update. The crazy dream transitioning from DJ to doctor is very much alive at this point. 
I am now a third year student of podiatric  medicine at Barry University in Miami, Florida. I just passed my board certification and was awarded my white coat. I now enter the clinical phase of my education. 
To all Forgotten Hits readers with big dreams: Go for it!! Like Chicago said: "We can make it happen!!!" 
Jim Shea 

And now this very exciting announcement yesterday ... 


Hi Kent, 
Well they weren’t kidding ... the hat really is funny. Next Halloween I can go as Galileo.  
The Mission From God continues. 
From this point on it is Doctor Shea. 
J. 
Well, MAJOR congratulations to you for proving once and for all that there IS life after being an oldies deejay ... and for letting all of us know What's Up, Doc!!!   
(Whodathunkit?!?!) 
While Doc Rock and Doctor Love may have a catchier ring to them, those names are already taken ... so Dr. Shea it is!!! Knowing how hard you worked your butt off for this, congratulations again on a job well done!  (kk)     

Mick Jagger posted a photo of himself that he titled “A Walk In The Park” yesterday, showing the rock legend up and about after having surgery just a week ago. (Incredibly The Stones still plan to resume their US / North American tour in just a couple of months!) 

You can catch his Instagram posting here: 
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwH3gu9nWG8/?utm_source=ig_embed 

I would like to be entered in the giveaway for the World Stage cd. 
I saw you at this year's World Stage show in January since we were sitting a couple of rows behind you but never got a chance to say "Hi". 
This was my 15th World Stage show.  Already looking forward to next year's show!!! 
Robert Coleman 
Plainfield, IL 60544 
Wow!  Only my second show but I don’t plan on ever missing another one! 
This should be an awesome CD, featuring guest artists performing brand new material. 
Other readers can register to win a free copy of either the World Stage CD or Davie Allan’s brand new “Retrophonic 6” … just shoot me an email, tell me which CD you’re interested in, and we’ll put you in the running!  (kk) 

Hi all, 
With the pending release of a new CD release by Chicago's newest "duo" of rock, Dennis DeYoung and Jim Peterik, it made me delve back into my radio tapes to December 18, 1978.  On that date, Styx played a concert at Chicago Stadium that was broadcast LIVE on WLS Chicago.  I recorded the concert that night off AM in Lincoln.  The reception came and went, unfortunately, so the cassette varied in sound a lot, but they did all their classics (to that time).  First, let me say that the new song from Jim, Dennis and World Stage below, "Proof of Heaven," that Jim debuted to Forgotten hits a couple days ago, tells me that BOTH of these guys haven't missed a step in all the years and Dennis' voice is so good to hear again for a guy far away from Chicago.  It sounds as it did three decades ago.  The song is an awesome throwback to those glory years as well, even if it has a meaning that fits today. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFv55zoTPaU 
Now, remember what it was like some 40+ years ago ... 
Here's a snippet of the tape I recorded off WLS that night featuring an elongated "Lady" and edited to also add the opening to "Midnight Ride" that seems to sound like an idea Jim Peterik had for a song many years previous??? 
Clark Besch






I’m pleased to see the video has now passed 40,000 views … at the point I received it, it had 7600 views … so great to see that people are discovering this new tune.  (kk) 

And on a related note (sorta), the new “Eye Of The Tiger” / New Found Glory is back up again … not quite sure what happened there the other day! 
Still sounds like Survivor on speed to me!  (kk)



Television has found another spot for John Madara’s all-time classic “You Don’t Own Me” … it’s now being prominently featured in the promos for the new season of “The Bachelorette” … man, this is just such a powerful song … and I never get tired of hearing it … one of my all-time favorites for sure.  (kk)


Hi Kent,
Ran across these "good vibrations" on the internet and thought you, Brian Wilson, and Forgotten Hits fans of Hal Blaine would enjoy a moment in time.
Peace,
Tim Kiley


Me-TV-FM is saluting “the man with the most unusual career in popular music, a career that will likely never be equaled” tomorrow in honor of “ghost singer” Tony Burrows’ birthday.  Burrows was the lead singer for four one-hit wonder bands … and an argument could be made that that number should actually be five. We’ll review his remarkable resume in pop music on Sunday, April 14th, his 77th birthday.  (This is an annual event at the station!)  kk

During the early ‘80’s Country Music boom, I fell in love with the music of Earl Thomas Conley.
Earl never crossed over to the pop charts … which is a real shame because I believe some of these records could have been hits in this market.  (Nine of his records went to #1 on Billboard’s Country Chart.)
Sadly, Conley passed away on April 10th.  Country Superstar Blake Shelton said “Earl was my all time favorite singer, hero and my friend. Prayers to his family. We will all miss you deeply my brother. Now go rest...”
If you get a chance, give a listen to some of his music and see what you think.

Here is one of my favorites …


We’ve been saluting 1969 this year in Forgotten Hits … the latest chapter of our great 50-Year Anniversary Celebration.  (In fact, watch for another WLS Hit Parade Chart on Sunday!)
Meanwhile, Billboard Magazine has been spending the last week looking back twenty years to 1999.  Recent spotlight features have included a profile of The Backstreet Boys’ big hit “I Want It That Way” as well as a Critic’s Picks List of The Best 99 songs of ’99.  (This is not a mathematical countdown but rather a “Critics’ Choice” listing of the music that their experts feel has held up the strongest over the past twenty years.)
I was a little apprehensive checking out this list … honestly, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of these songs I would even recognize … I just don’t recall listening to a lot of current “modern day” music twenty years ago … but it turns out I was familiar with most of them.
That’s most likely due to the fact that, having kids who were turning 14 and 11 that year, I was listening to a lot of THEIR music right along with them.
All the biggest stars of this era are represented here (including the first big hits for several of them) … The Backstreet Boys, Christina Aguilera, Eminem, Destiny’s Child, TLC, J-Lo, Shania Twain, Ricky Martin, Missy Elliott and The Foo Fighters … and that’s just in The Top 20!
You can check out the complete list here: https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/list/8505742/greatest-songs-of-1999-top-99   
What’s #1?  Well, “Oops, I Did It Again” by Britney Spears of course!  (I can’t imagine a person alive who doesn’t know THAT one!!!)
We even found a few songs on this list that have been earning votes in our Classic Rock Countdown, including “Smooth” by Santana (#5) and Blink 182’s “All The Small Things” (#8)
Have YOU voted yet?
We are closing in on our target of 3333 titles so if there’s something that you’d like to see make the list, now would be a good time to submit your nominations.
Just send an email to ClassicRockVote@yahoo.com to vote for YOUR favorites now!  (kk)

And finally … 

Hey, Kent!
Chuck Buell Here!
As you probably know, National Record Store Day this year is this Saturday, April 13, 2019, a day to celebrate the culture and support of independently owned record stores both domestically and internationally.
A number of records encompassing a wide genre of music are pressed specifically for this special day, and I’m excited to announce that on that day my Vinyl Album of personally selected Oldies will drop!
I wanted to give an Exclusive Special Sneak Preview to Forgotten Hits!
I hope you enjoy these Great Songs as much as I did selecting them!
CB ( which stands for “Collector Boy!” )


Got time for one more smile … 

Frannie sent me this …