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A question for those about, oh, 45 or older

J

Johnf

I did some surfing on the web and found some demos of a nationwide automated music radio format of about 40 years ago that I REALLY enjoyed when I was a kid in Seattle (I now live in Oregon)

It was called "Hit Parade '68 (and 69, and 70, etc.) and was carried on KIRO-FM 100.7 and then KFKF-FM 92.5 in Bellevue back in those years. It was produced by the legendary Drake-Chenault, Inc. They also produced the "Solid Gold" format and several other formats; "Solid Gold" eventually replaced Hit Parade on KFKF-FM.

Those who would like to hear promotional samples of these formats can go to http://www.bossradioforever.com/podcasts/hitparade68.mp3

and to http://www.reelradio.com/gifts/dcdemos.html
(Note: to hear the second one apparently now requires a reelradio membership fee, which is apparently a new thing).

At any rate, from this 50-year-old's perspective, it was one of the BEST formats ever in radio. The Drake-Chenault imaging really sparkled, and Hit Parade was very popular, heard on hundreds of stations nationally.

Anyone out there old enough to remember Hit Parade or Solid Gold? And did any of you enjoy Hit Parade as much as I did as a kid?
 
> Anyone out there old enough to remember Hit Parade or Solid
> Gold? And did any of you enjoy Hit Parade as much as I did
> as a kid?

Definitely remember it. Ran mostly on FM stations that wanted top 40 presence but didn't want jocks. Drake formatics without the personalities -- so it kind of set the "expectaion" of what the FM band was all about.

My preference for it tended more to the "p2" thing -- I always DOVE to the top 40 station with real talent on air; but when I found a jock I had no interest in hearing -- on went the automated Drake format.
 
> > Anyone out there old enough to remember Hit Parade or
> Solid
> > Gold? And did any of you enjoy Hit Parade as much as I
> did
> > as a kid?
>
> Definitely remember it. Ran mostly on FM stations that
> wanted top 40 presence but didn't want jocks. Drake
> formatics without the personalities -- so it kind of set the
> "expectaion" of what the FM band was all about.
>
> My preference for it tended more to the "p2" thing -- I
> always DOVE to the top 40 station with real talent on air;
> but when I found a jock I had no interest in hearing -- on
> went the automated Drake format.
>
I remember both of Drake's formats -- Hit Parade and Solid Gold.
Hit Parade played alot of "soft rock" with oldies and included some standards -- in today's market they would be a cross between KIXI and Warm 106.9
Solid Gold, however had a mix of 60/40 current hits and solid gold (50's - 60's). Drake did an excellent job of automation by using analog recorders, metal tape sensors and great jingle packages. They rival any "voice tracking" that is heard today.

Hit Parade was my first time to hear any hit music on FM (I grew up in Tampa) on WLCY-FM. WDIZ Orlando had the Solid Gold format, so I was able to listen to both. I posted a Drake-Cnehault question on this board several months ago, and I recall that some FM station in Seattle did have hit parade. (Drake's flagships for hit parade was KHJ-FM (101.1) and KFRC 106 in San Francisco)

Thanks<P ID="signature">______________
Tom S</P>
 
Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> Solid Gold, however had a mix of 60/40 current hits and
> solid gold (50's - 60's). Drake did an excellent job of
> automation by using analog recorders, metal tape sensors and
> great jingle packages. They rival any "voice tracking" that
> is heard today.

"Solid Gold" in Seattle was heard on KZOK-AM 1590 from 1977 to 1982 until they abandoned it to become KJET.<P ID="signature">______________
"If I were in this business only for the business, I wouldn't be in this business." Samuel Goldwyn

[email protected]


</P>
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> "Solid Gold" in Seattle was heard on KZOK-AM 1590 from 1977
> to 1982 until they abandoned it to become KJET.

Not sure about that timing --- I was last guy to hand over the automated station of KU-16 to KZOK (they simulcast for awhile) in 1977. At the time KU-16 was doing "Mellow Rock" (syndicated format), and had already abandoned automated oldies --- it was KZOK for quite a while THEN went to a "solid gold" format; but I don't think it was Drake's.

I think the original post had it right ... that when the format was carried here in town it was on KIRO-FM for a little while .... sometime before the switch to KSEA and "Beautiful Music" (which was a ratings killer for many years). Manager's dream because it was basically automated and raking in big bucks. One live body per key daypart (2 FT, 1 PT) to read live newscasts once an hour and be sure there wasn't any serious smoke coming from the automation system.
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

>
> I think the original post had it right ... that when the
> format was carried here in town it was on KIRO-FM for a
> little while .... sometime before the switch to KSEA and
> "Beautiful Music" (which was a ratings killer for many
> years). Manager's dream because it was basically automated
> and raking in big bucks. One live body per key daypart (2
> FT, 1 PT) to read live newscasts once an hour and be sure
> there wasn't any serious smoke coming from the automation
> system.
>

I think KIRO-FM had Hit Parade in 1968 and 1969, and then around 69 or 70, there was a legal squabble between KIRO and the owners of KFKF-FM, and BOTH stations briefly carried Hit Parade at the same time. I remember reading a newspaper article at the time about the battle. (Kind of like in the early 60s, when KIRO-TV and KTNT-TV 11 were fighting over the CBS affiliation and both stations were CBS for a brief time)

As I recall, it was the first time that KFKF-FM quit simulcasting the programming on KFKF-AM 1540 and had its own identity. Later, KFKF-FM switched from Hit Parade to Solid Gold.

So KIRO-FM did indeed eventually lose the Hit Parade format and soon changed to Bonneville's Beautiful Music format. But I think it wasn't until several years later, in the mid-1970s, that KIRO-FM changed its call letters to KSEA.

Thanks for the postings. I had forgotten that Hit Parade was simulcast for a while overnight on KIRO-AM 710. And I remember listening to KU-16's Mellow Rock format when I was a student at Seattle Pacific University in 1975,76,77 or so.

I am curious if anyone also remembers another automated format in Western Washington -- The "Olde Gold" format that was on KISM 92.9 in Bellingham in the early 1970s...
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> > "Solid Gold" in Seattle was heard on KZOK-AM 1590 from
> 1977
> > to 1982 until they abandoned it to become KJET.
>
> Not sure about that timing --- I was last guy to hand over
> the automated station of KU-16 to KZOK (they simulcast for
> awhile) in 1977. At the time KU-16 was doing "Mellow Rock"
> (syndicated format), and had already abandoned automated
> oldies --- it was KZOK for quite a while THEN went to a
> "solid gold" format; but I don't think it was Drake's.

Whoops! My bad. But this was almost 30 years ago and the rear view does get foggy....
>
> I think the original post had it right ... that when the
> format was carried here in town it was on KIRO-FM for a
> little while .... sometime before the switch to KSEA and
> "Beautiful Music" (which was a ratings killer for many
> years). Manager's dream because it was basically automated
> and raking in big bucks. One live body per key daypart (2
> FT, 1 PT) to read live newscasts once an hour and be sure
> there wasn't any serious smoke coming from the automation
> system.

LOL!
>
<P ID="signature">______________
"If I were in this business only for the business, I wouldn't be in this business." Samuel Goldwyn

[email protected]


</P>
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> I am curious if anyone also remembers another automated
> format in Western Washington -- The "Olde Gold" format that
> was on KISM 92.9 in Bellingham in the early 1970s...

On the geography of anything North of Snohomish county I *DEFINITELY* yield to Larry's expertise ... but the one thing that I do know about some of those Bellingham signals was they were the test bed for IGM -- one of the leading automation system companies. But I don't think they were really in the CONTENT business ... just hardware. So highly possible KISM carried one of the syndicated reel-based formats so they could come up with & test new ideas for automation hardware.

So...who remembers GO-CARTS? Those conveyor systems that kept 50% of the carts stored upside down while waiting to be played causing the tape in some carts to be more likely to JAAAAAAMMxxxxxxxxxxxx%@##)#$#_#####. There were also those wheels (can't remember the capacity on those) -- the conveyor and the wheels, I think, each had one head for playback. Then came "instacart" -- 48 bays each with their own head and they became very popular for spot playback and stations with top-40 rotation to just play the hits off those 48-slots. Talk about an idea ahead of its time ... now it's entire libraries on shared hard drives!
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> > I am curious if anyone also remembers another automated
> > format in Western Washington -- The "Olde Gold" format
> that
> > was on KISM 92.9 in Bellingham in the early 1970s...
>
> On the geography of anything North of Snohomish county I
> *DEFINITELY* yield to Larry's expertise ... but the one
> thing that I do know about some of those Bellingham signals
> was they were the test bed for IGM -- one of the leading
> automation system companies. But I don't think they were
> really in the CONTENT business ... just hardware. So highly
> possible KISM carried one of the syndicated reel-based
> formats so they could come up with & test new ideas for
> automation hardware.
>
> So...who remembers GO-CARTS? Those conveyor systems that
> kept 50% of the carts stored upside down while waiting to be
> played causing the tape in some carts to be more likely to
> JAAAAAAMMxxxxxxxxxxxx%@##)#$#_#####. There were also those
> wheels (can't remember the capacity on those) -- the
> conveyor and the wheels, I think, each had one head for
> playback. Then came "instacart" -- 48 bays each with their
> own head and they became very popular for spot playback and
> stations with top-40 rotation to just play the hits off
> those 48-slots. Talk about an idea ahead of its time ...
> now it's entire libraries on shared hard drives!


Those 'wheels' were called carousels - and they carried 24 carts. Most were powered by Packard V8s (well, they made about the same level of noise) left over from their bankruptcy using a chain drive to turn the cart carriers. Noisy, cantankerious and always a PIA when it came to head phase alignment. However the were serious improvement over the previous solution - reel-to-reel decks that 'counted' cuts and randomly accessed the spots.

It's very funny to think of the contortions we went through to get audio on the air...but somehow it seemed more fun. Certainly more of a challenge.
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> > I am curious if anyone also remembers another automated
> > format in Western Washington -- The "Olde Gold" format
> that
> > was on KISM 92.9 in Bellingham in the early 1970s...
>
> On the geography of anything North of Snohomish county I
> *DEFINITELY* yield to Larry's expertise

Not an expert in anything (but will do in a desperate pinch), I believe it was a sort of a classic rock for it's time. Ironic because that's what they have become now.

... but the one
> thing that I do know about some of those Bellingham signals
> was they were the test bed for IGM -- one of the leading
> automation system companies. But I don't think they were
> really in the CONTENT business ... just hardware. So highly
> possible KISM carried one of the syndicated reel-based
> formats so they could come up with & test new ideas for
> automation hardware.

Rogan Jones ran a chain of automated classical stations in the Northwest in the early '60s. Including KGMI-FM (later KISM), Bellingham, KGMJ (now KJR-FM), Seattle and one in Hawaii (KGMH, I think)
>
> So...who remembers GO-CARTS? Those conveyor systems that
> kept 50% of the carts stored upside down while waiting to be
> played causing the tape in some carts to be more likely to
> JAAAAAAMMxxxxxxxxxxxx%@##)#$#_#####. There were also those
> wheels (can't remember the capacity on those) -- the
> conveyor and the wheels, I think, each had one head for
> playback. Then came "instacart" -- 48 bays each with their
> own head and they became very popular for spot playback and
> stations with top-40 rotation to just play the hits off
> those 48-slots. Talk about an idea ahead of its time ...
> now it's entire libraries on shared hard drives!

One thing I remember about cart automation wheels..actually, it was a sound.

KER-CHUNK...KER-CHUNK....

God I hated doing live assist with that racket audible in the background....


>
<P ID="signature">______________
"If I were in this business only for the business, I wouldn't be in this business." Samuel Goldwyn

[email protected]


</P>
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

>Whoops! My bad. But this was almost 30 years ago and the rear view does get foggy....

May it be wafts of herb smoke between that mirror and reality?
 
Re: Solid Gold 16 KZOK

> > Solid Gold, however had a mix of 60/40 current hits and
> > solid gold (50's - 60's). Drake did an excellent job of
> > automation by using analog recorders, metal tape sensors
> and
> > great jingle packages. They rival any "voice tracking"
> that
> > is heard today.
>
> "Solid Gold" in Seattle was heard on KZOK-AM 1590 from 1977
> to 1982 until they abandoned it to become KJET.
>

Well to clarify, I think you meant abandoned the format? The carousel equipment stayed on with KJET well into 1989. In fact maybe further as Adams Communications slapped their "KOOL Gold" format on and if I remember right it was still being used into the 90's. Otto Pilot (cue tape) used to wreak havoc with jock breaks.

Oh and FM jocks used to love running down the hall having to cue up KJET again in the middle of their show, and the JET jocks used to love VT instead of doing their shows live and being paid for it (sarcasm off/)
 
Carousel O' Butt Rock

> > > Solid Gold, however had a mix of 60/40 current hits and
>
> > > solid gold (50's - 60's). Drake did an excellent job of
>
> > > automation by using analog recorders, metal tape sensors
>
> > and
> > > great jingle packages. They rival any "voice tracking"
> > that
> > > is heard today.
> >
> > "Solid Gold" in Seattle was heard on KZOK-AM 1590 from
> 1977
> > to 1982 until they abandoned it to become KJET.
> >
>
> Well to clarify, I think you meant abandoned the format? The
> carousel equipment stayed on with KJET well into 1989. In
> fact maybe further as Adams Communications slapped their
> "KOOL Gold" format on and if I remember right it was still
> being used into the 90's. Otto Pilot (cue tape) used to
> wreak havoc with jock breaks.

It was still there when 1590 was Z-Rock (1990-1993).
>
> Oh and FM jocks used to love running down the hall having to
> cue up KJET again in the middle of their show, and the JET
> jocks used to love VT instead of doing their shows live and
> being paid for it (sarcasm off/)

As I remember, there were no AM monitors in the FM studio. KJET listeners usually called the KZOK line to complain.
>
<P ID="signature">______________
We are born naked, cold, wet and hungry. Then it gets worse...

[email protected]


</P>
 
Herbal Essence

> >Whoops! My bad. But this was almost 30 years ago and the
> rear view does get foggy....
>
> May it be wafts of herb smoke between that mirror and
> reality?

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmaybe. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmaybe not.

Speaking of that kids, we're just one month away from April 20th. That's 4/20 at 4:20 pm....Stoner New Year!!

So make plans now to stock up on party munchies and at least an ounce of your friendly Ganja dealer's Special Reserve stash (the kind he/she reserves for his/her coolest customers.) And take 4/20 off from work (as we all should.....)


>
<P ID="signature">______________
We are born naked, cold, wet and hungry. Then it gets worse...

[email protected]


</P>
 
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