Felix J. McDonald, R.I.P.

Folks, I apologize- with working two jobs, exhaustion has been the order of each day- and I missed this e-mail sent to me by Dave Montgomery and Doug Virden yesterday (6/8/15):

Obituary for Felix J. McDonald

Felix J. McDonald, 89, of Wrightsville, Arkansas, passed away, Friday, June 5, 2015. He was born, February 4, 1926. Felix was in the U.S Army -40th Calvary Reconnaissance Troop during World War II. He was the Chief Engineer at KAAY radio and a founder of Alice 107.7 radio. He was a member of Mabelvale Pike Church of Christ.

He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Lois Oletia Hatley McDonald; daughters, Nancy Rinehart (David), Patricia Hardwick (Mark), Cindy Terrazas (Juan); sons, Larry and Lynn McDonald (Carla); fifteen grandchildren, Jason Rinehart, Aubrey Futch (Brandon), Rachael Mizell (Chris), Travis McDonald (Allie), Chris McDonald ; Doug McDonald, Zachary Williams (Danielle), Caleb Williams, Stanley Hardwick, Kali Terrazas, Shea Terrazas, Blayne Terrazas, Aaron McDonald, Alex McDonald and Andrew McDonald; five great-grandchildren, Rylin Rutch, Tynlee Futch, Zane Mizell, Wyatt Williams and Charlotte Williams; brother, Quitman McDonald; sisters Betty Fowler, Lucy Brann and Lois Sikes. 

He is preceded in death by his parents, James and Ella (Brown) McDonald; brothers, Colvin McDonald and Robert McDonald; sisters, Edna Young, Norma Dreher, Mary Riggin, Helen Johnston, and Ruby Johnson; 

Funeral service will be held 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, June 9, 2015, at the Smith-North Little Rock Funeral Home. Visitation will be held Monday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial will be in Martindale Cemetery. Online obituary at www.SmithFamilyCares.com.

 

To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Felix J. McDonald please visit our Sympathy Store.

 

David B. Treadway said, "Always knew where to hit it if it didn't work.  What a WIZARD."

 

I was fortunate to meet Felix and his wife when I visited Little Rock a few years ago- what a gentleman!

 

Thank you to Dave and Doug for letting me know...

 

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

 

More Info, Goodies From Eric Thomas!

Eric Lensing, a.k.a. "Eric Thomas" and I have been e-mailing back & forth- what a thrill to meet another one of The Greats!  Eric, however, is very humble, in that he was enamored with working with whom he considered The Greats at KAAY and other stations... here is more of his story, edited for content, along with some goodies he sent our way:

"As for Joe James, I didn’t work with him. I just sat in with him several times and then when KAAY had their summer softball team, my neighborhood guys played the Mighty 1090 – and Joe was a big promoter for their team. He was so smooth – I don’t think he was at KAAY long. He did afternoon drive."

 

And when I mentioned "Steve Scott" (Steve Morris) and our Amateur radio hobbies:

"And on top of all that you were able to reach Steve Scott who lives just on the other side of the your county. How cool is that? Of all the friends I met at various stations I never spent time with one that was a ham operator. Otherwise, I might have gotten into it back then. You have a great passion for it, and after all, that’s what keeps us young at heart! Passion. You mentioned how you were hooked on radio as a kid – so was I. I never called the out of state stations like you did, but I spent hours and hours listening to John Landecker on WLS in Chicago, The Roadrunner on WOAI in San Antonio, and The Mean 15 – WLAC in Nashville. And, of course, I did call in requests to Steve Scott at KAAY. Those were my stations."

 

"I didn’t want to expose the actual names of those that helped me on the way, but I did see where Bob Nelson wrote on your site and mentioned some real names - so I guess it’s ok to say the Bob Majers I mentioned was in fact Bob Nelson. And the Dave Freeman was actually Boyce Barger. Great guys."

 

"I also saw you were asking for help from anyone who worked with or knew the whereabouts of a few jocks. One was Dr. Grady Brock. I worked with him at KKYK and he was a true pro. He had worked in Chicago with Larry LuJack and I asked about him from time to time. He did tell me Larry LuJack liked to walk around with his cans around his neck with the plug stuck inside one of his back pockets. I started doing it from that moment on. Dr. Brock was very intense when working and would not let anyone in the control room, and I admired that. If only I could have that much swag- haha! Another great guy I worked with was David B. Treadway. What an original! The man was hilarious on and off the air. He worked with Dr. Brock so he may have some information."

David B. Treadway is definitely one of a kind!  he is still working on KQUS, "US 97" in Hot Springs, AR, with the beautiful and talented Vicki Parker!

"I’ve attached a few memos from KAAY PD Steve Kelly. He was a man in control. The memo about the hotline just made me laugh and brought back a good memory. I had just starting working at KAAY and one beautiful summer Sunday afternoon I was on the air and the hotline lit up. Really surprised me. I grabbed the phone and a voice said, who is this? I gave my name. Then a pause. What song are you playing? I told him. Another pause. Who is singing this song? Gave him the info. Then he asked if it was a new song. I said no. I was playing Pleasant Valley Sunday by The Monkees and our then GM Phil Zeni was outside in his yard cooking out and was listening to the station. And he actually lived in a neighborhood in Little Rock called Pleasant Valley. I don’t know who was more freaked out – him listening to the words of the song or me having the hotline go off. Good times."

 

 

 

"Once again, thanks for all you do. Keep up the good work.

Eric Thomas"

Thank YOU, Eric, for sharing!  We hope to see more goodies one day!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

     

The 30th Anniversary Reunion, Part 3

OK, we come to the end of the pictures and memories.  Sure hope someone thought to roll tape (video or audio) of this reunion... if you did, please contact me, I'll put it on here!

OK, some parting comments of Doug Virden, with pictures:

"The first and second pics are of Bob Robbins and Sonny Martin telling some good stories of them working together over the years.

  Barry McCorkindale playing some old audio.

Clyde Clifford telling his story about the final night of the old KAAY.

Felix McDonald and his family were sitting to the left of the stage, right before Felix started making his way around the room.

Finally Rex Nelson is speaking, is very knowledgeable of everything Arkansas.  Had held various media jobs over the years and telling about his days of listening to KAAY.  His most important line was that the old KAAY still is alive is each and every one of us."

David B. Treadway was unable to make an appearance because of company arriving all the way from Scotland... but I'll bet if he were to have made it, would have been another powerful personality in the room; he mentioned regretting not being able to come.  AND, for your further enjoyment, here is a link from Michael Hibblin's report on UALRE Public Radio- listen to the audio!

http://ualrpublicradio.org/post/former-employees-kaay-mark-anniversary-day-music-died

Thanks again to conttributors Doug Virden, Barry McCorkindale and Michael Hibblin- and to those who attended!  Also thanks to Greg Barman for his great assistance.  May KAAY's memories live on forever!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

"Radio Yesterday" from Barry Mac - April 1, 2005

Here is another in the series of Radio Yesterday shows from Barry Mac that aired on KAAY as a reminder and celebration of the station's roots. 

This show is from April 1, 2005, and features:  Brubeck taking less than 6, Wilson Pickett in love, a Beatles B-side, John Fogerty's post-CCR venture, and another one-hit wonder.  Plus, more fun with old KAAY audio:


(or download here)
Thank you Barry!  More shows to come.


Greg

Eric Thomas Shares His Story!

Eric Lensing, a.k.a. "Eric Thomas" and I have been corresponding.  He sends more goodies for us to share here, along with his story.  Eric mentioned, "My first true love was radio and I kept quite a bit of stuff when I was in the position to acquire it."  I, for one, am certainly glad he saved stuff from the round file!

Eric also mentioned to me that he took his dad's name, Thomas, as his air name, hence, Eric Thomas; what a way to honor your dad with a successful career!

Enough said, I want to share Eric's story with you, dear visitor, with some memorabilia sprinkled about:

"Everybody has interesting stories - as far as my story – I contacted Dick Downes, who was PD at KAAY, during early 1977 and offered to do anything pro-bono at the station. He was very kind and hired me to do some local callout research on weekends. Yep, I went to the station, got out a phone book, hooked up a cart deck, and commenced to call people at random playing 10 second snippets of songs and asked the caller to rate them from 1 to 10. Amazingly enough, I was rarely hung up on back then, haha! Dick also allowed me to sit in during DJ Joe James weekend shift and just observe. Wow, what a pro! He had come to KAAY from a powerhouse station in Cleveland, OH. I can’t recall which one. But Joe James was such a great jock.

 

 

Soon afterward, in the same building, easy listening KEZQ changed formats to KQ94 and Stuart McRae became its program director. He was very kind to me and kind of took me under his wing. He allowed me to be on the first “KQ94 Rock Advisory Board” and later go on-the-air for the first time in LR between 1am-4am every now and then to get the feel for it. I laugh at it now. Man, I was so shell shocked and tentative. But it was SO MUCH FUN. A great big thanks to Stuart, Bob Majers (KQ music director) and Dave Freeman (KQ 7-12 jock) for their patience and help and patience. Great times. Yea, I was still in high school and my parents let me pull the all-nighters as long as I went to school the next day. I was never asked to don the KQ94 Kangaroo costume for local remotes and outings, but I knew someone who did. Let me just say it was a hot job.

And that is how I got my start at KAAY and KQ94. So, I was actually on FM before AM. A few months before my high school graduation I got my first “real job” doing all-nights at local competitor KKYK (working for a wonderful PD, Jim Cassidy, whom I really loved for having faith in me). Over a year later I came back to KAAY and then bounced from KAAY to KQ94 – from control room to control room. Steve Kelly was PD of both stations at that time and was one heck of a go-getter. He was a hands-on boss who came to Multimedia after being a record rep in the Texas area. He knew the biz and treated me well! And I loved every single minute on KAAY. It was my dream station as a kid and I had so much respect for the station and all who were once on it.

 

In fact, I it was during a Memorial Day holiday weekend when I was doing a 7-12 shift on KAAY when I got a buzz from the front door of the station. A guy came on the intercom saying he once worked on KAAY and was driving through and wanted to show his wife or girlfriend the station.  I let him upstairs and we talked a bit and he was so happy to see it all again. I asked him what his on-air name was and he said  Steve Scott! The guy I admired and listened to all of those evenings when I was growing up – was right there. That was a magical moment! Dreams do come true."

 

I mentioned to Eric about being one of "The Greats"- and he humbly said that he was in the presence of the greats, such as "Clyde Clifford, Joe James, Steve Scott, Stuart McRae, Wayne Moss, Marvelous Mark and all the others."  I am still of the opinion that if one had the opportunity to work, er, PLAY at the 50,000-watt blowtorch KAAY, they were indeed in great company....

Thank you, Eric, for sharing your story!  We hope to hear of many other dreams that came true in your career at KAAY!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Old KTHS Shows?

Found in my e-mail box today (5/26/15):

"I used to listen to KTHS around 10 p.m. when the clear channels kicked in.  I lived in west central Minnesota in the mid-50’s.  There was a record salesman who called himself “Gatemouth (with the laughin’ face).”  He would say “The 78’s are the big record with the little hole and the 45’s are the little record with the big hole.”  This was our first exposure to rock n’ roll and we loved it.  The frequency was near to KMOX in St. Louis so I’d catch a Cardinals game while I waited for Gatemouth.  I have fond memories of those days and always wondered what his name was, hearing about Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, and other greats.  Wonderful record specials!  I’d appreciate any links to information about those old shows.  Thanks!

Sincerely,

John Teisberg

 jeteis36@msn.com"

 

Folks, we here at the Mighty 1090 KAAY Blog would also like any links & info regarding the predecessor to KAAY!  Can anyone help John, please?

 

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

 

 

 

REMEMBER....

In both my jobs, I come across many people- some memorable characters stand out, however.  Like the one old 89-year-old Marine who comes into the store on my second job.  I never knew his name (and I'm ashamed that I never asked), but he was always grateful for my help.  Somehow, he was able to drive, but his eyesight was so poor, that he couldn't tell the denomination of the cash he handed me to take (or if it was enough) or needed help to run his debit card...he couldn't read the PIN pad.  He always apologized for my having to help him.  I told him he had no need to apologize, that it was my privilege to serve him for what he's done for me.

For a while, he was in every week, buying dog food, sometimes a little food for himself.  He always seemed to recognize my voice and I recognized his slow, painful walk across the parking lot.  I took the time to hold the door for him and shake his hand and he was always a gracious gentleman.  Even at 89 years, his grip was a bone-crusher, and I reveled in his strength....

When he completed his transaction, he would say, "GOD bless you, sir!" and I would reply, "GOD bless YOU, as well!"  I would tell the people behind him that they were walking in the steps of a real man, a Marine.  Many would immediately thank him and sometimes he got hugs and handshakes from those in line.  He would walk out of the store a little straighter then....

He lied about his age and joined the Marines at age 16;  He was in well over 30 years and was in pretty rough shape from the conflicts he'd weathered.  I haven't seen him in about a year now; I wonder where he is.  But every time I saw him, I made sure I thanked him for his service.

For those of you who served, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!  For those who didn't, please be sure to thank a veteran- EVERY DAY, not just today.

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

The 30th Anniversary Reunion, Part 2

As promised, we're continuing on with other pictures from the KAAY 30th reunion, compliments of Doug Virden.  All of these are of pictures from a board outside the room of various other pictures plastered on a display board.  You'll see Sonny Martin accepting an award, an earlier picture of himself in the studio, a collage of photos, the blue Funmobile in one picture, Ray & Ram billboard from later FM days and a couple others...By the way, who are they guys in the bathtub?

Remember when we posted a couple of these awhile back of Sonny (Matt White)?

Love those old radios!  You know, REAL radios glow in the dark!

R.I.P. Ray Lincoln....

Can anyone name these KAAY KQ94 personalities, please?

And WHO are these guys in the collage above, hmmm?  Maybe Sonny & Bob???

OK, one last installment to go!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Radio Yesterday from Barry Mac! Feb 20, 2005

We are happy to present several of Barry McCorkindale's "Radio Yesterday" shows that aired on KAAY from early 2003 to late 2006.   Each weekend, KAAY would break away from its regular Christian programming to allow the old rock'n'roll KAAY to come back, however briefly.  Barry would feature songs from the 60's to early 80's era of KAAY interspersed with bits of old spots, jingles, and airchecks. Some of the commercials were on tapes that were rescued from storage at the transmitter site.

Barry explained the history of these shows in an earlier Blog post: 

http://mighty1090kaay.blogspot.com/2010/07/barry-mac-kaay-rewound-and-radio.html

We would like to thank Doug Virden for his help in dubbing the shows off the reel tapes and getting them to us here at the Blog!

On this show from February 20, 2005, Barry's playlist includes a favorite telephone number from the 60's, a favorite movie theme, and the only top 40 song to feature a tuba solo:


(or download here)

Thank you Barry!   We have more shows coming up in the next few months. 


Greg Barman

Eric Thomas Checks In!!!

Eric Lensing, known as "Eric Thomas" checked in recently!  He sent in a concert ad for us to enjoy...here are the pictures he sent, then a little note from him at the end....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"To Bud S. – I found your site and scrolled around feeling a bit nostalgic and gratified someone is doing this. My on-air name on KAAY and several other LR stations from 1979-1986 was Eric Thomas, and I had a blast working on the Blowtorch of the South. No – it was more than that. It was an honor! I grew up in LR listening to KAAY and I have to say it was my most satisfying on-air experience (even though the glory years were in the rear view mirror at that point.)

Anyway, I have some old flyers, memos and program director notes from my time on Cottondale Lane if you think they would be worth scanning and sending. Let me know.

Oh yea, I saw on your site that several years ago there was a KAAY reunion with some old jocks. Sorry I missed that. I worked with Stuart and Jay back in the Multimedia days, and Tom at Magic 105.

Keep up the good work.

Eric"

I am very grateful to Eric for contacting us!  For those of you who may not know Eric, or would like a refresher, here is a link for his audio and other material:

http://mighty1090kaay.blogspot.com/search?q=Eric+Thomas

Thank you, Eric!  We are looking forward to hearing from you again soon!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

The 30th Anniversary Reunion, Part 1

Folks, Barry Mac (Barry McCorkindale) has brought us an account of that evening, when numerous KAAY Greats (himself included!) gathered, with about 35 other folks in attendance.  I wish I could have been there....  Herewith, Barry Mac's account:

"

It was the 30th anniversary of "the day the music died," the last broadcasting day of the "old" KAAY, April 3rd, 1985.  We gathered at The Oyster Bar party room, just as we did two and a half years ago for the station's 50th anniversary birthday party.  A lot of the same suspects were in attendance this time around, including Arkansas broadcasting legends Bob Robbins, Sonny Martin, Clyde Clifford, and Charlie Scarbrough.  Also, long time political columnist/sports announcer/jack-of-all-trades Rex Nelson descended upon us, as he, Bob and Sonny, and Clyde all shared stories with us.  In between the stories shared by our speakers, I ran some old audio bits, including a number of news items and commercials, including a great 1974 "blooper" reel featuring Bob Robbins and Bill Edwards, as they tried about a dozen times to get through a script for voter registration.  But the highlight of the evening was long time station engineer Felix McDonald coming through the party room double doors.  One of his daughters had told me earlier in the week that they were going to try to get Felix to come out, but being that his health hasn't been very good the last few years, and the fact that he's 89 years old, I wasn't holding out too much hope.  But lo and behold, at approximately 7:45 in the evening, Felix, his wife, Oleta, and two of their daughters made their entrance.  And after they had a seat at one of the tables, it was about five minutes later, while Clyde Clifford was sharing some of his stories, that Felix stood up and kind of surveyed the crowd.  After about a minute, he and his cane started making their way around the room, occasionally leaning in to share words with the various people who caught his eye.  And it was about five minutes later that Bob Robbins up and grabbed the microphone to give Felix a rousing introduction, which brought the crowd of about 35 to their feet with an energetic round of applause.

The "Two Macs"!!! 

On display just inside the entrance to the party room were a number of items from many years ago, including an enlarged KAAY top 25 chart from August of 1976 (Walter Murphy's "A Fifth of Beethoven" inhabited the #1 spot, by the way), as well as a picture of the late Governor Winthrop Rockefeller holding up a KAAY Arkansas Razorback-Texas Longhorn game day poster.

Much thanks to Virginia Boyd for accommodating us at the restaurant that she's owned for so many years.  It's really a perfect atmosphere for a gathering like ours.

I have to say that the only thing missing from this party was the presence of David B. Treadway, who, of course, was the program director those last few months before ownership transferred from Multimedia to Sudbrink Broadcasting.  And let me add, there will no consideration of any more KAAY gatherings unless David B. confirms he WILL be in attendance.  We had a great time without him, but we would've had a better time with him."

Thank you, Barry Mac!  The following are various pictures, thanks to Doug Virden, from the reunion.  Oh, here are a trio of clowns, showing off their "retro" flip phones, Gordon Stephan, Barry Mac and Charlie Scarbrough!

There were also various pictures of Doug with Clyde Clifford, Sonny Martin, Bob Robbins and sundry other items:

Folks, there are SO many pictures, this post will have to continue into several more parts!  Pleas stay tuned!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Marvin Vines' Business Card!

Tony Meyer found this in a briefcase Marvin Vines gave him... he and Doug Virden posted it on Facebook:

 

Thanks guys for sharing this!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Dan Goode (Tom Gallagher") Gone Into Eternity....

Folks, it was brought to my attention this morning (5/7/15) that Dan Goode, otherwise known as "Tom Gallagher" on KAAY, has passed away:

http://thecabin.net/obituaries/2015-05-06/dan-goode

Dan Goode 

Dan Goode, 63, of Conway passed away Tuesday, May 5, 2015.

He was born March 9, 1952, to the late Marple J. Goode and Leva A. Goode.

He was a radio broadcaster under the name Tom Gallagher.

After retiring from radio, Dan began his second career as a truck driver.
He is survived by his wife of 31 years, Sheila Swan Goode; son, Brent Goode of Conway; two daughters, Courtney Goode Grady (David) and Ashley Goode, both of Conway; grandchildren, Chloe Goode, Drake Grady and Laney Ford; brothers-in-law, Greg Swan (Carol) of Texarkana, Ark. and Damon Swan (Loretta) of Tyler, Texas; and many other loving family members and friends.

Memorial service will be 10 a.m. Friday, May 8, 2015 at Roller-McNutt Funeral Home in Conway, with Reverend Damon Swan officiating.

I had e-mailed Dan several times over the years, after his initial contact with us with no response.  I figured that, as with some, that he didn't want to "look back" any more.  Maybe someone can give some fond memories as to his time at KAAY.

Rest in peace, Dan....

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)
 

The FINAL Beaker Street on KAAY - April 3, 1985

The Day The Music Died.  That phrase has been used to describe what happened to so many AM Rock stations that wound up dumping their cherished music formats during the 1980’s.  It was happening all over the country, even to big legendary stations like WABC/New York, WLS/Chicago, CKLW/Windsor-Detroit, KIMN/Denver -- stations that nobody thought would ever give up the music that made them great.  Sadly, it became KAAY’s turn to throw in the towel on April 3, 1985, when it capped several days of reminiscences about its legendary history with a final Beaker Street show, AND with Clyde Clifford, at the final hour before Midnight.

We are fortunate that this Blog has great accounts of that Final day from people who were there.  The first one is from Barry McCorkindale:

http://mighty1090kaay.blogspot.com/2010/04/last-day-last-hour-part-1-barry.html

And, from the final PD, David Treadway:

http://mighty1090kaay.blogspot.com/2010/04/last-day-last-hour-part-2-david-b.html

The last KAAY Beaker Street show featured many of the songs it helped to make famous back in the day:

Arthur Brown – Fire

Deep Water Reunion (with Barbara Raney) – Cindy’s Cryin

Allman Brothers Band – Revival

Quicksilver Messenger Service – Fresh Air

Leon Russell – Delta Lady

Jamie Brockett – Legend of the U.S.S. Titanic

Jefferson Airplane – Wooden Ships

Black Sabbath – The Wizard

Joni Mitchell – The Circle Game

Here is the aircheck of the final hour of that final day on KAAY.  Clyde Clifford gave tribute to his co-workers, his listeners, the music, and the grand old RCA 50,000-watt transmitter…..and “put the old girl down”:

(or download here)

This brings to a close our Beaker Street aircheck series, for now (until some “new” old tapes of the show re-surface, I got a feeling they’re still out there, somewhere).  We hope you have enjoyed this series as much as we have in putting it together. 

Next time:  The Reunion

Greg Barman

Barry Mac's Tin Can Alley To Air Twice A Weekend On KAAY!

Yes, thanks to Doug Virden, Tin Can Alley has expanded its hours to include a 2PM Sunday slot on KAAY!  Be sure to let Barry Mac know you're listening!  As always, you can listen to it here every week, as our very own computer guru and blog co-founder Dave Schmidt posts Tin Can Alley right here on The Mighty 1090 KAAY Blog!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Another 1977 Beaker Street Aircheck With Stuart (McRae)

This is the last aircheck we have, truly taken off the air via a radio, of Beaker Street, back in 1977, with Stuart (McRae).

Looking back, I remember having pulled that 1966 Dodge Coronet 440 up to the shop door where I worked, having it warming up those last few minutes before I punched out at 11PM, door open and KAAY blaring out of the four speakers...somehow, (I forgot), I plumbed the audio from the AM radio into my FM/8-track's audio chain.  When the time clock hit "11", I punched out, waved to my replacement and ran for the car, hearing the opening to Beaker Street.

Back then, gas was cheap, but we paid in pretty much real money.  Inflation had hit, we were getting less and paying more.  I remember I quit paying for Ethyl gasoline when it hit fifty cents per gallon...but, back then, I was in high cotton, taking home a $77 paycheck.  I dropped back to mid-grade, but I STILL drove 'way out of the way to listen to Beaker Street.

It was 19 miles from the gate of the business to my front gate...but I'd stretch an extra ten or more miles to it and, depending on the music, I'd either cruise, or I'd race...but it was all great.  I wish now, what with all the audio work I'd done then, that I'd have devised a way to tape off-the-air.  KAAY was coming in full strength, better than local radio stations, because of the huge radio antenna and in-line amplifier I had sucking that signal in!

Nonetheless, we are always looking for audio from the "glory days" of KAAY, from 1961-1985.  Now they're spreading God's glory and that is also a good thing- not airing that cop-killing, woman-degrading junk that some stations are airing...

When I graduated in 1977, I stayed out a year, healing from various sports injuries, taking a break and saving money for college.  When I entered college in 1978, I lost touch with KAAY and Beaker Street; I was working a full day shift, taking a full course load and clinical rotations at night- usually, I went straight home and when I got home, there wasn't much left of me to tune around, much less stay awake listening to radio.  Also, in those days, a new station had hit the FM airwaves, WZEW, who Stuart and Dick Downes had gone to work for- and I listened to them quite a bit...again, FM trumped AM....

So, enough of MY memories, let's end with Stuart and Beaker Street in 1977....


(or download here)
If there is ANYONE, ANYWHERE OUT THERE who has any more Beaker Street material to share, please contact me at the e-mail address below.  I'll be glad to pay for materials and postage, to be able to give YOU credit and post it here on the blog.  I am also desperately seeking audio of Don Payne on Beaker Street, who was the last deejay to head it up after Stuart McRae left.  Don Payne aired Beaker Street the last two or 2-1/2 weeks of its time in 1977, before "the suits" pulled the plug on April 3, 1977.

Thank you, dear visitor and friends of this blog- Greg, Dave S. and I certainly hope you enjoyed taking this historical walk down Beaker Street with us!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Beaker Street from 1977 with Stuart McRae

Just as we were approaching the end of our Beaker Street series, more surprises show up.  Like -- this aircheck from contributor Greg Mathieson, who had this show on cassette for years and has shared it with the Blog -- Thank you, Greg! 

It's from sometime in 1977 featuring Stuart McRae.  The aircheck is mostly untelescoped, tho it has a few breaks and sounds like it is a mix of several shows because the time checks are out of sequence.  It is DX reception on the skywave, location unknown, and the signal ranges from barely audible to loud and clear.  

The music lineup:  Pink Floyd, REO Speedwagon, Jeff Beck, Led Zepplin, Fleetwood Mac, Ambrosia, Kansas, Elton John, Deep Purple, and an unknown final track. 


(or download here)
Just as we thought -- there are still tapes of KAAY and Beaker Street out there, sitting in boxes in peoples' basements and attics, waiting to be discovered, dusted off and digitized! 

Greg Barman

Beaker Street & Beaker Theater - 4/13/71

Before we move on to the final airchecks in our Beaker Street series, we're going to take a step back for this aircheck because it contains a full Beaker Theater episode.

Beaker Theater ran at 2:00am right after Beaker Street, with double-features on the weekends.   A telescoped version of this aircheck has appeared earlier.  This recording with a full-length Beaker Theater is courtesy of Kenneth Hawkins, and we thank Kenneth very much for sharing it.   After 37 minutes of Beaker Street music, then Clyde's newscast, it's "The Geneva Mystery, Part 1" from the BBC on Beaker Theater.  From April 13, 1971:


(or download here)
Coming soon....the end of Beaker Street.  And, it's reappearance.


Greg Barman

1975 Beaker Street Aircheck

We'd posted this sometime in the past, but decided to add it to the line-up.  I can't remember if we'd ever found out who the DJ was... but, for historical reasons, here it is again:


(or download here)
Does anyone know who this is ?

We're getting close to the end....


Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

1974 Beaker Street With Tom Roberts

In this short intro to Beaker Street, you'll hear a change...no longer LIN Broadcasting.  Multimedia Inc. are the "suits" I mentioned before.  This show featured Tom Roberts.


(or download here)


Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

May 1975 Beaker Street with Ken Knight

Here is another aircheck of Beaker Street with one of the post-Clyde Clifford hosts -- Ken Knight.  Real name: Bill Jackson.   This was recorded off the skywave at my home in Evanston IL, just north of Chicago in May 1975.  It includes the intro for Beaker Theater, and a "Greetings to the great Southwest" ID.  Sorry for all the static, it must have been a stormy night!  

Note all the concert spots for venues as diverse as Minneapolis, Des Moines, Baton Route and Tulsa.  They all bought airtime to advertise their shows, knowing that Beaker Street and the 50,000-watt reach of KAAY was a great way to reach music fans beyond those cities.


(or download here)

Greg Barman

KAAY Off The Air Again

As reported by Doug Virden and others on the KAAY Facebook page, KAAY has been off the air again... I will investigate this further, as to the reason.  Looking back to my visit a few years ago, the transmitter site was in deplorable condition...the antenna system had just been repaired after copper thieves had vandalized it...but when Jerry Sims (God rest his soul), David B. Treadway and I were there, the transmitter was all the way DOWN...the Optimod on the back-up 5kw transmitter wouldn't even work, so we were probably preserved from any stray RF energy frying our brains any further while out on the field, looking for little Glaspie Dillard's grave.

Nonetheless, if you tune across 1090, it's not there; I'm also told that KARN, 920 AM, has also been off the air since February.  Is this a sign of the times that the owner (Cumulus) doesn't care, that they're just milking all the money they can out of these stations before they go dark?  I said it before and I'll say it again: when consolidation was allowed years ago, it was the death knell of radio as we knew it.  Of course, there have been other factors... but allowing huge conglomerate companies to monopolize the airwaves has KILLED radio....

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

December 1974 Beaker Street with Ken Knight

Alas, after 1972 when Clyde Clifford left KAAY and Beaker Street, different people headed up Beaker Street, as "the suits" saw fit.  This aircheck was donated to A. J. by Greg Barman and features a "Ken Knight", who was Steve Morris' ("Steve Scott") friend Bill Jackson.


(or download here)
"GREETINGS, QSL'ERS!"

Thanks, Greg!

(Note -- this was reception of KAAY on the skywave in Evanston IL, just north of Chicago).

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Beaker Street with Don Marcus - February 1974

This is an untelescoped aircheck of the mysterious "Don Marcus", with the opening 44:11 of Beaker Street in February of 1974.  This aircheck is courtesy of former KAAY PD Wayne Moss, who has contributed many airchecks to the Blog.

According to Steve Morris ("Steve Scott", 1972-74): "Don Marcus was a bit strange (as we all were).  He was a very small guy with great long hair ala; 'Kenny G'.  When he moved to Tucson, I moved into his apartment out by the U of A @ L.R.  I inherited his telephone number, waterbed, furniture, etc.  (back then when ya moved to another radio station, you never took more than you could carry in the trunk of your car).  Of course he worked  from 11pm 'till 5am...By virtue of his shift, he very seldom appeared at any KAAY functions."

Steve also remembers that maybe Wayne Moss hired Don Marcus from Kansas City "or somewhere like that"...I called Wayne later and he didn't know very much about him, it had been so long. Wayne told me that Don had left for a very lucrative offer in Arizona while Wayne was on vacation; Don had told GM Pat Walsh that he couldn't pass on the offer and then left.

Steve also adds: "Don Marcus replaced O'Brian (Mike Verdicchio) on Beaker Street, O'Brian came downtown to do 8-11pm.  When Marcus departed for Tucson, Ariz., Wayne hired Ken Knight (Bill Jackson) from Joplin, Mo., to do Beaker Street.  Of course I took over 8-11pm from O'Brian when he left to go to KLZ-FM in Denver."

We have been unsuccessful trying to reach Don Marcus or to find out anything about his whereabouts after leaving KAAY.  If anybody knows more about him please let us know here at the Blog.

And now: "Greetings QSL'ers! This is KAAY Little Rock!"  Lou Reed, Suzie Quatro, Slade, Alice Cooper and more artists await your ear, as well as an ad for The Warehouse on February 21, 23, 24 and 25 with loads of artists - enjoy!



or download here


Bud S. & Greg B.

Lesley Turner, Daughter of Bill Summers, Needs Your Help!

I was just contacted by Lesley Turner, with the below message:

"My Dad, Bill Summers (Bill Stracner ), worked near and in the Little Rock market at: KBBA, KAAY, KXLR and KLRA. I am looking for air checks, articles, pictures and your memories of him at any station.  He was a DJ and a newsman. I have air checks for every where except KAAY. One of my earliest memories is sitting on top of the KAAY van during a Razorback Pep Rally. I need more memories. Please post responses here and Bud will get us in touch."

I e-mailed Lesley a link with everything we had on Bill, including air checks we have, but if there are any other things, I'd like to help her in her search.  Unfortunately, Bill died in 1981 under tragic circumstances.

Please help Lesley!!!!  Anyone?  Be sure to contact me ASAP, with the header on the e-mail as "Bill Summers", please.

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

KAAY's Bob Robbins & O'Brian on Beaker Street - October 3, 1973

This is Bob Robbins with KAAY's regular Top-40 format in its final half hour leading up to O'Brian with Beaker Street, on October 3, 1973.

You'll hear Bob promo Beaker Street and "some of that dope smokin' kind of music."  Then, "Impact", a short public-affairs break.  Finally, "Greetings Northern Mid America!" and Beaker Street rolls with O'Brian, starting off with music from the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Joe Walsh, and War.

"O'Brian" was (and still is!) a friend of "Steve Scott" (Steve Morris) from that era and has been mentioned here before.  "O'Brian's" name is Mike Verdicchio, who now runs a number of very successful businesses today.

Thanks to KAAY's former PD Wayne Moss, for contributing this cassette aircheck to the Blog.


(or download here)
 Greg B & Bud S. 

Russell Wells' '72 Beaker Street

Russell Wells had originally donated this 1972 'scoped aircheck to A. J. Lindsey for his blog...we're bringing it back.

I'd LOVE to find all this music and meld it back into the 'scoped airchecks....


(or download here)
Thanks to Russell Wells, friend of this blog!



BudS. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Another Warehouse Ad

Back a few posts, (aircheck listed as August 14, 1971)  Clyde Clifford was running an ad for the above groups appearing at A Warehouse in New Orleans...the problem is, the ad was mentioned August 13th and 14th!  Nonetheless, here is a poster of the event, featuring Ten Years After and Edgar Winter's White Trash... enjoy!

Thanks to Bobby Wahl again for allowing us to bring these goodies to you!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

We Inturrupt This Series....

For a plea from Kenneth Hawkins:

Kenneth HawkinsFebruary 16, 2015 at 8:46 AM

Does anyone out there have any Beaker Street shows on tape or disc they can share with me? I have a whole bunch of B.S. shows on MP3 from 1970 to the very last show of 2011. I would particularly like some of those shows from the 60s if anyone has them? Let me know what you all have. THANKS!

 

KENNETH: get in touch with me A.S.A.P., lets see what you have... my e-mail address is: staceys4@hotmail.com

 

Bud

Beaker Street with Clyde Clifford - June 1-2 1972

It's Summer 1972, and here is Beaker Street on the skywave as received in Evanston, Illinois.  It brings back a lot of memories for me.

I grew up in Evanston (a northern suburb of Chicago), was an active DX-er, and I was fascinated by this powerful, exotic station from Arkansas that boomed in every night on 1090.   The signal was sometimes almost as strong as our local big city rockers, WLS and WCFL.  But Beaker Street sure didn’t sound like anything on the air on AM or FM in Chicago!  The underground rock music with the southern blues, folk and country influences, Clyde Clifford’s laidback style, the “Head” music bed under his raps – it was all such a strange, spooky, interesting mix.  I can’t count the number of nights I stayed up late to listen, keeping the volume low so as to not wake up anyone else in the house.  As a young man who was fascinated with radio and so eager to work in the business, Beaker Street and KAAY were radio magic to me. 

This is a full 3-hour show I taped the night of June 1-2, 1972, 11pm-2am, telescoping the aircheck along the way (sorry, there is no untelescoped version).  The signal fades up and down, but as you’ll hear it’s pretty good skip reception most of the time.  The aircheck ends with the intro to Beaker Theater and Clyde’s dry, funny description of what was to come.   

This show has been posted previously in two parts, but this is first time the entire show is posted in one single file.  Bud Stacey says this aircheck may well be the best and most representative of the original Beaker Street, and I agree.  The music is a rich mix of artists that includes:

Hour 1:  The Flock, McKendree Spring, Nick Drake, Eric Clapton, Grateful Dead, Robert Johnson, Leon Russell, Judy Collins.

Hour 2:  Hawkwind, Daddy Cool, Steppenwolf, Joyous Noise, Vigrass & Osborne, Bloodrock.

Hour 3:  Dust, Bloodrock, Arlo Guthrie, Foghat, The Chambers Brothers, Spooky Tooth, Mason Proffit. 

The commercials are great, too.  It amazes me how someone could to go to A Warehouse in New Orleans and hear such tremendous music for just $4! 

Listen to this show in a dark room or on a dark road at night to best capture the mood.   Thanks Clyde, for all the entertainment and music discovery you provided for us young people growing up in the Midwest. 

(or download here)

Greg Barman

Another Great Ad From Beaker Street

Something just occurred to me today...when I was listening to the January 1, 1972 aircheck, I thought about the ad where The Allman Brothers, Vince Vance & The Valients and REO Speedwagon played an encore concert that night, since so many people weren't able to make the concert New Year's Eve (12/31/71).  I thought of our friend Bobby Wahl and The Warehouse tribute site, wondering if there wasn't some more memorabilia there... lo and behold, there was a poster of the concert!

Bobby is constantly improving the site, so you MUST go there and check it out, if you haven't recently!  http://www.blackstrat.net/  Clyde Clifford ran these ads (and many more) well outside KAAY's local area, because the station's signal covered so much ground- it was like a worldwide shortwave station!  So many people flocked to The Warehouse, I believe, because of KAAY's/Clyde's airing the ads.

By gosh, here's another one:

The ad for the encore concert ran many times in the early A.M. hours of Beaker Street on this particular aircheck...remember hearing them in the post a few back?

From time to time, I'll sprinkle a bit of history here and there, hopefully for your enjoyment, to augment the experience of the airchecks!

Alas, I never made it to The Warehouse; I worked all the time I wasn't in school and college.  There was little time for play.  I was able to make concerts in Mobile, AL, Pensacola, FL and Gulfport, MS, because I could drive back home in a reasonable time and not lose too much sleep.  I regret that I never made it to New Orleans.

THANKS SO MUCH to Bobby Wahl, the master of The Warehouse tribute website!  Give it a visit and leave Bobby a note telling him you saw this here and how nice his site is looking- it just keeps getting better and better!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)

Clyde Clifford Interview about Beaker Street

This is a re-post of one of the few interviews that Clyde Clifford has given about KAAY and Beaker Street.

In 1995, Clyde Clifford did this phone interview with Jim Snowbarger, a self-described radio nut, electrical engineer, KAAY fan and internet radio producer/host in Marshalltown, Iowa.  Jim sent me a copy of the interview several years ago and gave his okay to pass it along to this blog.

The interview lasts about 29 minutes and Clyde talks about:  The beginnings of Beaker Street;  how the spooky background music bed came about; whether the KAAY transmitter site was haunted; the transmitter studio equipment; the last Beaker Street show on KAAY in 1985; his Beaker Street shows on FM in 1995; his day job at UALR; and why he's still unflappably happy.


(or download here)
Greg Barman

Beaker Street August 14, 1971

Here is another Beaker Street that Dave S. was able to glean from A.J.'s blog before the players broke...after Jethro Tull's "My God", notice the more familiar "Cannabis Sativa" background music?

The Dr. Pepper commercial harkens back to better times, in my opinion.  Music was MUSIC, not the synthesized versions we've gotten used to today.  I love the nuances of multiple voices and actual instruments!


(or download here)
I am grateful to Dave S. for his rescue efforts, and to Greg for helping repost everything here!

Do you like us bringing back these memories?  Please leave us some comments!

Bud S. (staceys4@hotmail.com)