The early days of SF Top 40 hit radio

[DavidKaye]

At a certain point, the discussion stopped being about Mike Joseph and KITS and started being about your very impressive and all-encompassing knowledge of Puerto Rico as a radio market. (I am not disputing that you are the all-time champion of Puerto Rico Radio Knowledge Bowl. Kudos!)

For better or worse, Puerto Rico is a U.S. radio market, and Top 40 was a big format there. Since mention has been made of KHJ, WOR-FM, and other stations in other markets in regard to the history of Top 40, I don't think it is out of line to mention Puerto Rico in the same breath.

 

[skyrocker]

The early Bartell format, Drake-Mitchell-
Donahue all on the same station it was very hip.

Boy, there were some tremendous players at KYA in the Mitchell, Donohue (relocated from "back east" along
with Russ Syracuse and Tommy Saunders, I believe) days, and they sounded particularly hip with that way
cool "Obviously East Coast" attitude. Same attitude in spades thing from Don McKinnon over at KEWB. Wow.
Incredibly intimidating talent. Wonderful to listen to.

 

[Board Editor]

MOVED: TIO: The early days of SF Top 40 hit radio

Some posts in this topic have been moved to Take It Outside.

[iurl=http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php?topic=93974.0]http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php?topic=93974.0[/iurl]

 

[BossRadioDJ]

The early Bartell format, Drake-Mitchell-Donahue all on the same station it was very hip.

Boy, there were some tremendous players at KYA in the Mitchell, Donohue (relocated from "back east" along with Russ Syracuse and Tommy Saunders, I believe) days, and they sounded particularly hip with that way cool "Obviously East Coast" attitude. Same attitude in spades thing from Don McKinnon over at KEWB. Wow. Incredibly intimidating talent. Wonderful to listen to.

Mitchell and Donahue came to KYA out of Philly; Johnny Holliday out of Cleveland and New York; Peter Tripp from WMGM/NYC. Russ The Moose, Tommy Saunders, Gene Nelson and Larry (Buller) Brownell all came to "The Boss of the Bay" by way of Clint Churchill's WKBW/Buffalo.

Classic KYA: http://www.kyaradio.com

WKBW Tribute Site: http://www.wkbwradio.com

The late, great Don MacKinnon (KROY, KEWB, KFWB) was born in New York, but his radio career started in the Midwest and worked its way to the Coast. He was the perfect replacement for Gary Owens at The Kewb, both in style and substance (although Owens was and is a singularly gargantuan talent).

Recordings of both MacKinnon and Owens are in the museum's KEWB Collection at:

http://www.KewbChannel91.com

In a discussion of early Top 40 in the Bay Area, don't neglect San Jose's 1590/KLIV, which many of us grew up with. K-Liv's morning maniac in the mid-1960s was Gary Seger, who was very reminiscent of both Owens and MacKinnon:

http://tinyurl.com/2eny69

DJ

 

[briancraig]

Let me add one more SF top 40 that has not been mentioned, KSFX the ABC owned FM. I have a run of surveys from KSFX from 1973 and 1974 and they are pure top 40. Surveys look like WABC's from that period.

 

[LKellerIII]

"Let me add one more SF top 40 that has not been mentioned, KSFX the ABC owned FM. I have a run of surveys from KSFX from 1973 and 1974 and they are pure top 40. Surveys look like WABC's from that period."

Yes - they were copying WABC's "Musicradio" slogans and formatics. It was not a success, and didn't last long. It became a soul-funk oriented station within a year or so, and got much better ratings. Before the Musicradio format, KSFX was formatted very similarly to KLOS (Los Angeles) with an album rock format, but they flopped with that too, while KLOS was a success. Go figure...

 

[michael hagerty]

"Let me add one more SF top 40 that has not been mentioned, KSFX the ABC owned FM. I have a run of surveys from KSFX from 1973 and 1974 and they are pure top 40. Surveys look like WABC's from that period."

Yes - they were copying WABC's "Musicradio" slogans and formatics. It was not a success, and didn't last long. It became a soul-funk oriented station within a year or so, and got much better ratings. Before the Musicradio format, KSFX was formatted very similarly to KLOS (Los Angeles) with an album rock format, but they flopped with that too, while KLOS was a success. Go figure...

Llew: That one's pretty easy. The true believers in the album rock format in San Francisco were all listening to KSAN. Tom Donahue (still alive at the time) and his people were a presence in the city. KMET didn't make that kind of grass-roots impact in L.A. and got blown away by formatics and marketing at KLOS...until about '76, when KMET re-invented itself as the ultimate bad boy and made KLOS look boring.

 

[LKellerIII]

"That one's pretty easy. The true believers in the album rock format in San Francisco were all listening to KSAN. Tom Donahue (still alive at the time) and his people were a presence in the city. KMET didn't make that kind of grass-roots impact in L.A. and got blown away by formatics and marketing at KLOS...until about '76, when KMET re-invented itself as the ultimate bad boy and made KLOS look boring."

Thanks, Michael - as usual, your contribution to the History of Rock and Roll (Radio) is top notch. My personal opinion though, as a early 70s listener of album rock radio in LA: the Les Carter KPPC was far and away the best, but once it was blown up (71, I think), KMET was my default favorite, and - over time - because it picked up some of KPPC's staff and formatics - was a much better station than KLOS. At least until 73 when I left town, the higher-rated KLOS had literally no formatics, a play list that leaned more toward Top 40 hits, and personality-free DJs who would be at home today on "less talk" stations. I'm sure their instructions were:"back announce songs, read weather forecast, shut-up."

That the format was not popular in the San Francisco only proves again that people from the Bay Area are more intelligent, more hip, and generally superior to the unwashed masses throughout the rest of the country ;D

 

[davideduardo]

That the format was not popular in the San Francisco only proves again that people from the Bay Area are more intelligent, more hip, and generally superior to the unwashed masses throughout the rest of the country ;D

That's what always goes through my mind when drving through Oakland or Hayward...

 

[mightymoose]

I seem to recall being told that the SFX in KSFX stood for San Francisco Experience...whatever that means. I spent a year there part time in 1979-80 when they were emerging from their disco days. I think they actually climbed into the top 10 for a short after ditching disco yet playing a lot of R&B plus some Top 40 stuff. Gary Numan's Cars was one of the currents recall playing. Jim Smith was the PD then. I always found it supremely amusing, me a lil' ol' part timer, getting a paycheck drawn on a bank in Hollywood, CA!

 

[DavidKaye]

That's what always goes through my mind when drving through Oakland or Hayward...

It's funny. To many (including me), Hayward and Brisbane are the last two white trash cities in the Bay Area. Hayward, however, has always been a lot more hip than people imagine. For one, it has long (well, since the 70s anyway) had more gay bars than any other city its size (93,000 people, 5 gay bars). It also had one of the first branches of the Metropolitan Community Church, gay oriented Christian church. Also, among gay issues, it has had many firsts, including the first city-sponsored "gay prom" for folks under 20 who couldn't go or felt uncomfortable going to their school prom. http://www.gayprom.org/peinfo.html

In addition, the South Hayward Parish, a consortium of Christian churches, has done social organizing and non-judgmental community work since the 1960s.

Project Eden, a city-funded drug and family counseling agency, was one of the first in the Bay Area and has served as a model for community-participation healthy-family agencies nationwide.
http://www.horizonservices.org/HomePage/Programs.html

Hayward, in short, is an amazing place, especially given its roots as a cannery town (where Hunt Foods began).

Hayward once had an FM station, KBBM, 101.7, a move-in from Livermore. It was not successful, and soon the allocation was returned to Livermore.

But in the early days of radio, Hayward was the home of KZM, later known as KLX, and subsequently KEWB and now KNEW.

So, Hayward's not quite the hick town people think it is.

 

[BossRadioDJ]

But in the early days of radio, Hayward was the home of KZM, later known as KLX, and subsequently KEWB and now KNEW.

A clarification: KZM and KLX were separate stations. KZM was owned and operated by Preston D. Allen, while KLX was owned by the Oakland Tribune. Allen had been operating KZM from the Hotel Oakland before the Knowland family put KLX on the air in May 1922; he began operating and upgrading KLX's transmitting plant beginning in September of that year, but the station was programmed by the Tribune.

KZM was the centerpiece of Allen's wireless school, the Western Radio Institute.

Allen sold KZM to Leon Tenney in April 1928, at which time the station was moved to the Palmtag Building at B and Castro streets in Hayward.

The Brunton family, owners of KJBS (now KFAX), bought KZM from Tenney in 1930, but the Federal Radio Commission denied the ownership transfer, and the station folded in 1931.

 

[michael hagerty]

"That one's pretty easy. The true believers in the album rock format in San Francisco were all listening to KSAN. Tom Donahue (still alive at the time) and his people were a presence in the city. KMET didn't make that kind of grass-roots impact in L.A. and got blown away by formatics and marketing at KLOS...until about '76, when KMET re-invented itself as the ultimate bad boy and made KLOS look boring."

Thanks, Michael - as usual, your contribution to the History of Rock and Roll (Radio) is top notch. My personal opinion though, as a early 70s listener of album rock radio in LA: the Les Carter KPPC was far and away the best, but once it was blown up (71, I think), KMET was my default favorite, and - over time - because it picked up some of KPPC's staff and formatics - was a much better station than KLOS. At least until 73 when I left town, the higher-rated KLOS had literally no formatics, a play list that leaned more toward Top 40 hits, and personality-free DJs who would be at home today on "less talk" stations. I'm sure their instructions were:"back announce songs, read weather forecast, shut-up."

For a great inside look into both KMET and KLOS, scour the used bookstores and libraries for Jim Ladd's "Radio Waves". He changes the call letters of KMET to KAOS (chaos) and KLOS to KASH (cash), and some of the made-up names he uses for his former co-workers are pretty cringe-worthy ("Mega Turnon" for Mary Turner), but it's a great examination of how both KLOS and KMET approached the album rock format.

---Michael Hagerty

 

[DavidKaye]

A clarification: KZM and KLX were separate stations. KZM was owned and operated by Preston D. Allen, while KLX was owned by the Oakland Tribune.

The KLX physical plant was KZM, however. According to John Schneider: "KLX was a new station in name only, for it was operated with the same staff and equipment as KZM. Ross Smith remembered that they used to shut down the transmitter as KZM, and take to the air a half hour later as KLX. "

Link: http://www.oldradio.com/archives/stations/sf/klx.htm

Allen sold KZM to Leon Tenney in April 1928, at which time the station was moved to the Palmtag Building at B and Castro streets in Hayward.

Last I checked, the Palmtag still existed, on B just west of Mission Blvd (the former Castro Street). The Palmtag was also the HQ of the first telephone exchange in Hayward. Must've been a pretty important building in its day.

 

[LKellerIII]

"For a great inside look into both KMET and KLOS, scour the used bookstores and libraries for Jim Ladd's "Radio Waves". He changes the call letters of KMET to KAOS (chaos) and KLOS to KASH (cash), and some of the made-up names he uses for his former co-workers are pretty cringe-worthy ("Mega Turnon" for Mary Turner), but it's a great examination of how both KLOS and KMET approached the album rock format."

Thanks, Michael. Actually, as a returning 40 year old college student about 1992, I was browsing the San Francisco State University bookstore to kill a few minutes between classes, and found Ladd's book. I remembered him from KLOS. This was about a year before I had internet access, so at the time there were no online airchecks or posts from radio historians like you to rekindled my interest in Top 40 and album rock radio. I returned to the bookstore a couple of times to read passages from the book, but didn't consider buying it, being on a somewhat limited student's budget at the time.

It's listed on Amazon, so I may check it out.

 

[tripton99]

Former Pink Floyd leader, Roger Waters, had a great album called Radio KAOS and it was narrated by Ladd. One of the best songs ever produced is a song from that album called "The Tide is Turning."

 

[Marv-L.A.]

Does anyone remember how long after KHJ was launched (May 1965) did Bill Drake launch KFRC, and who the PD was?

 

[davideduardo]

Does anyone remember how long after KHJ was launched (May 1965) did Bill Drake launch KFRC, and who the PD was?

I don't recall the exact date (February, 1996 was the month I think), but the PD was Tom Rounds, who worked with KHJ PD Ron Jacobs at KPOI in Honolulu as one of the Poi Boys... Rounds went on to found, with RJ and Casem, American Top 40 in 1970.

 

[michael hagerty]

Apart from the typo, David's got it...February, 1966...with Tom Rounds. Tom left in October, 1967 after a disagreement with Bill Drake about the unique musical tastes of San Francisco listeners. Tom believed they had some, and his resignation made the front page of the first issue of Rolling Stone (which was published in San Francisco in those days).

Les Turpin had the gig until sometime in '68, when Ted Atkins was brought in from CKLW. He was there until 1970, when he went to KHJ and was replaced by Paul Drew. Drew stayed until '71, when Sebastian Stone came in from WOR-FM, New York.

In the summer of '73, the longest streak for a KFRC PD began...Michael Spears lasted almost four years, to May, 1977, when he left for KHJ. Les Garland from WRKO took over until leaving to be MTV's first PD in 1980. There is stuff on the web that says KHJ PD Chuck Martin actually replaced Garland very briefly before
Gerry Cagle's arrival. I don't remember ever hearing or seeing that until recently, so I'd love to hear from someone who knows whether it's true.

Cagle stayed until early '84, when Mike Phillips came in for a year or so. The baton passed to Dave Sholin for the final year as a top 40 (until August 1986), but he was dealing with consultant Walt Sabo and a desperate, "try-anything" attitude from RKO.

---Michael Hagerty

 

[sfradio]

That's what always goes through my mind when drving through Oakland or Hayward...

It's funny. To many (including me), Hayward and Brisbane are the last two white trash cities in the Bay Area. Hayward, however, has always been a lot more hip than people imagine. For one, it has long (well, since the 70s anyway) had more gay bars than any other city its size (93,000 people, 5 gay bars). It also had one of the first branches of the Metropolitan Community Church, gay oriented Christian church. Also, among gay issues, it has had many firsts, including the first city-sponsored "gay prom" for folks under 20 who couldn't go or felt uncomfortable going to their school prom. http://www.gayprom.org/peinfo.html

In addition, the South Hayward Parish, a consortium of Christian churches, has done social organizing and non-judgmental community work since the 1960s.

Project Eden, a city-funded drug and family counseling agency, was one of the first in the Bay Area and has served as a model for community-participation healthy-family agencies nationwide.
http://www.horizonservices.org/HomePage/Programs.html

Hayward, in short, is an amazing place, especially given its roots as a cannery town (where Hunt Foods began).

Hayward once had an FM station, KBBM, 101.7, a move-in from Livermore. It was not successful, and soon the allocation was returned to Livermore.

But in the early days of radio, Hayward was the home of KZM, later known as KLX, and subsequently KEWB and now KNEW.

So, Hayward's not quite the hick town people think it is.

Believe me it is not much of a hick town today, believe me I live by it