Chad
New Member
Keeping Louisville Music Alive with my 45's
Posts: 38
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Post by Chad on Apr 11, 2006 10:16:32 GMT -5
Whilst perusing many Top 30 lists from the 1960's and 1970's from WAKY and WKLO I seem to notice that many country songs seemed to score higher on WAKY than WKLO. Some seemed exclusive to WAKY. I wonder how the PD decided that a few country songs would go good with the mix.
While I like both stations, I love variety and think it is great to see country mixed in along with other forms of music. Not the real twangy hillbilly country, but definatley country music. Just my thoughts and if anyone has anything to add I would love to read about it.
Chad
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Post by 1240WINN on Apr 11, 2006 20:08:17 GMT -5
Chad:
It actually went both ways. On WINN during the early 70's, it was not uncommon to hear CCR singing "Lookin' Out My Back Door", Rick Nelson singing "Garden Party", or John Phillips singing "Mississippi".
The country rock movement was very strong at that time and Louisville had some progressive PDs like Johnny Randolph at WAKY and Danny King and Moon Mullins at WINN.
It was nice to hear good music without it being labeled country or rock. The lines are much more clearly drawn these days. Heck, I don't even consider half of what is played on WAMZ to be true country...20 years ago it would have been Top 40!
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Chad
New Member
Keeping Louisville Music Alive with my 45's
Posts: 38
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Post by Chad on Apr 12, 2006 2:26:50 GMT -5
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Happiest Girl In The Whole USA", "Easy Lovin", and "Satin Sheets" which were definately pure country and all made it to #1 or #2 on WAKY. Admittedly the first was a Top 10 Pop hit nationally but the latter two were not. I love the variety which was Top 40: You could hear six different kinds of music on one station.
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Post by Travis on Apr 12, 2006 3:53:54 GMT -5
Bill Bailey would often play tunes on his show that were not heard at other times during the day, except possibly during the midday shift; especially, when Dude Walker was working it.
When I think of songs on Bailey's show, I think of Ray Price's 'For the Good Times,' Ann Murray's 'Snowbird,' Mike Nesmith & the First National Band's 'Joann' and a whole lot of stuff that I never heard of.
Bailey often brought records from home and played them on his show. You never knew what you were going to hear. The songs were not all necessarily country, they were just... different.
"That's a Bailey oldie. I brought that record from home. This two-bit nickel & dime operation can't afford good music like that." - Bill Bailey on WAKY
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Post by bruiser on Apr 12, 2006 7:42:12 GMT -5
Of course the Duke was a big Jim Reeves fan. He played a lot of Jim's recordings. Jim was pure gold with the female audience. Reeves recording of "Distant Drums" was played quite often, not only by the Duke, but by the other jocks as well. It never made top 40, but fit in well with the Viet Nam era:
I hear the sound of distant drums Far away, far away And if they call for me to come Then I must go and you must stay
So Mary marry me, let's not wait Let's share all the time we can before it's too late Love me now for now is all the time there may be If you love me Mary, Mary marry me
I hear the sound of bugles blow Far away, far away And if they call, then I must go Across the sea, so wild and grey.
So Mary marry me, let's not wait For the distant drums might change our wedding date And love me now, for now is all the time there may be If you love me Mary, Mary marry me
"For The Good Times", "Joanne", and "Snowbird" were all top 40 pop hits, with "Snowbird" making the top 10.
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Post by Travis on Apr 12, 2006 17:22:42 GMT -5
Oddly enough, I don't remember ever hearing the Duke play Jim Reeves. My parents were into country and loved Jim Reeves. It's my understanding that he was a radio announcer (what a nice voice) and died in a plane crash. I was just thinking that I haven't even heard the name of Jim Reeves since Ronnie Milsap did a take on 'Am I Losing You' some years ago.
My favorite was 'Wreck of the #9.' It was one of those tear-jerking tunes about a coal hauling train engineered by a young groom-to-be when it jumped the tracks and... well... you know how these tunes go.
"There's a little white home that I built for our own where I dreamed we'd be happy, you and I. But I leave it to you for I know you'll be true til we meet at the golden gates. Goodbye"
Where's my Hanky? I NEED MY HANKY!!
Oops... Gotta go. My therapist is on the phone.
*pHnoRk*
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Post by John Quincy on Apr 12, 2006 17:53:29 GMT -5
Speaking of country music, when did WINN bite the bullet as a viable country music outlet?
I didn't listen too much to the station in the 70s, but I remember being impressed by the way it presented country music (great jingles, professional sounding announcers, lots of crossover product) compared with the typical Kentucky country station. (I worked at four of them in the '70s.)
I know WINN was owned by the same company as Lexington's WVLK, which did a decent job in the state's number two city. (WVLK was usually number one in Lexington in the '70s.)
I assume WAMZ killed it in the early '80s with some help from WCII, right?
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Post by lfplfilmsplicer on Apr 12, 2006 20:55:45 GMT -5
My WINN memories. I remember sometime in the early 80s, WINN announcing that Dolly Parton would be giving an interview at the station located at 3rd and Broadway. I remember standing and waiting on a very cold day for the arrival of Dolly. I really thought it was going to happen due to the large number of Louisville Police cars outside the station. But one by one the cars gradually disappeared. I asked one of the cops what was happening and he said that Dolly had decided to do her interview from her hotel room. All that for nothing!!!
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Post by 1240WINN on Apr 12, 2006 21:45:34 GMT -5
John:
Here is what I recall about the demise of WINN...
In 1977, WAMZ started operation as the first FM Country station in Louisville. It was automated with one Drake-sounding jingle of the call letters. But it was the first, which gave it a huge advantage.
Along about 1980, two things happened that helped WAMZ ascend to its place in Louisville radio history. First, Coyote Calhoun returned from Houston. He and Karl Shannon were the first two live DJs on WAMZ.
The second thing that happened around the same time was that WINN unceremoniously dumped its country format for a "Music of Your Life" format. Later that year Dickie Braun jumped from WINN to WAMZ.
And that was the beginning of the end of WINN.
I don't think "Music of Your Life" ended up being the success that the owners of WINN envisioned, so the station went back to a country format in June 1982 and tried to hang on for about two more years.
Then, in early 1984, WINN was sold and became WLLV, a gospel station.
You mentioned WCII, but I don't think it was much of a factor. It hung around from 1980 until about the end of the decade, but by that time AM was doomed. WTMT stayed around until three or four years ago, and 790 was both "WAKY Country" and "True Country WWKY", but none of these stations survived against WAMZ.
You talked about WINN being a progressive station with its jingles, DJ staff, and pop influences, but I think they also did a great job of maintaining a traditional country base, playing lots of Porter and Dolly, George & Tammy, Conway & Loretta, Mel Street, Gary Stewart, Mike Lunsford, and a lot of other songs with fiddle and steel guitar. Yet they managed to mix it with Charlie Daniels and some of the other songs you mentioned above.
It was a very special station to me and I am still waiting for another country station like WINN.
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