Sad to hear. Anyways what is Ken Shelton doing nowadays? Gardening or what? And speaking of Parenteau, last I heard he got released from jail in late '06, and was on his way to "recovery" at a halfway house in Cambridge, and working for his buddy at the Comedy Connection. Hopefully he's staying out of trouble? Anyone hear anything lately?
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Ken Shelton
- Thread starter WBIMDJ
- Start date
I didn't see any mention on this thread of Ken Shelton's "recent" run on 105.9 WROR (two, three years ago?). It was sad to hear him sound so discomposed. Great call to bring him back for the new station, but he wasn't up to the task.
Research_Weenie said:I didn't see any mention on this thread of Ken Shelton's "recent" run on 105.9 WROR (two, three years ago?). It was sad to hear him sound so discomposed. Great call to bring him back for the new station, but he wasn't up to the task.
That's 105.7, not 105.9, but I'm sure you merely typo'd.
Actually, I think someone did mention it earlier in the thread and it was about 5 or 6 years ago. If memory serves, he was brought on board along with Tai who took the afternoon show. Tai lasted a couple of years before he was let go as well. I never listened to either of them on other stations before hearing them on WROR.
Ken just sounded old and, for me, brought nothing to the station. It was just a bad fit.
Tai was ok...not really sure what happened there. It took awhile for WROR to fix their afternoon drive following Tai's departure. They gave the shift to weekender (now 7pm to midnight) Kim Collins to hold down for about 6 months, then brought Kevin Redding in from WAAF for a year, then sent Kevin to weekends, and brought Paul Perry in to finally take the shift.
V
VoxPox
Guest
I'm not surprised Ken would sound out of it for an oldies station. Not unless he was allowed to do what he wants.
VoxPox said:I'm not surprised Ken would sound out of it for an oldies station. Not unless he was allowed to do what he wants.
They brought in Ken when they were leaning classic rock, with the slogan "The Greatest Rock & Roll Ever Made."
jlehmann said:They brought in Ken when they were leaning classic rock, with the slogan "The Greatest Rock & Roll Ever Made."
And also around that time, "Timeless Rock & Roll Classics". It was WROR's classic Boston AOR recreation experiment attempt of 2001. I and a few other aficionados of the late '60s/'70s AOR deep cuts that they were sprinkling in thought it was pretty cool, but it flopped badly in the ratings. After two nosediving books, it was back to classic hits, and their ratings came back up.
B
BZFM
Guest
You couldn't ask for a better guy to do a Beatles show. Even those who would grow tired of nothing but Fab Four wouldn't do so with kind of mix Capt Ken presented. He was the main reason for WBZ-FM's popularity in the early 70s. Wikipedia's got it slightly incorrect in that BZ-FM may have presented a Top 40 format, but they were devoted to playing nothing but Album Oriented Rock made up of FM classics and extended album cuts from Boston's top sellers of the day. There were some popular main stream hits that didn't crack the countdown and in the event that one managed to break into the rotation, it was usually booted off the playlist by Voteline callers who would vote the song as the 'Bummer Record of the Week'. A great example of listener participation.
Capt Ken hated Harry Chapin for some reason. He never allowed Chapin's hit WOLD to be played on the station and even when Cat's In The Cradle was zooming up the countdown, Ken would ridicule the song something fierce. The Cap'n couldn't quite keep his political leanings under wraps either, lacing into Nixon like something out of Doonesbury's Zonker Harris. That '72 election must have left the good Cap'n very bitter indeed.
Capt Ken hated Harry Chapin for some reason. He never allowed Chapin's hit WOLD to be played on the station and even when Cat's In The Cradle was zooming up the countdown, Ken would ridicule the song something fierce. The Cap'n couldn't quite keep his political leanings under wraps either, lacing into Nixon like something out of Doonesbury's Zonker Harris. That '72 election must have left the good Cap'n very bitter indeed.
jacobr said:when did WBZ-FM go to the taped format with no commercials, cutting into AM news feed at top of the hour?
WBZ-FM went to that format on 12/30/71 simultaneously going stereo at the same time. Prior to that, they partially
simulcasted WBZ-AM, Carl De Seuze in the morning, and than Classical music in mono, the rest of the day...
B
Boston_Bill
Guest
I was a volunteer at WBCN answering phones and I worked Ken Shelton's show once a week. He was one of the nicest guys at the station and treated me well when others were just rude.
BZFM said:Wikipedia's got it slightly incorrect in that BZ-FM may have presented a Top 40 format, but they were devoted to playing nothing but Album Oriented Rock made up of FM classics and extended album cuts from Boston's top sellers of the day. There were some popular main stream hits that didn't crack the countdown and in the event that one managed to break into the rotation, it was usually booted off the playlist by Voteline callers who would vote the song as the 'Bummer Record of the Week'. A great example of listener participation.
I don't remember 'BZ-FM as being particularly album-oriented. I have a few surveys from the mid-70s, and they were playing pretty much the same stuff as WRKO. You weren't thinking of the old WVBF were you? They tended to be a bit rock-leaning, especially around '73-74.
B
Boston_Bill
Guest
From what I remember 'BZ-FM played top 40 maybe you're thinking of 'COZOldbones said:BZFM said:Wikipedia's got it slightly incorrect in that BZ-FM may have presented a Top 40 format, but they were devoted to playing nothing but Album Oriented Rock made up of FM classics and extended album cuts from Boston's top sellers of the day. There were some popular main stream hits that didn't crack the countdown and in the event that one managed to break into the rotation, it was usually booted off the playlist by Voteline callers who would vote the song as the 'Bummer Record of the Week'. A great example of listener participation.
I don't remember 'BZ-FM as being particularly album-oriented. I have a few surveys from the mid-70s, and they were playing pretty much the same stuff as WRKO. You weren't thinking of the old WVBF were you? They tended to be a bit rock-leaning, especially around '73-74.
Phases of BZ-FM....
WBZ-FM went through various format tweaks during the 10 years of its existence. In 1972 it was an automated but really good Top 40 station playing a decent mix of album cuts and oldies too. In early 1973,
the format nose dived ! "The Station That Has Teenagers Talking" was just god awful!!! The Boston Top 40
counted down daily with teenagers introducing every song and reading most of the PSAs. The station would not play anything that wasn't in the current Top 40, in fact. Later in the year, Clark introduced "The Music Show" which was late night AOR from around midnight to 2AM sign off. By late 1973, the daytime format became modified again, with Captain Ken counting down the Boston Top 40 and oldies and album cuts going back into the regular rotation. In 1974 and 1975, they had a pretty good early evening artist spotlight feature, and "The Music Show" moved up to about 9PM. In 1975, Clark and Captain Ken exited the station, (soon to start up WCOZ) and it became kind of a Top 40 jukebox for awhile. By 1978, it was drifting towards AOR. In 1979, they were definitely automated AOR" frequently IDing as "New Wave Stereo-106.7" and Z-107. In 1980 and through its final days in 1981, it continued as AOR, IDing as Z-107. The Top 40 charts that they put out in 1975 and 1976 definitely resembled WRKO, but the survey that I have from them from late 1978 is definitely the playlist of an AOR station which that survey refers to as Z-107.
WBZ-FM lasted for exactly ten years as a contemporary music station too...flipping from Classical on 12/30/71 and going dark temporarily, I seem to remember starting right around 1/1/82. Of course, "Magic 106.7-WMJX" appeared in January, 1982. The WMJX call letters actually took effect during the summer of 1981, while the station was still AOR. During the summer and Fall of 1981, they simply identified it as "FM-107"....
WBZ-FM went through various format tweaks during the 10 years of its existence. In 1972 it was an automated but really good Top 40 station playing a decent mix of album cuts and oldies too. In early 1973,
the format nose dived ! "The Station That Has Teenagers Talking" was just god awful!!! The Boston Top 40
counted down daily with teenagers introducing every song and reading most of the PSAs. The station would not play anything that wasn't in the current Top 40, in fact. Later in the year, Clark introduced "The Music Show" which was late night AOR from around midnight to 2AM sign off. By late 1973, the daytime format became modified again, with Captain Ken counting down the Boston Top 40 and oldies and album cuts going back into the regular rotation. In 1974 and 1975, they had a pretty good early evening artist spotlight feature, and "The Music Show" moved up to about 9PM. In 1975, Clark and Captain Ken exited the station, (soon to start up WCOZ) and it became kind of a Top 40 jukebox for awhile. By 1978, it was drifting towards AOR. In 1979, they were definitely automated AOR" frequently IDing as "New Wave Stereo-106.7" and Z-107. In 1980 and through its final days in 1981, it continued as AOR, IDing as Z-107. The Top 40 charts that they put out in 1975 and 1976 definitely resembled WRKO, but the survey that I have from them from late 1978 is definitely the playlist of an AOR station which that survey refers to as Z-107.
WBZ-FM lasted for exactly ten years as a contemporary music station too...flipping from Classical on 12/30/71 and going dark temporarily, I seem to remember starting right around 1/1/82. Of course, "Magic 106.7-WMJX" appeared in January, 1982. The WMJX call letters actually took effect during the summer of 1981, while the station was still AOR. During the summer and Fall of 1981, they simply identified it as "FM-107"....
Re: Phases of BZ-FM....
I remember WBZ-FM quite well. The station left the air at 9:00 AM on 12/31/71 (after the morning simulcast period with WBZ/1030) for a period of 7 hours until 4:00 PM, in order for the station to switch to its' new Stereo equipment. When they returned to the air, it became "Rockin' Stereo 106.7, all hits..... all the time", with Clark Smidt as your (automated) host. It was really good. Their automation (affectionately named "BoZo") had a tendency to "hiccup" a lot, especially after the news (simulcast from WBZ). At one time, all at once, all decks fired up at the same time, sounding like four songs at the same time. WBZ-FM was a loss leader for Westinghouse. Their idea was to have at least one station in town that would not be competitive with the AM side (a.k.a.-not hurting WBZ-AM). They were totally surprised that WBZ-FM would take off so well with the young crowd. And why not? Hearing your favorites in Stereo with NO commercials whatsoever sounds cool. WBZ-FM had an identity all its' own. It's too bad that Group W never realized what they had and never used it to its' total potential. They sold it to Greater Media for a cool $5 million. Today that station , WMJX, is one of the most successful FM's in the market and always has been, under the ownership of Greater Media.
Time Traveler said:WBZ-FM went through various format tweaks during the 10 years of its existence. In 1972 it was an automated but really good Top 40 station playing a decent mix of album cuts and oldies too. In early 1973,
the format nose dived ! "The Station That Has Teenagers Talking" was just god awful!!! The Boston Top 40
counted down daily with teenagers introducing every song and reading most of the PSAs. The station would not play anything that wasn't in the current Top 40, in fact. Later in the year, Clark introduced "The Music Show" which was late night AOR from around midnight to 2AM sign off. By late 1973, the daytime format became modified again, with Captain Ken counting down the Boston Top 40 and oldies and album cuts going back into the regular rotation. In 1974 and 1975, they had a pretty good early evening artist spotlight feature, and "The Music Show" moved up to about 9PM. In 1975, Clark and Captain Ken exited the station, (soon to start up WCOZ) and it became kind of a Top 40 jukebox for awhile. By 1978, it was drifting towards AOR. In 1979, they were definitely automated AOR" frequently IDing as "New Wave Stereo-106.7" and Z-107. In 1980 and through its final days in 1981, it continued as AOR, IDing as Z-107. The Top 40 charts that they put out in 1975 and 1976 definitely resembled WRKO, but the survey that I have from them from late 1978 is definitely the playlist of an AOR station which that survey refers to as Z-107.
WBZ-FM lasted for exactly ten years as a contemporary music station too...flipping from Classical on 12/30/71 and going dark temporarily, I seem to remember starting right around 1/1/82. Of course, "Magic 106.7-WMJX" appeared in January, 1982. The WMJX call letters actually took effect during the summer of 1981, while the station was still AOR. During the summer and Fall of 1981, they simply identified it as "FM-107"....
I remember WBZ-FM quite well. The station left the air at 9:00 AM on 12/31/71 (after the morning simulcast period with WBZ/1030) for a period of 7 hours until 4:00 PM, in order for the station to switch to its' new Stereo equipment. When they returned to the air, it became "Rockin' Stereo 106.7, all hits..... all the time", with Clark Smidt as your (automated) host. It was really good. Their automation (affectionately named "BoZo") had a tendency to "hiccup" a lot, especially after the news (simulcast from WBZ). At one time, all at once, all decks fired up at the same time, sounding like four songs at the same time. WBZ-FM was a loss leader for Westinghouse. Their idea was to have at least one station in town that would not be competitive with the AM side (a.k.a.-not hurting WBZ-AM). They were totally surprised that WBZ-FM would take off so well with the young crowd. And why not? Hearing your favorites in Stereo with NO commercials whatsoever sounds cool. WBZ-FM had an identity all its' own. It's too bad that Group W never realized what they had and never used it to its' total potential. They sold it to Greater Media for a cool $5 million. Today that station , WMJX, is one of the most successful FM's in the market and always has been, under the ownership of Greater Media.
B
Boston_Bill
Guest
I remember they also had to carry Bruins games when 'BZ-AM had the Celtins and Bruins and there was a conflict. The Celtics usually got the AM station.
dhoule said:Actually, I remember the reverse. The Bruins got AM (stronger at the time) and the Celtics got WBZ-FM when there was a conflict.
IIRC, your version is the correct one. In fact, when the Bird era was starting, and the Celtic contract was up for renewal (at $100,000 - how things have changed) one of the sticking points was Celtic demands that their games stay on the big signal whenever there was a conflict. 'BZ conceded the point, to everyone's eventual benefit.
Regards,
TSB
V
VoxPox
Guest
It's a shame things never get so bad for stations nowadays that they don't bring back a golden oldie like Ken.
WROR brought him back for a while I think, it didn't last long, but it wasn't his fault.
ZRXOA 5248 said:WROR brought him back for a while I think, it didn't last long, but it wasn't his fault.
Yes, WROR brought him back for mid-days for about half a year in 2001 during a period when they tried a format experiment that mixed deep progressive AOR tracks from the late '60s and '70s in with the usual classic rock. They called it "Timeless Rock and Roll Classics". Ken was hired for that format as a voice that recalled the heyday of AOR radio in Boston.
A few music aficionados like me loved the format and hearing those "lost" tracks again, but unfortunately, the masses who wanted just the hits tuned out, and the ratings took a nose dive. When they went back to standard classic hits (and the ratings came back up), I guess they may have felt that Ken's style didn't fit, and let him go.
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