60s Top-40 Radio in Arizona

[desertv]

In the 60s for Top-40s stations we had KRUX and KRIZ in Phx and KTKT in Tucson. What other AZ stations had the Top-40 format in the 60s? (Wasn't KEOS in Flagstaff originally Top-40?)

 

[radiobum]

tucson also had kikx where jefferson k...later shadoe stevens worked. kupd went top 40 at some point..late 60's or early 70's.

 

[DaveK]

Yes, KEOS in Flagstaff was a Top 40 station. KTKT in Tucson was an excellent Top 40 station. Some of us living in rural Arizona in the 60’s had to get our Top 40 from KOMA in Oklahoma City. They beamed 50K watts into Arizona at night.

 

[radiobum]

i used to pick up KOMA in Scottsdale as well as XERB for Wolfman Jack-on at least one occasion.

 

[landtuna]

KAIR in Tucson was also T-40.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

KAIR in Tucson was also T-40.

KAIR 1490 (250 w-U) back in the '50s, when KTKT 990 was only a daytimer (10 kw-D, DA).
KTKT gained fulltime status circa May 1960 (10 kw-D, 1 kw-N, DA-2) and KAIR soon flipped
to "beautiful music 14-90, K-A-I-R."

Starting in 1965, KFIF 1550 (50 kw-D) ran Top 40 interference against KTKT, but didn't
achieve a measure of success until morphing into full-time KIKX 580 (5 kw-D, 500 w-N,
DA-N) in '67. KIKX gave up the Top 40 ghost for a year or so in '69; this enabled KHYT
1330 (500 w-D) to slide from AC to T40 by 1970 for a number of years, even before they
got full time authority. KHYT was a early outlet for Casey Kasem's American Top 40 when
it started in summer '70 (not from the July 4 weekend but soon after).

KIKX returned to various incarnations of contemporary music in the early '70s (heavy, oldies,
Top 40).

 

[landtuna]

Starting in 1965, KFIF 1550 (50 kw-D) ran Top 40 interference against KTKT, but didn't
achieve a measure of success until morphing into full-time KIKX 580 (5 kw-D, 500 w-N,
DA-N) in '67. KIKX gave up the Top 40 ghost for a year or so in '69...

I moved back to Tucson in August of 1968 and remember KIKX being Country at that time. I left Tucson about a year later and I believe it was still Country. KTKT was the Big Kahuna of Top-40 then. I have no recollection of KAIR during that time.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

I moved back to Tucson in August of 1968 and remember KIKX being Country at that time. I left Tucson about a year later
and I believe it was still Country.

KIKX was Top 40 from its sign-on as KIKX (formerly MOR KTAN) in June 1967, until flipping
to MOR in May 1969. The country format did not materialize until the mid- or late '70s,
after a return to various contemporary formats and after the (1974?) kidnapping stunt
which ultimately cost KIKX its license. Crazeeeee!

 

[99KTKT]

Starting in 1965, KFIF 1550 (50 kw-D) ran Top 40 interference against KTKT, but didn't
achieve a measure of success until morphing into full-time KIKX 580 (5 kw-D, 500 w-N,
DA-N) in '67. KIKX gave up the Top 40 ghost for a year or so in '69...

I moved back to Tucson in August of 1968 and remember KIKX being Country at that time. I left Tucson about a year later and I believe it was still Country. KTKT was the Big Kahuna of Top-40 then. I have no recollection of KAIR during that time.

As already stated, KIKX was probably at their Top-40 peak in '68. That's when Shadoe "Jefferson K" Stevens was on (67-69). I do not remember KAIR as ever being a full-time Top 40 station in the '60s, but in 66-67 they ran a sort of hybrid operation: MOR during the day, and Top 40 in the evening. This actually made some sense at the time, as the other KTKT competition, 1550 KFIF, was daytime-only.

 

[99KTKT]

The country format did not materialize until the mid- or late '70s,
after a return to various contemporary formats and after the (1974?) kidnapping stunt
which ultimately cost KIKX its license. Crazeeeee!

Correct on both: The flip to country was in 77, September IIRC, and the Gary "Crazy Man" Craig fake kidnapping happened in early 74.

 

[landtuna]

I do not remember KAIR as ever being a full-time Top 40 station in the '60s, but in 66-67 they ran a sort of hybrid operation: MOR during the day, and Top 40 in the evening.

I should have mentioned that KAIR was Top-40 in the late 50's. I listened to KTKT and my sister to KAIR and we had fights about which one was best. I used to take the bus downtown to the KTKT studios and hang out as long as the staff would let me.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

I do not remember KAIR as ever being a full-time Top 40 station in the '60s, but in 66-67
they ran a sort of hybrid operation: MOR during the day, and Top 40 in the evening.

I don't recollect such a hybrid format on KAIR, IIRC it was strictly BM, at least until a
group including (former KTKTer) Frank Kalil purchased the station in late '67. At that
point, Kalil may have started to "brighten" the sound toward MOR.

The hybrid format you mention sounds more like KOLD 1450 (250 w-U) in the '66-'67
time frame--CBS* programs, local talk and show tunes in the morning, MOR afternoons
(with the late Rich Heatley, later a TV engineer), and Top 40 in the evenings with jocks
John Wasley (weeknights) and Jim Arnold (weekends).

*: CBS network via an un-EQed 3.5 kHz Telco line. :

 

[99KTKT]

The hybrid format you mention sounds more like KOLD 1450 (250 w-U) in the '66-'67
time frame--CBS* programs, local talk and show tunes in the morning, MOR afternoons
(with the late Rich Heatley, later a TV engineer), and Top 40 in the evenings with jocks
John Wasley (weeknights) and Jim Arnold (weekends).

*: CBS network via an un-EQed 3.5 kHz Telco line. :

Thank you for jogging my admittedly fuzzy memory of 45+/- years ago. It was indeed 1450 KOLD that I was thinking of with the day-part formatting, NOT 1490 KAIR, which was strictly snooze-fest elevator music at that time. One other thing I remember about KOLD's part-time top 40 format: They went KTKT five better by publishing a weekly top 45 record survey, instead of the then-standard 40 song list. Probably a subtle hint that they had a more extensive playlist than the format-leading station. I don't recall KFIF ever going any deeper than a Top 30 survey, which for awhile (again memory may be fuzzy) came out in a weekly newsletter or newspaper format.
About ten years later--76 or 77--I seem to remember KOLD's successor, KOPO, briefly again flirted with top 40, although today it would probably be called "Hot AC". I think this was right before KRQ(Q)-FM entered the mix in mid-77, upsetting KTKT's apple cart and putting the final nail into KIKX's Top 40 coffin.

 

[landtuna]

I think this was right before KRQ(Q)-FM entered the mix in mid-77...

I was there when KRQQ signed on in full automation.....when it worked. The first few weeks were terrible with dead air, dropped songs etc.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

I don't recall KFIF ever going any deeper than a Top 30 survey, which for awhile(again
memory may be fuzzy) came out in a weekly newsletter or newspaper format.

The KFIF Boss 30 was initially (late '65) a small-size foldout on thick paper; January '66
saw the premiere of the KFIF Boss Beat News (aka "Green Sheet") which was indeed a
newspaper-type format (usually 4-8 pages) and included the Boss 30 (plus hitbounds)
inside. The Green Sheet lasted until late in '66. After that the weekly surveys were
printed in a start-up general circulation newspaper (Tucson American, IIRC) for only a
short time--the paper may have folded (pun intended) rather quickly. This was followed
in early '67 by a Boss 30 survey in the shape of a 45 rpm record, with a hole in the middle,
produced on rather thin paper stock, and featured caricature illustrations of the jocks, as
opposed to photos.

 

[oldiesfan6479]

I was there when KRQQ signed on in full automation.....when it worked. The first few weeks
were terrible with dead air, dropped songs etc.

And wasn't there a high repeat factor? No, not necessarily Brown Eyed Girl ;D, but more so
a small currents playlist. IIRC, the jocks were all recorded tracks initially, and it seemed
that "Randy Lane" was on all the time.

 

[landtuna]

And wasn't there a high repeat factor? No, not necessarily Brown Eyed Girl ;D, but more so
a small currents playlist. IIRC, the jocks were all recorded tracks initially, and it seemed
that "Randy Lane" was on all the time.

I don't remember any jocks, if there were any, and don't recall the playlist either. There was so much dead air initially I didn't listen to KRQ for a long time.

 

[fusejockey]

There was a time 1963 - 1964, KRDS 1190 (Tolleson-Phx.) had Tony Evans nights, with Top 40 music played 24 hrs IIRC. They had the design of the card suits
used with their KRDS call letters. That was pretty cool...

Globe's KIKO Radio played some Top 40 - but I'm not remembering any details.
Yuma's KBLU 560 also played Top 40 in day parts, circa 1968.
I also recall listening to Top 40 music on KEOS while in Flagstaff. They sounded like a big town radio station. 8)

 

[oldiesfan6479]

I also recall listening to Top 40 music on KEOS while in Flagstaff. They sounded like a big town radio station.

Didn't Eric Michael PD KEOS at some point in the '70s? He jocked at KTKT circa 1968
and at KFIF (as Eric Mitchell) in '65.

Another KEOS alumnus: Bob Polk, who was PD/middays at KOOL-FM in the '80s.
(Could never get him to play Tony Joe White. ;D)

 

[DaveK]

Besides Bob Polk and Eric Michael (Tabeling), J.D. Freeman worked at KEOS late 60’s or early 70’s and so did Joe Adams (now at KFYI).