|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
174.79.200.235
In Reply to: RE: National Radio Day posted by Luminator on August 20, 2014 at 10:32:03
I am in your boat as well. I grew up as a child of 70's radio (kindergarten was '75 for me). Many bands and songs got discovered hearing my uncle's POS Radio Shack Realistic FM tuner playing through his Phase Linear preamp/Dynaco power amp-based system. It wasn't bad to this (then) uneducated ear. Indeed, it is the only reason I still have an FM only tuner (modded Dynaco FM-3), which works quite well around these parts (Wichita, KS).
Alas, rock radio these days is for the most part, the same ten Guns and Roses or Metallica songs, compressed to snot, or the same Snoop Dog or Fifty Cent (c)rap songs, compressed to snot and jacked in the low end.
Thankfully, there are TWO decent NPR stations in the area. THANKFULLY!!!!
Man, I'm having some serious memories of where I was or what I was doing when I discovered certain songs, like you describe. At least I CAN still remember them!
"If the audio industry built gear that sounded as good as it did 50 years ago, there would NEVER be a need to re-issued anything!"
Follow Ups:
As far as radio in the 70s goes, a few instances, for me, really stand out, have never faded from memory. I was born and raised in what was then the Western Addition. With today's gentrification, it is now called "Lower Pac Heights." My neighbors were predominantly African American. When my parents weren't home in the late afternoon, I went to my upstairs neighbors. They introduced me to 60s and 70s soul, disco, funk, R&B. When "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love" and "Too Late To Turn Back Now" came on the radio, I stopped dead in my tracks. I was 6 or 7 years old, but I knew right then and there that I"d much rather listen to music, than watch cartoons [my classmates were into Star Wars, Marvel, Disney, and WB].
When my family would go over to Oakland to visit my grandmother, I was exposed to War's "Low Rider," Elton John's "Benny & The Jets," and what I now know to be Steely Dan's "Deacon Blues." Hell yeah!
And for some reason, every time we passed Lincoln & 19th (an entrance to Golden Gate Park), "Reelin' In The Years" would always come on. And what's with being in Golden Gate Park, while Chicago's "Saturday In The Park" comes on?
A not so fond memory was that of my uncle's Mercury Cougar. This was in Honolulu. The car had no AC. And it always broke down in the midday Hawaiian heat. But the radio kept playing. No, "Kung Fu Fighting" and "Car Wash" didn't make me, burning up in the heat, feel any better.
Still, there was nothing like my dad driving us by San Francisco's Ghirardelli Square, tuning into KOIT, and hearing Carole King's "So Far Away" in the Bay breeze... And then we'd turn down Van Ness, and I'd be thrilled to hear Boz Scaggs' "Lowdown."
If you were tuned into KMPX (MultiPleX) FM in 1967 between 8 pm and midnight you would have been listening to the beginning of underground rock FM radio. Programming was the brain child of KYA AMs Tom Donahue which was limited to the few rock LPs that were available at the time. The uniqness came from most of the tunes on each of those albums was eventually played which spawned listener feedback and the success of the album over the A and B sided 45s.
Long before the San Francisco rock scene Pat Henery's massive collection could be heard on KJAZ broadcasting from a non discrpt second floor studio on Webster in Alameda. KJAZ was successful thanks to a few long time sponcers and a well rooted listenership.
The Bay Area has a rich radio history that has sadly succumb to the American monopolistic business model. The island in the airwaves is Spanish speaking radio.
My father's University 6201 mono speaker and a '57 Fisher tuner (forgot the amp), hearing warm guitar riffs from CCR, and I could't believe the tone compared to AM. And Chad and Jeremy on a 1940s floor radio.
Hooked since then!
Post a Followup:
FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: